Read and translate the text about the political system of the UK.

THE POLITICAL SYSTEM

The United Kingdom is a constitutional (or parliamentary) monarchy, without a written constitution. The country has a monarch (a king or a queen) as its head of state. The monarch has very little power. The real power belongs to the Parliament. Parliament consists of two chambers: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Parliament and the monarch have different roles in the government of the country, and they only meet together on symbolic occasions such as the coronation of a new monarch or the opening of Parliament. In reality, only the House of Commons has the real power. It is here that new bills are introduced and debated. If the majority of the members support a bill, it goes to the House of Lords where they debate it, and finally the monarch signs it. Only then it becomes law.

The Monarch.

The Head of the State, the sovereign (монарх), is a symbol of the unity of the nation. Nowadays it is the Queen Elizabeth 2 (the second).

Functions of the Sovereign are the following:

- opening and closing Parliament;

- approving of the appointment of the Prime Minister;

- giving honoures such as peerages, knighthoods and medals;

- head of the church of England;

- Commander-in-Chief of the armed Forces.

The powers of the monarch are not defined precisely. Theoretically, every act of government is done in the Queen’s name and she appoints all the Ministers, including the Prime Minister. In reality, everything is done on the advice of the elected Government, and the monarch takes no part in the decision-making process.

The House of Lords

The House of Lords has more than 1,000 members, although only about 250 take an active part in the work of the House. Members of the House of Lords are not elected; they sit there because of their rank and do not receive a salary. The chairman of the House of Lords is the Lord Chancellor (лорд-канцлер), who sits on the woolsack. Members of the House of Lords debate a bill after it has been passed by the House of Commons. They may do some changes.

The House of Commons

The House of Commons consists of 659 elected members, known as Members of Parliament, or MPs. The leader of the House of Commons is the Speaker. The choice of an MP as Speaker is made by vote of the House.

Except in holiday periods the House of Commons meets every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 2.30 in the afternoon, and normally sits until 10.30 p.m. On Fridays it meets at 9.30 in the morning and finishes at 3.30 p.m.

The two Houses of Parliament share the same building, the Palace of Westminster. The Lords occupy the southern end, the Commons the rest, which includes some hundreds of rooms, among which are the library, restaurants, committee rooms, and offices for MPs.

The life of Parliament is divided into periods called “sessions”. A session lasts for about a year. The beginning of a new session, called ”the State Opening of Parliament”, is a fine ceremonial occasion, beginning with the royal carriage procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster.