Unit II: Great Britian

Key Concepts:
Traditional political culture, class system, parliamentary democracy, cabinet government, unitary government, single-member electoral system, corporatism welfare state, privatization

Objectives:

To understand:
  1. how tradition affects the political system and political behavior.
  2. the effect of class on politics, as opposed to other social divisions.
  3. the roles of Lords, Commons, the Prime Minister, and the cabinet.
  4. how cabinet government uses its power.
  5. why Britons share values on acceptable forms of political participation.
  6. how the education system supports parliamentary and bureaucratic leadership.
  7. why Labour and Tories have differed over economic policies since World War II.
  8. how "new Labour" under Tony Blair relates to Thatcherism.
  9. how Northern Ireland and membership in the EU affect domestic politics.
  10. how "devolution" is working.