Short Money
Short Money is the common name given to the annual payment to opposition parties in the United Kingdom House of Commons to help them with their costs. It includes funding to assist an opposition party in carrying out its Parliamentary business, for opposition parties' travel and associated expenses, and for the running costs of the Leader of the Opposition's office. It is named after Edward Short (later Lord Glenamara), the then-Leader of the House of Commons who first proposed the payments. Cranborne Money is its counterpart in the House of Lords. Origin Short Money was introduced by the Harold Wilson Government of 1974–76 following a commitment in the Queen's Speech of 12 March 1974: "My Ministers will consider the provision of financial assistance to enable Opposition parties more effectively to fulfil their Parliamentary functions". Edward Short fleshed out the proposal in a statement on Members' allowances in July 1974: The current scheme is administered under a res ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Official Opposition (UK)
His Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition, commonly known as the Official Opposition in the United Kingdom, is the main political opposition to His Majesty's Government. This is usually the political party with the second-largest number of seats in the House of Commons, as the largest party will usually form the government. Since May 2010, the Official Opposition has been the Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer since 2020. Origins The phrase ''His Majesty's Opposition'' was coined in 1826, before the advent of the modern two-party system, when Parliament consisted more of interests, relationships and factions rather than the highly coherent political parties of today (although the Whigs and Tories were the two main parties). The phrase was originally coined in jest; in attacking Foreign Secretary George Canning in the House of Commons, John Hobhouse said jokingly, "It is said to be hard on His Majesty's Ministers to raise objections of this character but it is more hard on His Majes ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oath Of Allegiance (UK)
The Oath of Allegiance (Judicial or Official Oath) is a promise to be loyal to the British monarch, and his or her heirs and successors, sworn by certain public servants in the United Kingdom, and also by newly naturalised subjects in citizenship ceremonies. The current standard wording of the oath of allegiance is set out in the Promissory Oaths Act 1868. Variants of the basic oath of allegiance are also incorporated into a number of other oaths taken by certain individuals. Text The current standard oath of allegiance is set out from the Promissory Oaths Act 1868 in the following form: Under the Oaths Act 1888 (51 & 52 Vict. c.46), consolidated and repealed by the Oaths Act 1978, those who choose to may make a Affirmation in law, solemn affirmation instead of swearing an oath. Oaths of office, of allegiance, and judicial oath The Victorian promissory oaths of allegiances, are set out in the Promissory Oaths Act 1868 in the following form: *The original oath of allegianc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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House Of Commons Of The United Kingdom
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 members known as members of Parliament (MPs). MPs are elected to represent constituencies by the first-past-the-post system and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved. The House of Commons of England started to evolve in the 13th and 14th centuries. In 1707 it became the House of Commons of Great Britain after the political union with Scotland, and from 1800 it also became the House of Commons for Ireland after the political union of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922, the body became the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland after the independence of the Irish Free State. Under the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, the Lords' power to reject legislation was reduced to a delaying power. The g ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Government Of The United Kingdom
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, Royal Arms , date_established = , state = United Kingdom , address = 10 Downing Street, London , leader_title = Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister (Rishi Sunak) , appointed = Monarchy of the United Kingdom, Monarch of the United Kingdom (Charles III) , budget = 882 billion , main_organ = Cabinet of the United Kingdom , ministries = 23 Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom#Ministerial departments, ministerial departments, 20 Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom#Non-ministerial departments, non-ministerial departments , responsible = Parliament of the United Kingdom , url = The Government of the United Kingdom (commonly referred to as British Governmen ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Consumer Price Index (United Kingdom)
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the official measure of inflation of consumer prices of the United Kingdom. It is also called the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP). History The traditional measure of inflation in the UK for many years was the Retail Prices Index (RPI), which was first calculated in the early 20th century to evaluate the extent to which workers were affected by price changes during the First World War. The main index was described as the Interim Index of Retail Prices from 1947 to 1955. In January 1956, it was rebased and renamed the Index of Retail Prices. In January 1962 this was replaced by the General Index of Retail Prices, which was again rebased at that time. A further rebasing occurred in January 1987, subsequent to the issue of the first index-linked gilts. RPIX An explicit inflation target was first set in October 1992 by Chancellor of the Exchequer Norman Lamont, following the UK's departure from the Exchange Rate Mechanism. Initially, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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George Osborne
George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the Cameron government. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Tatton from 2001 to 2017. He was editor of the ''Evening Standard'' from 2017 to 2020. The son of the Osborne & Little co-founder and baronet Peter Osborne, Osborne was born in Paddington and educated at Norland Place School, Colet Court and St Paul's School before studying at Magdalen College, Oxford. After working briefly as a freelancer for ''The Daily Telegraph'', he joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994 and became head of its political section. He went on to be a special adviser to Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Douglas Hogg and work for John Major at 10 Downing Street, including on Major's unsuccessful 1997 gen ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Green Party Of England And Wales
The Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW; cy, Plaid Werdd Cymru a Lloegr, kw, Party Gwer Pow an Sowson ha Kembra, often simply the Green Party or Greens) is a green, left-wing political party in England and Wales. Since October 2021, Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay have served as the party's co-leaders. The party currently has one representative in the House of Commons and two in the House of Lords, in addition to hundreds of councillors at the local government level and three members of the London Assembly. The party's ideology combines environmentalism with left-wing economic policies, including well-funded and locally controlled public services. It advocates a steady-state economy with the regulation of capitalism, and supports proportional representation. It takes a progressive approach to social policies such as civil liberties, animal rights, LGBT rights, and drug policy reform. The party also believes strongly in non-violence, universal basic income, a living wa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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UKIP
The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest party representing the UK in the European Parliament. The party is currently led by Neil Hamilton. UKIP originated as the Anti-Federalist League, a single-issue Eurosceptic party established in London by Alan Sked in 1991. It was renamed UKIP in 1993, but its growth remained slow. It was largely eclipsed by the Eurosceptic Referendum Party until the latter's 1997 dissolution. In 1997, Sked was ousted by a faction led by Nigel Farage, who became the party's preeminent figure. In 2006, Farage officially became leader and, under his direction, the party adopted a wider policy platform and capitalised on concerns about rising immigration, in particular among the White British working class. This resulted in significant breakthroughs at the 20 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith. Its members founded the revolutionary Irish Republic and its parliament, the First Dáil, during the Irish War of Independence. The party split in the aftermath of the Irish Civil War, giving rise to the two traditionally dominant parties of southern Irish politics: Fianna Fáil, and Cumann na nGaedheal (which became Fine Gael). For several decades the remaining Sinn Féin organisation was small without parliamentary representation. Another split in 1970 at the start of the Troubles led to the Sinn Féin of today, with the other faction eventually becoming the Workers' Party. During the Troubles, Sinn Féin was associated with the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA). For most of that conflict, there were broadcasting bans on Si ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chocolate Soldier (Parliament)
A Chocolate Soldier was a Parliamentary assistant for an opposition front bench spokesman in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in the early 1970s, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Social Service Trust, which was endowed by the chocolate entrepreneur Joseph Rowntree. The scheme was a pilot project to assist the opposition to carry out parliamentary duties and counteract the advantage that government ministers enjoy through briefings from civil servants, and was instigated by the trust's secretary, Pratap Chitnis. In 1974, the scheme was given official parliamentary support through the provision of Short Money to opposition parties, announced by Edward Short on 29 July 1974. The Rowntree Trust made a similar fund available to the opposition in the late 1980s, to assist with travel expenses. This funding ceased in 1992, after the provision of Short Money was expanded to add a travel element. Chocolate Soldiers Many Chocolate Soldiers later made a significant contribution in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands within the British Isles. Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. The total area of the United Kingdom is , with an estimated 2020 population of more than 67 million people. The United Kingdom has evolved from a series of annexations, unions and separations of constituent countries over several hundred years. The Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of England (which included Wales, annexed in 1542) and the Kingdom of Scotland in 170 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Speech From The Throne
A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or a representative thereof, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a session is opened, outlining the government's agenda and focus for the forthcoming session, or in some cases closed. When a session is opened, the address sets forth the government's priorities with respect to its legislative agenda, for which the cooperation of the legislature is sought. The speech is often accompanied with formal ceremony and is often held annually, although in some places it may occur more or less frequently, whenever a new session of the legislature is opened. Historically, when monarchs exercised personal influence and overall decision-making in government, a speech from the throne would outline the policies and objectives of the monarch; the speech was usually prepared by the monarch's advisers, but the monarch supervised the drafting of the speec ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |