6 Women in Parliament

Some people suppose that there are few women and members of the ethnic minorities in Parliament. In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became the first woman Prime Minister, yet she never elected a woman to her Cabinet and until 1983 the proportion of women appointed to the House of Commons was under 5 per cent. In the election of 1992, 59 women were elected to the House of Commons. This total is still below the proportion in other European countries.

Although few women are chosen as candidates to the House of Commons, they are very active in the affairs of the party as a whole. In all parties, a higher proportion of women is elected to local councils than the House of Commons. (600)

Notes to the text:

few women – мало женщин

this total – это общее количество

as a whole – в целом

local councils – местные советы

7 Election Campaign

People sometimes try to predict the result of an election weeks before it takes place. Several hundred people are asked which party they prefer, and their answers are used to guess the result of the coming election. This is called an opinion poll. Meanwhile each party conducts its election campaign with meetings, speeches, television programmes, and party members going from door to door encouraging people to support their party. In Britain everyone over 18 is eligible to vote. The place where people go to vote in an election is called a polling station and the day of the election is known as polling day. The voters put their votes in a ballot box and later they are counted. The candidate with the most votes is then declared the winner. (600)

Notes to the text:

weeks before – за несколько недель до

opinion poll – опрос общественного мнения

going from door to door – ходят из дома в дом

is eligible to vote – имеют право голосовать

polling station – избирательный участок

votes – бюллетени

ballot box – урна для голосования

8 The Election Timetable

The British government is elected for up to five years. About a month before the election the Prime minister meets a small group of close advisers to discuss the date.

The date is announced to the Cabinet. The prime Minister formally asks the Sovereign to dissolve Parliament.

When Parliament is dissolved, all MPs become unemployed, but government officers continue to function.

Party manifestos are published and campaigning begins throughout the country and lasts for about three weeks with large-scale press, radio and television coverage.

Voting takes place on Polling Day. The results from each constituency are announced as soon as the votes have been counted, usually the same night. The national result is known by the next morning at the latest.

As soon as it is clear that one party has a majority of seats in the House of Commons, its leader is formally invited by the Sovereign to form a government. (800)

Notes to the text:

close advisers – близкие советники

throughout the country – по всей стране

with large-scale … coverage – с широким освещением в …

as soon as the votes have been counted-как только голоса подсчитаны

at the latest – самое позднее

a majority of seats – большинство мест