PARLIAMENTARISM: ORIGIN, CHARACTERISTICS, ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

The parliamentary government is a political system in which power emanates an assembly composed of representatives generally elected. Parliament, the name of said assembly, is the one that holds the legislative power. This system is also known as parliamentary democracy.

The origin of modern Parliamentarism is in 17th century England, when existing MPs began to fight the King to limit his powers. Previously, examples of proto-parliamentarism can be found, although not with all the characteristics that define it, as in the 12th century Cortes de Castilla.

British Parliament. Source: By UK Parliament (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENIW7i48xHA), via Wikimedia Commons

In this type of system, it is the Parliament that elects the government, in charge of the executive power. Similarly, although there may be exceptions, it is also the body in charge of electing the Head of State. This figure usually only has representative functions, without real political power.

Currently, 38 of the 50 European countries and 10 of the 13 Caribbean are parliamentary democracies. They also exist in other regions, especially among nations that were British colonies. Apart from dictatorships or authoritarian systems, the other existing democratic system is Presidentialism.

Origin

The most distant antecedent of Parliamentarism was the assemblies that they organized in ancient Athens to decide the policy of the Polis. All free citizens met at these meetings and, by lottery, 500 people were chosen to form a council.

Later, already during the Middle Ages, the name of Parliament arose. These, with limited power, were composed of nobles, citizens and members of the clergy. His powers were at the expense of what the king decided.

One of the oldest examples of parliamentarism occurred in the Cortes of Castile and in the Cortes of León. In both kingdoms, assemblies made up of nobles, religious and representatives of the cities were convened at the end of the 12th century. The novelty was that they had the power to limit the power of the monarch.

Starting in the 13th century, the French kings allowed members of the so-called “third estate” to participate, with which the people and the incipient bourgeoisie began to have a presence in those original parliaments.

Modern parliamentarism

It was in seventeenth-century England that Parliamentarism began to acquire more modern characteristics. In 1640 there was a confrontation between King Carlos I and the English Parliament. The members of this chamber intended to limit the power of the monarch and he responded by declaring war against his own parliament.

It was a civil war that ended with the defeat of the royalists, with Parliament taking over the powers of the State. The situation only remained until 1649, when Cromwell established his dictatorship but the model created was the origin of modern Parliamentarism.

In that brief period, Parliament was constituted as an assembly elected by the citizens and the executive power was subject to its decisions.

After years of conflict, the Glorious Revolution of 1688 led to the return to that Parliamentarism in the United Kingdom, on that occasion already permanently.

In the rest of the European continent, this system of government had to wait until the French Revolution, although it took much longer to settle.

Bicameralism

One of the factors that contributed to the establishment of Parliamentarism in the UK was bicameralism. With this type of organization, Parliament was divided into two Houses, instead of just one. In the first, which was renamed the House of Commons, the representatives of the people were part, without aristocrats among them.

The second assembly, the House of Lords, consisted of aristocrats and members of the clergy, without having to be elected by vote.

In this way, and with the different prerogatives granted to each Chamber, dangerous confrontations for the stability of the country were avoided.

The UK has continued to maintain that division between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. In other countries with a parliamentary regime, the idea of ​​bicameralism was copied, although its composition and function varies depending on the case.

In most nations, the second chamber, almost always called the Senate, can be for territorial representation or for the rereading of laws, but without being composed of aristocrats.

characteristics

The main characteristic of Parliamentarism in the balance it achieves between the executive (government) and the legislative (Parliament). Ultimately, it is a matter of establishing a real control that prevents excesses in government action.

Within this control function, the most important thing is that Parliament is the body in charge of appointing the government through a vote of its members. Likewise, he has the power to dismiss him. On the other hand, it is the Executive who has the capacity to dissolve Parliament and call new elections.

Division of powers

The parliamentary system establishes a division between the powers of the state. On the one hand, there is the Executive Branch, headed by the President of the Government or the Prime Minister. On the other, the legislative branch, embodied by Parliament itself.

These two powers must be joined by the Judicial Power, which must be independent from the previous ones and which also controls that they do not exceed their functions.

Head of state

Whether they are monarchies or republics, Parliamentarism does not grant the Head of State decisive political functions. Unlike Presidentialism, the Head of State usually has his prerogatives limited to symbolic and representative issues.

In the case of republics, the Head of State is appointed by the Parliament itself, almost always at the proposal of the Prime Minister or Chancellor. This is the case, for example, in Germany or Italy, where the President only has a symbolic presence or as a referee in difficult situations.

government

As previously indicated, the Executive Power rests with the Government. This arises from the parliamentary majorities, who support or disapprove of their actions. In most countries there is the figure of the motion of no confidence, through which Parliament can dismiss the government if it loses its confidence.

The Head of Government, whose name may vary between Prime Minister, President of the Government or Chancellor, is also voted by Parliament. As a general rule, it is the one that has the power to dissolve the Chamber and make way for new elections.

One of the most important functions of Parliament is to control the Executive Power. There are various mechanisms for this, such as commissions of inquiry, parliamentary questions or appearances by ministers.

Political parties

Political parties are the organizations that nominate candidates for parliament. Once the citizens have voted, and depending on the electoral system, the seats are distributed and they begin to negotiate the formation of the government.

The party, or group of parties if there is no absolute majority, with more parliamentarians, is in charge of proposing a government of the nation and supporting its laws.

For their part, the opposition parties must be in charge of controlling this government action, presenting alternatives and criticizing the errors that, in their opinion, may occur.

Given the characteristics of Parliamentarism, the stability of the government is directly related to the possibility of forming majorities. In some countries, tradition and the electoral system have led to two-party systems. In others, coalition governments and the appearance of many parties in Parliament are frequent.

A frequent debate in countries with a parliamentary regime is about the convenience of making electoral laws that favor representation, facilitating a greater number of parties but making it difficult to form governments or preferring systems that help to achieve clear majorities even at the cost of losing representativeness..

Types

Experts distinguish several types of Parliamentarism. On the one hand, depending on their origin, they are classified between the English and the continental models. On the other, they make the distinction between the monarchist and the republican.

English type

The Head of Government is called Prime Minister. In this system, the executive prevails over Parliament.

Originally, as previously noted, it was a struggle between the bourgeoisie and absolutism. Parliament struggled to diminish royal power and become the representative of sovereignty. In return, it had to admit the existence of a House of Lords in which the aristocracy was represented.

Continental type

Historically it also arose as a struggle between the privileged sectors, starting with the king, and the bourgeoisie and popular classes. However, he soon met with opposition from socialist ideology organizations. This led to, in many cases, limiting themselves to prevent the rise to power of these groups.

France, the origin of this parliamentarism, changed its system over the years. Today, most authors consider him Presidential.

In this way, its Parliament does not elect the Head of Government, but is appointed in elections for this purpose. The Prime Minister has a very limited power compared to the figure of the President.

Parliamentary monarchies

The king in these Parliamentary Monarchies has very little power. Most of the time it only has representative or symbolic functions. It is the government that exercises, formally on its behalf, the Executive function.

The monarch must sign the approved laws, but it is a practically automatic action, with no possibility that the king can refuse.

There are quite a few monarchies of this type in Europe. Great Britain, Spain or Sweden are three good examples of this kind of political organization.

Parliamentary republics

In the Parliamentary Republics there are usually two different high positions: the President of the country and the Prime Minister. The latter also receives the name of Prime Minister or Chancellor, depending on the country.

The President of the nation does not usually have any kind of real power. Their functions resemble those of the kings previously described. Their choice, with some variations, is usually on the proposal of the Prime Minister and ratified by Parliament. On many occasions, a person of social relevance and consensus is sought.

For his part, the Prime Minister or President of the Government leaves the parliamentary majority. He is appointed by Parliament for a specified period of time.

Advantage

When speaking of the advantages of Parliamentarism, the experts do so comparing it with the other great democratic system: the presidential system.

In this comparison, the parliamentary system offers a greater representation of the country's society. On many occasions, the composition of the different parliaments forces the parties to reach agreements.

Another advantage it presents is the greater capacity to respond to government crises. In this way, it is not necessary to call new elections if the government falls, since Parliament can elect a new one.

Disadvantages

As with the advantages, when analyzing the disadvantages, presidential systems are usually taken as a reference.

In this regard, it is pointed out that the separation of powers between the executive and the legislative is less in Parliamentarism. Similarly, there is a very close link between the government and the majority political party in Parliament.

According to experts, Parliamentarism runs the risk of falling into partitocracy, in which the interests of each party are given more importance than the voters.

Lastly, Parliamentarism can lead to greater instability. Except in countries where bipartisanship exists, the greater the representation, the greater the political fragmentation in Parliament. This can make it difficult to form stable and durable governments.

Countries with this system

Current figures show that 38 of the 50 European states and 10 of the 13 Caribbean countries are parliamentarians. Other nations also have this system, especially those that belonged to the British Empire.

UK

It is the oldest parliamentary system. Its bicameral organization dates back to the 14th century, while relations with the Crown were legally defined in the 17th century.

The United Kingdom is a parliamentary monarchy. Political parties began to emerge in the 19th century and today can be defined as imperfect bipartisanship.

This indicates that, although it can change, there are only two large organizations with the potential to govern. However, other small parties are represented that can act as support for the large ones.

Unlike in other countries, in the United Kingdom the two Chambers are preserved with their original characteristics. One of them, that of the Commons, is the one elected by popular vote. The second, that of the Lords, is made up of aristocrats, although anyone with some merit can become Lord or Lady.

Germany

The German political system is the Parliamentary Federal Republic. It is made up of two different cameras. The first, the Bundestag, is made up of the representatives elected in the elections. It is also the body in charge of electing the Chancellor and controls the government.

The second chamber is the Bundesrat, and has the function of representing the Landers (federated states).

In addition, Germany elects a President of the Republic, usually a prestigious personality with arbitration and representation functions.

Spain

Spain is a parliamentary monarchy that has two houses of representatives. The first, Congress, has 350 members of parliament elected in the elections.

The second, the Senate, would have, according to the Constitution, the character of a territorial Chamber, but so far it has not developed in that sense and exercises functions of rereading the laws.

The President of the Government is elected by Congress through a vote of the parliamentarians. On the other hand, the king has representational and symbolic functions.

Japan

The Emperor of Japan is considered a symbol of the State and of unity, without having more executive powers.

The name of its Parliament is the Diet, which exercises legislative power, while the government that arises from this body is that which exercises executive power. Likewise, there is another Chamber, called "Councilors" which is renewed every six years.

References

1. Euston96. Parliamentarism. Retrieved from euston96.com
2. Escuelapedia. What is Parliamentarism. Obtained from schoolpedia.com
3. Lorente, Luis. Parliamentarism, or presidentialism? Obtained from larazon.es
4. United Nations. International Day of Parliamentarism. Retrieved from un.org
5. New World Encyclopedia. Parliament. Retrieved from newworldencyclopedia.org
6. Kids.Net.Au. History of Parliamentarism. Obtained from encyclopedia.kids.net.au
7. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Parliamentary democracy. Retrieved from britannica.com