Glossary of government terms
BE ABLE to define and use correctly the following terms and concepts: 1. Adult suffrage: Adult suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens 18 and older. 2. Backbencher: This is a member of parliament who is not a minister and does not sit on the front benches reserved for cabinet ministers or for opposition party officials. 3.Ballot: A sheet of paper or a card used to cast or register a vote, usually a secret vote. 4. Bill: A bill is a suggestion for a law that Parliament is asked to consider. 5. Budget: The plan of where the government is going to get revenue and how it will spend this money. 6. Cabinet: This is the group of ministers who work closely with the prime minister. They are appointed by the prime minister to be head of a government department. 7. Candidate: This is a person who is nominated for election. 8. Citizen: A Jamaican citizen is a person who was born in Jamaica or who moved here and met the rules to become a Jamaican. 9. Coalition: This is the joining together of two or more political parties to form a government or an opposition. This happens when no single party has a clear majority in Parliament/the House of Representatives. 10. Committee: A group of senators, members of parliament, or both, selected to study a specific subject or bill and write a report about it before it is voted for. 11. Constituency: The area in a country that a member of parliament represents in the House of Representative (also known as an electoral district). 12. Constitution: This is the set of rules which a country likes followed to ensure the nation works well. 13. Debate: A discussion of any subject by senators or members of parliament. This is done when a bill is formulated. 14. Democracy: A country that is governed by people who are elected by its citizens to make decisions on their behalf. (Government by the people for the people.) 15. Election: The selection of a person or government by voting. In Jamaica, elections for members of parliament must be held at least every five years using the first-past-the-post electoral system. 16. Electorate: People who are entitled to vote in a country. 17. It is a voter who does not vote consistently for one or other of the political parties but ‘floats’ between. 18. Franchise: A privilege or right officially granted a person or a group by a government, especially the constitutional right to vote. 19. Governing party: The political party that forms the government because it had more of its members elected to parliament by the people than any other political party. 20. Government: This is the ruling authority running the business of the country. 21. Government of national unity: Government of national unity, or GNU, is a special form of government formed by rival political parties after an election in which all parties involved failed to obtain a clear majority necessary to govern. The GNU is also known as the ‘grand coalition cabinet’. 22. Governor general: The representative of the monarch (queen or king) in Jamaica who acts on the monarch’s behalf with the advice of the prime minister and Cabinet. 23. Hansard: This is the printed record of all that members of parliament say in the House of Representatives. 24. Head of government: The prime minister is the head of government and is responsible for the business of the country. 25. Head of state: The monarch (queen or king) is the head of state of Jamaica. The governor general represents the monarch. 26. Hung Parliament: A hung Parliament is created if no party wins an outright majority. Two parties must form a coalition to govern in order to create an overall majority of MPs. 27. Law: A rule for all citizens made by the senators and members of parliament through discussion and voting. 28. Leader of the Opposition: The leader of the political party that had elected the second-most MPs in the election. The members of this party do not always agree with the ideas of the governing party and often question them about their decisions. 29. Local government: The council that manages the business of a municipality (village, town or city). The people living in that area elect the council members. 30. Lower House: This is another name for the House of Representatives. 31. Mace: A large, heavy and richly ornamented staff which represents the power and authority of Parliament. 32. Manifesto: A public declaration of policy and aims, especially one issued before an election by a political party or candidate. 33. Member of parliament (MP): A person elected to the House of Representatives. There are 63 members of parliament representing all of the areas of Jamaica in the House of Representatives. 34. Parliament: This body is responsible for the making of the laws that apply across Jamaica. It is made up of the governor general as the queen’s representative, the Senate and the House of Representatives. 35. Political party: A group of people who have the same beliefs about how the country should be run. 36. Poll: A survey that asks questions to find out what people think on a certain topic. 37. Prime minister: This individual is the head of government and leader of the governing party. The prime minister is also a member of parliament and represents a constituency. 38. Representative: A person chosen or appointed to act or speak for another or others. 39. Royal assent: This is the term used when the governor general approves a bill passed by Parliament to make it law. 40. Senate: This is also known as the Upper House of Parliament. 41. Throne Speech: The speech given by the governor general at the start of a new session of Parliament, describing what the government plans to do. 42. Upper House: This is another name for the Senate. 43. Vote: This is the way citizens choose a representative in an election; it is also the process which senators and MPs use to make a decision. 44. Voters list: A file containing the names of persons who are eligible to vote in a country Source: http://www.parl.gc.ca/About/Parliament/Educati on/GlossaryElementary/index.asp Online dictionary
ACTIVITY:
Research the following: Why is government necessary? Identify and differentiate between the two main electoral systems used in the Caribbean.
“The best of all governments is that which teaches us to govern ourselves.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe