Regime of the United Kingdom
Unitary vs. Federalism
The United Kingdom heavily leans toward a unitary regime. Although it does have some aspects that lean to federalism - such as the control over separated territories like the Wales, Ireland, and Scotland- the UK exercises a strict control over them. Even England itself is divided into area that have their own localized laws, but follow the laws, rules and acts of Parliament.
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Centralization vs. Devolution
Because of the UK's heavily unitary regime, the government is also heavily centralized. Parliament, the Cabinet, and the Judges act as the centralized power who exerts their authority upon the nations of the the UK. The lesser nations such as Northern Ireland and Scotland are allowed to have their own localized laws, which draws the scale slightly closer to devolution; however, since the main power still lies in Parliament, Cabinet and Judges, the government is still based on centralization.
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Coercion vs. Consensus
The UK leans heavily toward a consensus. Decisions are not usually made by a single executive, but are actually voted upon by a House of Lords and a House of Commons. Each of these parties represent different populations, thus assuring that most opinions are represented.
Sources of Legitimacy
Legal/Rational
The people in the government, for the most part, are elected or selected into office. However, some people do lack legitimacy, such as the Prime Minister, David Cameron, as they are not voted into office. Instead, they are selected by officials rather than being voted by the people. Furthermore, the members of the House of Lords are appointed rather than voted to represent the people. On the contrary, the members in the House of Commons are elected into office.
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Charismatic
The Queen is the face of the government, although she does not have any actual power. However, she appeals to the public through her appearances at important political and social events, and through propaganda. Furthermore, the current Prime Minister, David Cameron, definitely gains some of his charismatic legitimacy through his speeches to the public to win their favor and support.
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Traditional
The UK has been using the same system for many years now. The system of electing a Prime Minister through higher officials, the House of Lords, the House of Commons, and many more aspects of the government have been in place for decades. Although the current Prime Minister has lost some of his traditional legitimacy by gaining the support of two parties to make a majority, the system still has a high traditional legitimacy.
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Ideology of the Regime
The political ideology of the UK is highly democratic. Their idea of democracy stems from their belief of egalitarianism and believe that all people should have equal rights and privileges. Although they are not completely a liberal country, they have many liberal beliefs and lean more towards a social democracy. Of course in practice, this egalitarian democratic ideology held by the UK's government doesn't get fully realized due to social cleavages. The many ethnic and regional cleavages in the UK seem to dampen the government's application of their ideology.
Autonomy
The UK has a large amount of autonomy. It is a powerful nation on the international political stage which allows it to acts rather freely. The US, however, has a significant sway over the UK's actions; as a result, the UK doesn't enjoy full political autonomy. On the economic side of this, the UK does not enjoy complete autonomy either. Though it does have a thriving economy and does manufacture many goods, the UK is composed of islands which limits its access to natural resources. It is reliant on other nations for those. Because of this, the UK scores a 7.
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