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by The Land of Townside. . 168 reads.

Land of Townside | Politics | Parliament




Parliament

The House of Assembly starts its proceedings with a prayer. The chaplain looks at the assembled members with their varied intelligence and then prays for the country.


Parliament of the Land of Townside


Sovereign

The Queen

-Governor

-Admiral Sir Norwood Williams

-Lieutenant Governor

-Chief Justice Warwick Huntingdon-Stafford

Type

Bicameral

Upper house

Island Council

-President and Chief Islander

-Mary Stewart

Lower house

House of Assembly

-Speaker and Chief Commoner

-Amelia Parsonage

The Parliament of the Land of the Town Beside the Sea, commonly known as the Parliament of Townside, is the supreme legislative body of the Land of Townside. It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in Townside. Parliament is bicameral but has three parts, consisting of the Crown-in-Parliament, the Island Council, and the House of Assembly. The two houses meet in Parliament House in the Borough of Townside, the capital.

The Island Council consists of 35 members who are appointed to the Council by the Governor and Lieutenant Governor in the name and on behalf of the King. Island Councillors are drawn from current Bishops of the Church of Townside, former senior military officers of the Royal Townside Defence Force, and former judges of the Supreme Court of Townside.

The House of Assembly is an elected chamber with elections to 65 single member constituencies held at least every two years under the first-past-the-post system. The two Houses meet in separate chambers in Parliament House in Townside Borough. By constitutional convention, all government ministers, including the Premier, are members of the House of Assembly or, less commonly, the Island Council and are thereby accountable to the respective branches of the legislature. Most cabinet ministers are from the House of Assembly.

Townside’s supreme legislative power is officially vested in the Crown-in-Parliament. The Crown wields considerable power and acts on the advice of the Executive Council of Townside, as a check and balance on the almost equal powers of the Island Council and House of Assembly. The cooperation of all three constituent parts of the legislature is required for the exercise of legislative power.

Crown-in-Parliament


Military Coronet of the Governor and Chief of the Defence Force

St. Edward's Crown of the Monarch and Sovereign

Civil Coronet of the Lieutenant Governor and Chief Justice

The Crown-in-Parliament, ceremonially the Crown-in-Parliament under God-in-Heaven, is a technical term of constitutional law in Townside that refers to The Crown in its legislative role, acting with the advice and consent of the parliament (including the Island Council and the House of Assembly).

Fusion of powers

The concept of The Crown as part of parliament is related to the idea of the fusion of powers, meaning that the government (executive branch) and parliament (legislative branch) are fused together. This is a key concept of Townside’s Westminster system of government. It is in contradistinction to the idea of the separation of powers. The specific language of “The Crown” in parliament also alludes to the constitutional theory that ultimate authority of sovereignty rests with the monarch.

Role in legislating

Because of the sovereign’s place in the enactment of laws, the enacting clause of acts of Parliament may mention her, as well as the other two bodies of parliament. For example, Townsider Acts of Parliament will start with:

    “BE IT ENACTED NOW, THEREFORE, by Her Majesty the Queen, by and with the advice and consent of the Island Council and the House of Assembly, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows -”

Royal Assent

Bills passed by the houses are sent to the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor for Royal Assent in the name and on behalf of the King, which, once granted, makes the bill into law; these primary acts of legislation are known as Acts of Parliament.

Island Council



Chamber of the Island Council


Flag of the Island Council


Lords Spiritual (12)
Lords Temporal of the Sword (12)
Law Lords Temporal of the Robe (11)

The Island Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Townside. Membership is granted by appointment. Like the House of Assembly, it meets in Parliament House. Officially, the ceremonial name of the house is the Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of the Land of the Town Beside the Sea in Parliament assembled.

History

When Townside was first colonised in 1786, the first Governor was advised by a Governor's Council, which was similar to that of a Privy Council to the Monarch of Great Britain. Before the colony obtained responsible self-government, the Governor was an absolute ruler, with the Governor's Council exercising both executive and legislative functions. It's members were Church of Townside clerics, the Governor's most trusted military officers, and judges that were sent from the United Kingdom to administer justice in the colony.

However, after responsible self-government and the introduction of the elected House of Assembly, the Governor's Council was split into two distinct institutions: the Executive Council and the Legislative Council (now known as the Island Council), with the Island Council forming the upper house of the new Parliament, alongside the House of Assembly as the lower house. Judicial functions were transferred earlier on to an established Supreme Court.

Members

The lineage of the Island Council in the Governor's Council is still evident today. Unlike the elected House of Assembly, members of the Island Council are still appointed by the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor. The membership of the Island Council is made up of former judges (as Law Lords Temporal of the Robe), former senior military officers (as Lords Temporal of the Sword), and current bishops (as the Lords Spiritual).

Speech from the Throne

The Speech from the Throne is delivered in the Island Council during the State Opening of Parliament.

The Speech from the Throne, also known as the Throne Speech, is an event in which the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor, being the joint viceregal representatives of the reigning monarch in Townside, reads a prepared speech to members of the Parliament when a session is opened, outlining the government's priorities with respect to its legislative agenda, for which the cooperation of the legislature is sought for the forthcoming session. The speech is often accompanied with formal ceremony and is often held annually.

While both the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor would attend the State Opening of Parliament, only the Governor would read out the speech, in the presence of the Lieutenant Governor, who is Chief Justice. In this sense, the governor's address can also be termed the Policy Address.

It is considered improper for the audience, including members of parliament, to show support or disapproval for any content of the speech while it is being read by the Governor. Shows of support or disapproval is reserved to the debate and vote that follows.

Legislative Grand Committee

The Island Council scrutinises bills that have been approved by the House of Assembly. It may prevent Bills from passing into law, and can also delay Bills and force the House of Assembly to reconsider their decisions. In this capacity, the Island Council acts as a check on the House of Assembly that is independent from the electoral process. Bills can be introduced into either the Island Council or the House of Assembly.

While theoretically the entire Island Council exercises the legislative functions of the Council, in practice, certain members abstain from this exercise of general legislative functions, except in the most exceptional of circumstances.

Lords Temporal who are currently serving military officers abstain from the exercise of general legislative functions, except in the most exceptional of circumstances. The remainder of the members of the Island Council, being all the Lords Spiritual, former military officers, and all the Law Lords (all of them being former judges) form the Legislative Grand Committee to exercise the Island Council’s legislative functions.

Legislation, with the exception of money bills, may be introduced in either House, including the Island Council. The Island Council, through the Legislative Grand Committee, debates legislation, and has power to amend or reject bills. Unlike in some other upper houses, the Island Council is quite powerful in this regard, and bills originating from the House of Assembly cannot be presented for the Royal Assent without the consent of the Island Council. However, the Island Council cannot delay a money bill - a bill that solely concerns national taxation or public funds - for more than one month. Similarly, the Island Council may not originate a bill concerning taxation or Supply (supply of treasury or exchequer funds), nor amend a bill so as to insert a taxation or Supply-related provision. Moreover, the Island Council may not amend any Supply Bill.

Other than the above restrictions in regards to money and other financial bills, the Island Council otherwise functions as a regular legislative chamber of parliament similar to the House of Assembly.

Constitution Committee of the Island Council

The Constitution Committee of the Island Council is a committee of the Island Council whose remit is to examine the constitutional implications of all bills coming before the Council; and to keep under review the operation of the constitution. There is no consolidated codified constitution in Townside, but the Committee has defined the constitution as the set of laws, rules and practices that create the basic institutions of the State, and its component and related parts, and stipulate the powers of those institutions and the relationship between the different institutions and between those institutions and the individual.

The Committee has two main functions: examining public bills for matters of constitutional significance; and investigating wider constitutional issues.

With the first limb of its remit, the function of the Committee is not to resist constitutional change, but to ensure that when such change takes place through legislation, this occurs as the result of a conscious decision of Parliament, reached where possible after informed debate.

With the second limb of its remit, the Committee fulfils its function by carrying out longer investigative inquiries into wider constitutional issues. Once the Committee has chosen a subject, it engages a specialist adviser (an external expert in the field) and written submissions are invited. The Committee then takes oral evidence from a range of witnesses, including government ministers, and can also undertake visits.

The Constitution Committee of the Island Council is usually composed of all the Law Lords Temporal of the Robe, one Lord Temporal of the Sword, one Lord Spiritual, and one University Senator. The Constitution Committee is currently composed of 13 members of the Island Council.

Lords Spiritual

The Island Council also has a Church of Townside role, in that Religious Measures must be tabled within the Island Council by the Lords Spiritual.

The Lords Spiritual of Townside are the current and former bishops of the established Church of Townside who serve in the Island Council. The Church of Townside represent the faith of more than 20% of Townside. Other religions are not represented by the Lords Spiritual.

The Lords Spiritual are required to have no party affiliation, but they have their seats on the right-hand side of the throne in the Chamber of the Island Council. By custom, at least one Church of Townside Bishop reads prayers in each legislative day.

Church of Townside Measures (the Church equivalent of a parliamentary bill) must be put before the Island Council, and the Lords Spiritual have a role in ensuring that this takes place.

Chief Islander and President of the Island Council

The President of the Island Council is the presiding officer, chairman, and highest authority of the Island Council. The office is analogous to the Speaker of the House of Assembly. The President is appointed by the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor from among the members of the Island Council, and is expected to be politically impartial.

The President also represents the Island Council to the Monarch, the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor, the House of Assembly, and other authorities. In this capacity, the president is known as the Chief Islander.

Salary

With the exception of the President of the Island Council and Chief Islander, members of the Island Council do not receive a salary from the Island Council. Instead, they receive an "allowance" of £313. This is meant mainly to cover travel expenses, and as a nominal fee in recognition of their service to the Council and their service in their primary role (as bishop, soldier, or judge).

The reason for the lack of salary is that the position of Island Councillor is not viewed as a full time job, and all the members of the Island Council will already be drawing a salary from their primary role, or a pension from their former role, ie:

  • Paid by the Church of Townside:

    • Archbishop of Townside: £85,070 salary

    • Current diocesan bishops: £46,180 salary

  • Paid by the Supreme Court of Townside:

    • Former Lieutenant Governors and Chief Justices: £133,755 pension

    • Former Administrators of the Government and Presidents of the Court of Appeal: £119,434 pension

    • Former puisne judges: £115,358.60 pension

  • Paid by the Royal Townside Defence Force:

    • Former Governors and Brigadier-ranked officers: £59,030.50 pension

    • Former Colonel-ranked officers: £52,335.50 pension

    • Former Lieutenant Colonel-ranked officers: £45,503 pension

The President of the Island Council and Chief Islander is paid an annual salary of £145,492, paid by the Island Council itself.

House of Assembly



Chamber of the House of Assembly


Flag of the House of Assembly


HM Government (33)
Conservative Party (33)
HM Most Loyal Opposition
Alliance of Hope (31)

  • Labour Party (19)

  • Liberal Party (11)

  • Green Party (1)

Presiding officer
Speaker (1)

The House of Assembly, ceremonially the Honourable the Commons of the Land of the Town Beside the Sea in Parliament assembled, is the lower house of the Parliament of Townside. Like the upper house, the Island Council, it meets in Parliament House.

The House of Assembly is an elected body consisting of 65 members known as Members of Parliament (MPs). The term “Member of Parliament” means members of the House of Assembly, and does not apply to members of the Island Council. Members may use the post-nominal letters “MP”.

The Government is solely responsible to the House of Assembly and the Premier stays in office only as long as he retains the confidence of a majority of the Assembly.

Relationship with the Land of Townside Government

Although it does not formally elect the premier, by convention, the premier is answerable to, and must maintain the support of, the House of Assembly. Thus, whenever the office of premier falls vacant, the Govenor and the Lieutenant Governor appoints the person who has the support of the Assembly, or who is most likely to command the support of the Assembly - normally the leader of the largest party in the Assembly, while the leader of the second-largest party becomes the Leader of the Most Loyal Opposition. By convention, the Premier is always a member of the House of Assembly, rather than the Island Council.

The Assembly may indicate its lack of support for the Government by rejecting a motion of confidence, or by passing a motion of no confidence. Many other motions are considered confidence issues, even though not explicitly phrased as such: in particular, important bills that were part of the Government’s agenda. The annual Budget is still considered a matter of confidence. When a Government has lost the confidence of the House of Assembly, the premier is obliged either to resign, making way for another MP who can command confidence, or to request the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor to dissolve Parliament, thereby precipitating a general election.

Parliament usually sits for a maximum of five years. Subject to that limit, the premier can choose the timing of the dissolution of parliament, with the permission of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor.

Scrutiny of the government

The House of Assembly formally scrutinises the Government through its Committees and Premier’s Questions, when members ask questions of the premier; the House gives other opportunities to question other cabinet ministers. Premier’s Questions occur weekly, normally for half an hour each Wednesday. Questions must relate to the responding minister’s official government activities, not to his activities as party leader or as a private MP. Customarily, members of the Government party and members of the Opposition alternate when asking questions. Members may also make inquiries in writing.

The House of Assembly retains the power to impeach Ministers of the Crown (or any other subject, even if not a public officer) for their crimes. Impeachments are tried by the Island Council, where a simple majority is necessary to convict.

Legislative functions

Bills may be introduced in either house, though bills of importance generally originate in the House of Assembly. Though the Island Council and House of Assembly are generally co-equal, the House of Assembly is slightly superior because the Island Council is restricted in their ability to interfere with money and other financial bills, over which the House of Assembly has free rein over. However, a bill that seeks to extend a parliamentary term beyond five years requires the consent of the Island Council.

By custom, only the House of Assembly may originate bills concerning taxation or Supply. Furthermore, supply bills passed by the House of Assembly are immune to amendments in the Island Council. In addition, the Island Council is barred from amending a bill so as to insert a taxation or supply-related provision. Though the House of Assembly is in this way superior to the Island Council, cooperation of the Island Council is often needed for the House of Assembly to fulfil its other legislative agendas.

Members and qualifications

Each Member of Parliament represents a single constituency (also known as a seat). Geographic boundaries are determined by the permanent and independent Boundary Commissions. The Commission conducts general reviews of electoral boundaries once every 5 years. The proposals of the Boundary Commission are subject to parliamentary approval, but may not be amended. As of 2023, Townside is divided into 65 constituencies.

Each constituency has an approximate population of 4,205.

General elections occur whenever Parliament is dissolved. The timing of the dissolution is normally chosen by the Premier with the permission of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor.

Anyone under the age of 16, members of the Island Council, prisoners, and insane persons are not qualified to become members of the House of Assembly. To vote, one must be a resident and citizen of Townside. Townsider citizens living abroad are allowed to vote for 15 years after leaving. It is a criminal offence for a person to vote in the ballot of more than one seat which is vacant at any election.

Once elected, Members of Parliament normally continue to serve until the next dissolution of Parliament. But if a member dies or ceases to be qualified, his seat falls vacant. It is also possible for the House of Assembly to expel a member, a power exercised only in cases of serious misconduct or criminal activity. In each case, the vacancy is filled by a by-election in the constituency, with the same electoral system as in general elections.

There are numerous qualifications that apply to MPs.

  • One must be aged at least 16

  • One must be a citizen of Townside

  • Members of the Island Council may not serve in the House of Assembly

  • A person may not sit in the Assembly if he is bankrupt

  • MPs detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 for six months or more would have their seat vacated if two specialists reported to the Speaker of the House of Assembly that the member was suffering from a medically recognised mental disorder.

  • The deaf and dumb are ineligible to sit in the House of Assembly.

  • Anyone found guilty of high treason may not sit in Parliament until they’ve completed the term of imprisonment or received a full pardon from The Crown.

  • Anyone serving a prison sentence of one year or more is ineligible.

  • Those found guilty of certain election-related offences are disqualified for ten years.

  • Several other disqualifications include:

    • holders of high judicial offices

    • civil servants

    • members of the regular armed forces

    • members of foreign legislatures

    • holders of several Crown offices (Minister, even though they are paid officers of the Crown, are not disqualified)

Members of the General Assembly are not permitted to resign their seats.

Chief Commoner and Speaker of the House of Assembly

The speaker of the House of Assembly is the presiding officer of the House of Assembly.

The speaker presides over the House's debates, determining which members may speak and which amendments are selected for consideration. The speaker is also responsible for maintaining order during debate, and may punish members who break the rules of the House. Speakers remain strictly non-partisan and renounce all affiliation with their former political parties when taking office and afterwards.

The speaker does not take part in debate or vote (except to break ties; even then, the convention is that the speaker casts the tie-breaking vote in a way that results either in further debate or a vote for the status quo). Aside from duties relating to presiding over the House, the speaker also performs administrative and procedural functions. In addition, they remain a constituency MP and are part of the Executive Council.

The speaker also represents the House of Assembly to the Monarch, the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor, the Island Council, and other authorities. In this capacity, the speaker is known as the Chief Commoner.

The speaker has the right to reside in lodgings at Parliament House.

Salary

The annual salary of each Member of Parliament is £84,144.

Members may also receive additional salaries for other offices they hold (e.g. Speaker, Minister, Premier).

On top of their salaries as MPs, government ministers and the Speaker are also paid an additional £71,673, giving a total salary of £155,817.

The Premeir is paid an additional £79,936 on top of their salary as an MP, giving a total salary of £164,080.

The highest paid member of government is the Attorney General who, on top of their salary as an MP, is paid £99,732, giving a total salary for the Attorney General of £183,876.

Elections


There is only one type of election in Townside, which are the elections to the House of Assembly. These are known as general elections if all seats in the House of Assembly are contested at the same time, or by-elections if only one or a few seats are contested, such as where an MP dies in between general elections, thus vacating their seat.

As a cost-saving measure for the small country, elections for Townside's two local government areas and for directly-elected mayors were never instituted. Instead, the Minister of Housing, Communities, and Local Government and the Minister of Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs would serve as Townside's two ex officio mayors, and the staff at their relevant Ministries would function in place of an elected local council.

By convention, elections for the House of Assembly are called at no more than two-year intervals. The power to call a general election is reserved to the Governor and Lieutenant Governor, acting jointly. They may accept or deny a request by a Premier to call a general election before the conventional two-year time limit expires. The Governor and Lieutenant Governor may also call a general election when the Premier has clearly lost the ability to command the confidence of the majority of the House of Assembly. This is usually evinced by a failure of confidence and/or supply, eg a successful vote of no confidence in the House of Assembly, or the rejection of Supply Bill (ie rejection of the budget).

MPs are elected to represent single-member constituencies by the first-past-the-post system and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved.

Any person who meets the qualifications and requirements for a seat in the House of Assembly can be elected to the lower house indefinitely, with no term limits.

Suffrage is universal for those over 18 years of age. Women's suffrage was granted in Townside as early as 1838.

Of the 65 MPs currently elected to the House of Assembly, 23 (35.38%) are women.

64 MPs are elected from the Borough of Townside, while 1 MP is elected from the Shire of Lafonia. For the past century, all MPs elected from Lafonia have been from the Conservative Party.

2022 General Election

The results of the most recent Townsider general election, held in 2022, are as follows:

Political parties

Votes

%

MPs

%

Conservative Party

51,139

38.43%

31

46.27%

Labour Party

38,535

28.96%

20

29.85%

Liberal Party

18,262

13.72%

9

13.43%

Green Party

6,484

4.45%

1

1.49%

Independents

18,660

14.02%

6

8.96%

Total votes

133,080

100.00%

67

100.00%

Registered voters

188,910

Turnout

70.45%

By constitutional convention, the next general election in Townside should take place in 2024.

Political parties


There are four official political parties in Townside:

Party

Political position

Ideologies

Coalition

Seats

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Conservative Party

Centre-right

Mainly:
Conservatism

Economic liberalism
Liberalism
Liberal conservatism

None

33/65

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Labour Party

Centre-left

Mainly:
Social democracy

Democratic socialism

Alliance of Hope

19/65

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Liberal Party

Centre to centre-left

Mainly:
Liberalism

Social liberalism

Alliance of Hope

12/65

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Green Party

Left-wing

Mainly:
Green politics

Progressivism
Eco-socialism
Social democracy
Socialism
Centrism
Anti-neoliberalism

Alliance of Hope

1/65

The Land of Townside

Edited:

RawReport