This webinar was the first in a two-part series on how UK Parliament works. It considered some of the main ways in which the UK parliament is constituted and functions in the modern era.

The interactive webinar began with an exploration of what the webinar audience thought were the most important roles and functions of the UK Government, before going on to explore the nature of parliament and how it functions. Features, such as the way in which the opposition and government sit opposite each other in the Commons, led to discussions in the chat box as to the adversarial nature of British politics. By way of contrast, Jasmine highlighted that the House of Lords is both differently constituted and presented to the public and the less adversarial nature of the Lords was clearly and informatively depicted.

The political business caried out by MPs relating to parliament was also explained, as was the role of various parliamentary committees on which several MPs sit. As such, the varied and full nature of UK political life as carried out by its MPs who work on the preparatory, introductory and review stages of legislation was explored. The webinar also considered the UK Government beyond the Prime Minister and Cabinet, to the role of junior ministers and how these should be taken into account when trying to gain an understanding of what the government is responsible for in parliament.

The way in which the House of Lords, as a non-elected second chamber in parliament, operates was also considered. Jasmine pointed out that there are different types of peers, life, and hereditary ones, as well as 26 bishops in the Lords conducting the House of Lords’ business. Some of the ways in which the Lords scrutinises proposed laws by the House of Commons were covered in depth and the impact of the asymmetrical bicameral nature of UK politics considered.

Jasmine was also keen to point out that MPs and members of the House of Lords can be approached, via various means, to further certain legislative causes at different points during a government term of office. And, related to this, the growing importance and use of petitions by the public in recent years in the UK was thoroughly explored.

The somewhat involved process of bringing a proposed bill through to the final stage of it becoming law in parliament was also very clearly explained and this aroused particular interest and questions from the audience in the chat box; the whole legislative process was demystified and made clearer to the webinar audience as a result. Light was also shed on certain anomalies relating to how parliament is constituted, such as the process for replacing a deceased peer in the Lords.