GCSE Citizenship Summer Task

Task 1: Revise Parliament using the Parliamentary Education Unit resources

The Parliament Education Service has many useful resources to explain the role and responsibilities of
Parliament.

TASK: Watch these four films and answer the questions below:

Introduction to Parliament

What is the House of Commons?

Who is in the House of Lords?

How are laws made?

https://learning.parliament.uk/resources/introduction-to-parliament-primary-video/

1. When was the Magna Carta signed?

2. What is the government’s job?
3. What is Parliament’s job?
4. What are the three parts of Parliament?
5. Where do MPs work?
6. How many MPs are there?
7. What is the name for the area that each MP represents called?
8. Do all MPs belong to a political party?
9. Who do the public vote for in general elections?
10. What does the leader of the party with the most MPs become after a general election?
11. Which party becomes the government?
12. What are the parties who aren’t in power called?
13. Whose job is it to keep order during debates in the House of Commons?
14. What are the people who are chosen to sit in the House of Lords called?
15. What are female members of the House of Lords called?
16. What are peers whose positions have been passed down to them from their family known as?
17. What is the monarch’s involvement with the Prime Minister and laws?
18. Who makes laws?
19. What is an idea for a new law known as?
20. Who has to sign the bill before it becomes a law?
21. What kind of political system is Britain?
22. How old do you have to be to vote?
23. Are general elections the only election citizens can vote in?
24. How often are general elections usually held?
25. What is a manifesto?
26. What is it called if no one party wins an election?
27. What is it called if two or more parties join together to form a government?
28. How old do you have to be to register to vote?

https://learning.parliament.uk/en/resources/what-is-the-house-of-commons-secondary-animation/
 1. How many MPs are there in the House of Commons?
2. What is the name for the area that an MP represents?
3. Who becomes the Prime Minister?
4. Approximately how many ministers are in the cabinet?
5. What do the opposition parties do?
6. Who keeps the house in order?
7. How can MPs challenge the government in the House of Commons?
8. What is the main responsibility of the House of Commons and House of Lords together?
9. What is an idea for a new law called?
10. What do select committees do?

https://learning.parliament.uk/resources/who-is-in-the-house-of-lords/

1. Name four life peers and state their expertise and background.
2. Who chooses a peer’s name?
3. Do Lords represent interests or constituencies?
4. What is an advantage of peers being unelected?

https://learning.parliament.uk/resources/how-laws-are-made/

1. What is a proposal for a new law called?

2. When a government wants to propose a new law, what is the first document published by the
government called?
3. Who can comment on this proposal?
4. What is a white paper?
5. Who introduces bills to Parliament?
6. Which house’s approval is required for a bill to become law?
7. What is the monarch’s role in making laws?

Task 2: Newswatch – watch / listen to or read the news. Use reputable news sources e.g. bbc.co.uk,
newspapers or newspaper websites.

In particular you should find an article about these two topics. Either print them out / cut them out of a
newspaper or summarise the article and answer these questions. (Don’t forget to write down the date and
source of the article).

1) The Conservative Party are due to decide who will be their new leader by September 5 th. Find an
article about the two main candidates and find out how their views and policies differ.
2) Find an article about a pressure group – this could be an environmental pressure group or a trade
union. What methods are they using? Are they successful, why / why not?