The Effectiveness of the House of Commons as a Check on the Government.

opposition is also given the opportunity to question and criticize the Prime Minister directly during PM question time. Each week on Wednesday afternoon the prime minister must come to the House of Commons to answer oral questions for half an hour. This is an effective check because when minister have their question time the opposition should be ready to criticize and demand answers. This ensures that a Government is credible and held accountable. If not, an unchallenged government can make mistakes.         The Commons are also play as a check point for legislation. Most of the UK’s legislation originates from the government. It is presented to parliament in the form of a draft Bill. The Bill must pass through a number of stages. Amendments can be made to a Bill or it can be rejected by the Commons. MP’s are given the opportunity to debate a Bill before a vote. However, from source to quote, “whips have a lot of influence and much seems to be unofficially decided ‘behind the Speaker’s Chair’”. Whips ensure party discipline and MP’s are expected to vote the way to which government wants them too, quote from source 2 “Backbench MP’s have few powers and most of Parliament’s time is controlled by the government.” This ensures that if a government has a majority of seats in the House of Commons a Bill should have a smooth passage through the legislative process. Therefore it can be said that is not an effective check on legislation.         Scrutinizing of policies and administration also holds as an effective check in the House of Commons. It thus provides legitimation for Government in the sense that its approval can be seen as representing the assent of the electorate. Policies should signify the views of the general population, hence the diversity of MP’s as seen in source 1.Government is expected to explain its actions and defend. If a government is in working majority the opposition is powerless in to halt government action but can delay. Also a vote of no-confidence can be passed, as in the case of James Callaghan’s government in 1979.         It can be said therefore that the House of Commons does act as an effective check on government in many ways. However there are some loop holes with the system in the Commons. It is still seen as a cradle of democracy to which power flows from the electorate to Parliament which chooses and controls the executive ensuring that government works effectively in accordance with its mandate.