CNN英國選舉問答解讀英國政治體制(中英雙語)

1、CNN英國選舉問答：解讀英國政治體制（中英雙語）Q&A: The UK political system explained解讀英國政治體制April 26, 2010 - Updated 1548 GMT (2348 HKT)STORY HIGHLIGHTS內(nèi)容簡介· A general election must take place in the UK at least every five years · 在英國每五年至少舉行一次總選舉。 · The power of the monarchy has gradually dwindled sinc

2、e the 17th century · 自從17世紀(jì)以來，國王的權(quán)力逐漸縮小。 · Power in the UK parliament rests with the lower house, known as the Commons · 英國國會(huì)的權(quán)力取決于下院，后者又稱為平民院。 · The last parliament where no party had a majority was in 1974 - analysts predict it will happen in 2010 · 上一屆沒有任何政黨在國會(huì)中取得多數(shù)發(fā)生在197

3、4年分析人士預(yù)言在2010年可能會(huì)發(fā)生。  London, England (CNN) - The United Kingdom votes on a new government May 6 through a political system that dates back centuries.英國倫敦（CNN）5月6日，英國投票選舉新一屆政府，這種選舉通過一種可追溯到以前數(shù)世紀(jì)的政治體制來進(jìn)行。When does an election happen?一場(chǎng)選舉何時(shí)舉行？The UK has no written constitution. Instead the country

4、's electoral system is based on a series of parliamentary acts dating back to the 17th century, when men wore the sort of tights and wigs still donned on ceremonial occasions by some officials of the Houses of Parliament.英國沒有成文憲法。然而，該國的選舉體制基于一系列的議會(huì)法案，這些法案可追溯到17世紀(jì)，當(dāng)時(shí)的人們都身穿緊身衣褲、頭戴假發(fā)，這一傳統(tǒng)至今依然在一些重要的

5、場(chǎng)合由一些國會(huì)的官員所遵循。A general election is when voters nationwide choose lawmakers who will sit in the House of Commons, the lower chamber which initiates and approves legislation.一場(chǎng)總選舉發(fā)生在全國選民選擇國會(huì)議員之時(shí)，國會(huì)又稱為下院，它審議或者批準(zhǔn)立法。An election must take place, by law, at least every five years. That said, governments c

6、an call an election at any time during their term. They could also be forced into an election if they lose a majority of lawmakers in the Commons.根據(jù)法律規(guī)定，至少每五年舉行一次選舉。也就是說，政府在其任內(nèi)無論何時(shí)都可號(hào)召進(jìn)行選舉。如果他們失去了在下院的多數(shù)之后，也可能被進(jìn)行選舉。 Who calls an election?由誰發(fā)起一場(chǎng)選舉？The starting gun in a general election is traditi

7、onally fired when the prime minister travels to Buckingham Palace to ask the queen, the UK's head of state, to dissolve parliament by royal proclamation.總選舉的發(fā)令槍在傳統(tǒng)上是由首相去晉見并征求國王意見，國王是國家的元首，它通過發(fā)布皇家聲明來解散國會(huì)。An election must then take place within weeks. Since 1979, elections have been held between A

8、pril and June. It is customary for an election to be held on a Thursday.之后必須于數(shù)周內(nèi)發(fā)起選舉。從1979年以來，選舉通常于4至6月份之間進(jìn)行。選舉于周四進(jìn)行已經(jīng)成為慣例。The vote is conducted through the "first past the post" system whereby the candidate in each constituency with the most votes wins the seat.選舉通過“首先經(jīng)過票箱”的體制來進(jìn)行，在每個(gè)選區(qū)贏得多

9、數(shù)的候選人獲得議員席位。 If the queen is the head of state, then how come the UK a democracy?如果女王是政府元首，那么英國是如何成為一個(gè)民主政體的呢？Although the UK is a monarchy, the powers of the reigning head of state have gradually dwindled since King Charles I was beheaded in 1649 following the English Civil War between Royalist

10、s and Parliamentarians.盡管英國是一個(gè)君主政體，但是自從查理一世1649年被送上斷頭臺(tái)以來，國王治理國家的權(quán)力逐漸縮小。那年在?；逝膳c議會(huì)派之間發(fā)生了英國內(nèi)戰(zhàn)。Today, the monarch's role is largely ceremonial and mostly restricted to state functions and appearing on stamps and banknotes. But the monarch still retains formal powers and opens parliament each year.今天

11、，國王的權(quán)力基本上是象征性的，并且在管理政府方面受到最嚴(yán)格的限制，看起來僅僅相當(dāng)于蓋圖章。 How does parliament function?國會(huì)如何運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)？The job of parliament is to make laws, scrutinize the actions of the government and debate issues of the day. The Commons - which has green benches - currently consists of 650 directly elected lawmakers known as M

12、embers of Parliament or MPs who each represent a geographical constituency.國會(huì)的工作是制定立法、監(jiān)督政府以及討論一天中的議題。下院全部是綠色的長椅通常是由650名直接選出的議員組成，它們通常稱為平民院，每名議員代表一個(gè)地理意義上的選區(qū)。The upper house, the Lords - which has red benches - is mostly appointed by the government with members serving for life. Its main duty is to vo

13、te on legislation passed by the Commons and, when necessary, to send it back for further debate.上院，又稱為貴族院它全部都是紅色的長椅多數(shù)由政府任命，并且終身任職。它的主要職責(zé)是對(duì)下院通過的立法進(jìn)行表決，或者在必要時(shí)將其發(fā)回重新進(jìn)行討論。In certain circumstances the government can force through legislation passed by the Commons but rejected by the Lords.在一些特定的時(shí)刻，政府可以要求

14、將下院通過而上院否決的立法強(qiáng)制執(zhí)行。 How is an election decided?選舉如何確定結(jié)果？Voters do not elect the prime minister, or head of government, directly. Rather, they vote to elect a candidate representing a particular party to serve as their local MP. The leader of the party which wins the most seats is then asked by t

15、he Queen to form a government. The leader of the second largest party in the Commons becomes the "Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition."選民不能直接選舉首相或者政府首腦。而是由他們選舉出候選人，這位候選人代表一個(gè)特定的黨派，來擔(dān)任首相職務(wù)。在議會(huì)中贏得多數(shù)議席的黨的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人會(huì)在此后由女王授權(quán)組織一屆政府。在國會(huì)中第二大黨的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人成為“女王陛下的反對(duì)黨領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人”。MPs are elected by a plurality, rather t

16、han a majority, of votes. This means that a party can win a majority of seats in the Commons without achieving an overall majority in the overall popular vote. In fact, because there are three main parties in the UK it is extremely rare for a party to win an outright majority.議員通過受歡迎而贏得選舉，而不是僅僅通過多數(shù)票

17、。這意味著一個(gè)黨能夠贏得下院多數(shù)席位，而不是在所有受歡迎程度的投票中獲得壓倒性的多數(shù)。實(shí)際上，由于在英國有三個(gè)主要的黨派，對(duì)于一個(gè)黨來說要獲得壓倒性的多數(shù)非常少見。The last prime minister elected by an outright majority was Stanley Baldwin, the Conservative Party leader, in 1931. In 2005, Tony Blair's Labour Party won just 35 percent of the vote but still controlled a 66-seat

18、 majority in the House of Commons.上一屆獲得壓倒性多數(shù)的首相是Stanley Baldwin，他是保守黨的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人，發(fā)生于1931年。在2005年，布萊爾的工黨僅僅獲得全體投票的35，但是依然控制了下院的66個(gè)多數(shù)議席。So who can I vote for?因此我該投誰的票呢？For most of the past century, British politics has been dominated by two parties, the left-wing Labour Party and the right-wing Conservative P

19、arty. That said, the boundaries between left and right have been blurred as each has strived to occupy the strategically important center ground.在上世紀(jì)的多數(shù)時(shí)間，英國政治始終由兩個(gè)黨派為主，左翼的工黨與右翼的保守黨。也就是說，當(dāng)每個(gè)黨派試圖占據(jù)壓倒性的優(yōu)勢(shì)時(shí)，左與右之間的界限已經(jīng)不再過于鮮明。A third party, the centrist Liberal Democrats, usually picks up around 20 perce

20、nt of votes but wins far fewer seats because it is squeezed between the two main parties. Parties from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also send small numbers of lawmakers to Westminster.第三大黨，最中間派的自由黨，通常占20的選票，但是贏得的席位較少，因?yàn)樗粌纱笾饕h所擠壓。來自蘇格蘭、威爾士和北愛爾蘭的黨派在國會(huì)中的席位也很少。Full guide to UK political partiesWhat happens if a party doesn't win a majority of seats?如果一個(gè)黨不能贏得多數(shù)席位時(shí)怎么辦？If no party wins an overall majority - a "hung parliament" - then the leader of the party which takes the most seats will usually be invited by the monarch to form a government. But its powers will be l