Citizenship Notes

Citizenship Notes

Chapter 1

ADVOCACY – The representation or support of a person or an organisation by writing, speaking or taking action on behalf of that person or organisation.

PRESSURE GROUP – A group of people who take action to try to influence the government about a specific issue.

CAMPAIGNING – Actions or events organised by an individual or group of people to achieve an aim.

Suffrage – Right to vote

Chapter 2

Each councillor in the cabinet has a special responsibility for one of the services, e.g. education.

Chapter 3

Rights – Something we are entitled to by the law.

Responsibilities – Something that we are expected to do – a duty.

Trading Standard Officers – They give advice and investigate complaints.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) – A government department that deals with consumer issues.

The Sales of Goods Act 1979 – This refers to all goods sold and states that they should be as described of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose.

The Sales of Goods and Services Act 1982 – This deals with the services that you pay for e.g. hairdressing or building etc. You should make a contract of the cost, details and the time it’s going to take, in case things go wrong.

Chapter 4

How Laws are Made

Chapter 5

Proportional Representation – A system of electing people that reflects the wishers of the voter.

Lowering the voting age to 16

|FOR |AGAINST |
|If you are 16+ you are allowed to marry with parental consent and |Many 16-18 year olds don not want to vote and they are not mature |
|bring up children. You are allowed to join the army. You are charged|enough to consider all the options that the political parties offer.|
|adult fares on transport and other services, yet you are not old |16-18 years olds might just copy their parents and friends on who |
|enough to vote. You are allowed to work full time, so you pay taxes,|they vote for, without considering the alternatives. According to |
|but you have no say on what your taxes are being spent on. You are |statistics, 18-24 year olds are the least likeliest to vote, so |
|taught the democratic process in school and you are encouraged to |16-18 year olds will be less likely to vote, so it will reduce the |
|participate in politics. |overall turnout. |

Should voting be compulsory?

|FOR |AGAINST |
|Over the last 10-15 years, there has been a decline in voting. If |It removes a person’s choice. It is an infringement of the right to |
|you make in compulsory then more people will vote. It will increase |make a choice. Some people are not interested in politics so they |
|the turnout, so the winner will represent the majority of the |will make a random vote. We have the right not to vote. Compulsory |
|people. |voting does not enhance democracy. People forced to vote are |
|A true democratic mandate for the government. Decrease apathy. Civic|unlikely to vote intelligently. Voting does not make sense as a |
|duty to vote. Cause more people to become interested in politics. |rewardable/punishable action. |

|VOTING SYSTEM |WHAT HAPPENS |WHERE |PICTURE |
|First Past The Post |The person with the most votes wins. Each person |England | |
| |has one vote. |Wales | |
|Single Transferable Vote |The electors write down there first, second, third|Northern Ireland | |
| |etc choice. The numbers of votes needed for a |Scotland (local | |
| |candidate are calculated form the total number of |elections) | |
| |people. If a candidate wins and has too many | | |
| |votes, then the extra votes are transferred to the| | |
| |next most popular candidate. | | |
|Additional Member System |Each person has 2 votes – one for the person and |Scotland | |
| |one for the party. |Wales | |
|Supplementary Vote |Each person has 2 votes. They write down there |London | |
| |first and second choice. All the first choices are| | |
| |added up and whoever has the most vote’s wins. | | |
|Closed Party List system |A person votes for the party. You win a seat |European Parliament| |
| |according to the proportion of votes cast in your | | |
| |favour. | | |

Chapter 6

Stereotypes-A generalised view about a type of person or group of people.

Tolerance – Acceptance of people, even though you may not like them or agree with them.

Labelling – A theory where terms or labels applied to a person or group may influence their behaviour.

Brutishness is a national identity. It’s made up of different parts (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales) and cultures. Brutishness is a collection of different ideas and shared values that we can all associate with and aspire to.

If lots of new people settle in one area, it can cause problems. Newcomers will be blamed for the problems e.g. unemployment, much use of social services and bad housing.

Chapter 7

Host Nation – The country that the migrants live in.

Pluralism – Different beliefs/faiths/cultures existing within a society.

Community Cohesion – Enabling people within an area to have shared values and understanding by providing good facilities and the same opportunities for all.

Contemporary issues in a multicultural society

• If communities are secure and cohesive they are more open and welcoming to migrants.

• In less stable communities, there is more resistance and suspicion of migrants.

In 2001, the Equality Standard for the local government was introduced to implement equality within all area of local government.

Chapter 8

Right of children

• Right to non-discrimination.

• Right to have the child’s best interest considered in all action concerning children.

• Childs right to life, survival and development.

• Child right to be heard.

Chapter 9

Anarchy – A state of lawlessness and disorder where there is no government and no laws.

Social System – The parent system that includes social structures, like family, law, religion, class and economy.

Common Law – Law based on decisions made by judges over the years.

Statue Law – Law made by parliament.

Mediation – An intervention conducted by some impartial party for the purpose of bringing about a settlement to a dispute.

Arbitration – The hearing and determination of a dispute by an impartial referee agreed to by both parties.

Ombudsman – A person in a government agency to who people can go to, to make complaints.

Acquittal – A verdict of not guilty.

Adoption – If you are under 18, you can get adopted but you don’t need to know who your birth parents are. You have little say on who adopts you.

Changing your name – If you are 16 or 17, you can change your name with parental consent.

Local Authority Care – You can be taken into car if you are under 18. You have the right to who why you are in care, and how long you will stay there.

Marriage – If you are 16 or 17, you need parental consent to get married.

Parents under 16 – You have the same rights as normal parents.

Wills – If you are under 18 you can’t make a valid will unless you are in the army or you are a seafarer. No one under the age of 18 can act as a trustee, executive or administrator of a will.

Chapter 10

Social Exclusion – Being unable to access the things in life that most people take for granted, such as decent housing and the ability to exercise basic rights.

Youth Justice Board – Its aim is to prevent offending by children and young people. It delivers this by:-

• Preventing crime and the fear of crime

• Identifying and dealing with young offenders.

• Reducing reoffending.

Criminal responsibility – When a young person is held responsible for his/her own behaviour and can be found guilty in court.

Anti-Social Behaviour Order (ASBO) – A statutory order. A breach of this can lead to imprisonment of legal action.

Child Safety Orders – Only apply to children under 10. A social worker or officer from the youth offending team supervises the child.

• 10 is the legal age for criminal responsibility.

• Children aged 10-14 can be convicted of a criminal offence if it was proved that they were aware that what they were doing was wrong.

• 14 + are considered to be fully responsible for their actions.

When a young person first gets into trouble for committing a minor offence then they are dealt with outside the court system. For anti-social behaviour the police and local authority can give ASBO’s and Child Safety Orders. The police can use reprimands and final warnings.

Chapter 11

Freedom of press – Allows the press to publish thoughts, belief or opinions without interference from the government.

Censorship – It’s the control of information and ideas circulated within a society.

Propaganda – Specially created information that aims to make people think in a certain way.

Free press is one of the foundations of a democratic society. It allows us to publish our views and opinions.

When anti-democratic forces take over a country, their first act is to control the press. This is known as censorship.

Press Complaints Commission (PCC) – It deals with complaints about newspapers and magazines.

Chapter 12

Conflict – A dispute/disagreement.

Handling Conflict – Peacemakers intervene. They try to solve the problem and prevent an outbreak of violence. If nothing works then the military intervenes and causes long-term damage.

Chapter 13

Globalisation – The process by which the world has become interconnected as a result of increased trade and cultural exchange.

Multinational – A large corporation or company with offices and/or factories in several countries.

|Positive aspects of globalisation |Negative aspects of globalisation |
|Bbetter health in the world |Tthe poor are still poor |
|Ssociety’s fight more for democracy and greater social justice |Ppresses GM seed on to developing world farmers |
|Iimproves the skill base of developing countries |Lleads to low-paid sweatshop workers |
|Aallows economies to concentrate on what they do best and raises |Ccauses countries to sell off state-owned industry to qualify for |
|income |World Bank loans |
|Aallows us a chance to build a world where we understand each other |Ccauses job losses in industrialised economies like Britain and the|
|better |USA |
| |Aallows European/American corporate to control business across the |
| |globe. |

|LEDC’s |MEDC’s |
|High birth rates |Low birth rates and death rates |
|Population increase is high |Total population is steady |
|National disasters ruin the country |National disasters would be coped with. |
|Most people work in the primary sector |Most people work in high paid services |
|High illiteracy rate |Educational levels are high |
|Health services are low |Health standards are very high |

Chapter 14

Sustainable Development – It means understanding the need to maintain and improve the quality of life now without damaging the planet for future generations.

Agenda 21 – A comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organisation in every area in which human beings impact on the environment. Its motto is ‘think globally, act locally’

The UK government launched a strategy for sustainable development.

• Sustainable consumption and production

• Climate change

• Natural resource protection

• Sustainable communities

Greenpeace wants the UK to use more wind power and wave and tidal power.

Chapter 15

|Benefits of being a member of the EU |Problems with being a member of the EU |
|Able to trade goods without tariffs. |Some countries pay too big a share of the EU budget. |
|Keep part of a market of over 300 million people. |Free trade has led to competition but at the expense of small local|
|Have a guaranteed price for farming produce through the Common |industries. |
|Agricultural Policy (CAP). |Huge surpluses of food have been created because if the CAP. |
|Get financial support for industries through grants. |Money has been wasted in locally thought out projects. |
|Support for isolated areas. |The EU loses millions each year through fraud. |
|Support for projects e.g. new roads and bridges. | |

UN’s purposes

• Maintain international peace and security.

• Develop friendly relations among nations.

• Cooperate in solving international problems and in promoting respect for human rights.

• Be a centre for harmonising the actions of nations.

• Remove poverty and improve the wellbeing of people everywhere.

• Give humanitarian aid, when disasters occur e.g. flood, drought, earthquake and conflict.

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)

• It has 26 countries from Europe and North America.

• It safeguards the freedom and security of its member countries.

• It plays an important role in peacekeeping, crisis managements and fighting terrorism.

International Pressure Groups and NGO’s

|What are their rights? |What are their responsibilities? |What are their methods? |
|Right to criticize |To base their criticism on fact. |Internet – email + websites |
|Right to hold demonstrations, meetings and |Their meetings and rallies should be peaceful |Letters |
|rallies. |and legal. |Leaflets and advertising |
|Right to make their views known by using |Inform the local authorities and police when |Lobbying international organisations. |
|media. |they are making a protest. |Petitions |
|Right to campaign and raise funds. |Not to intimidate. |Demonstrations |
| | |Mass media campaigns (TV) |

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DIRECT ACTION –

It’s when you bring the issue to the attention of the target group and general public.

• Strike

• Sit-in

• March

• Speech

• Boycott

INDIRECT ACTION –

• Letter writing

• Leaflets

• Petitioning

• Lobbying MP’s

• E-campaigning

• Voting

Pressure groups make change by

The Government

Government office region

Metropolitan Counties – South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Midlands.

County Council – Responsible for education, transport, social services, waste disposal etc.

Unitary Authorities – Takes responsibility for everything in the area. E.g. finance, education, planning, social services, emergency services, transport etc.

Parish Council

Parish Council

Parish Council – Responsible for a very small area. They have limited powers and oversee services like leisure and recreation.

Borough Councils – all services (apart from transport, civil defence and emergency services).

Metropolitan Councils – Responsible for transport, civil defence and emergency services.

London Borough District Councils – Education, housing, planning, waste disposal, local planning, leisure and recreation.

Greater London Authority – Responsible for city wide planning of developments, transport, emergency services and economic development.

Democratic Process

Door to door

Engage in debates in TV or radio

Create a Website

Write in Newspapers

Leaflets – Telling people about their policies.

Send out electron addresses.

Political parties will campaign for votes before an election. They do this in a number of ways…

If a councillor or MP dies or resigns, then a by election must be held.

A general election happens every 5 years to elect MP’s.

A large area (constituency) elects a MP.

Parliamentary Elections

Local Elections

Takes place every year at the beginning of May.

A councillor usually stays for 3 years.

The whole council is divided into wards and a ward will elect one or more councillors.

Process of electing the people’s representatives.

Stop working if you think you are in danger.

Contact the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) if your employer will not take action.

Tell your employer if there are any health and safety risks.

Work in conditions where risks are minimised and controlled.

Make all employees aware of the policy.

Formulate a health and safety policy.

Devise plans to deal with the risks identified.

Carry out a risk assessment by a special Health and Safety person and produce a report of the assessment.

Rights of employees

Responsibilities of employers

Parliament

Suggests amendments.

Debates and scrutinises Bills for the commons.

Introduces new Bills.

Scrutinises European Legislation

Debates issues

The House of Lords…

There are 4 types:-

• Life peers (500)

• Hereditary peers (92)

• Law Lords

• Bishops (26)

They are NOT elected and they are NOT paid.

House of Lords

The party with the most seats (MP’s) form the government and the leader becomes the Prime Minister.

It has 646 MP’s, who are elected by the public in the general elections.

Over 700 Lords.

House of Commons

It represents the people of the country when laws are being made.

COMMITTEE STAGE –The Public Bill Committee goes through each part of the Bill in great detail. They can recommend changes.

SECOND READING – There is general debate.

FIRST READING – The Bill is presented to the House. There is no discussion.

ROYAL ASSENT – The queen agrees and the Bill becomes a Law.

The House of Lords does the same stuff as the House of Commons but in the committee stage the whole house can debate.

THRD READING – The final debate in the House of Commons. Then the bill goes to the House of Lords.

REPORT STAGE – The changes made by the committee are looked are carefully. New clauses may be introduced. All MP’s can discuss the changes.

1987 – First non-white MP was elected.

Gradually there was less tension as people accepted each other and began to appreciate and understand other cultures.

New acts were passed including the Race Relation Act and Commission for Racial Equality in 1976.

There was a lot of racial prejudice, racism and racial violence because the white community did not understand the black community.

1950 – After World War 2, there was a shortage of jobs, so there was a mass immigration from the West Indies and India.

Seeking work to send income back home to help families.

Seeking asylum because of persecution due to religion or political beliefs or racism.

Reasons for Migration

Wanting to live and work permanently or temporarily in another country.

Seeking employment and a better quality of life in another country.

Seeking a good education

Freedom to participate in community activities.

Strong belief in democracy.

Justice

Shared perspectives and values.

Fairness and equality of opportunity for all.

Freedom of Expression

Freedom to belong to a political party.

Right to vote

Right to life

Right to vote and stand for election

Right to receive an education

Right to work

Right to fair trial

Right to own property

Rights of a British Citizen

Family

Education

Economic Security

Environment

Participation

Health

Housing

Leisure

Work

Individual Wellbeing

Just social structures – People receive equal treatment and protection form the law.

Respect – All people are entitled to be treated with respect.

Important elements in a just and fair society

Participation – Opportunities for active participation.

Fairness – Equality for all

Wellbeing – Quality of Life.

Laws consist of

Statue Law –

It’s to do with consumer laws.

Common Law-

E.g. responsibility for children

Criminal Law – For people who commit crimes. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty. They are dealt with on the Magistrates Court and the Crown Courts.

Civil Law – Not legal. To do with everyday life. They are dealt with county courts and high courts.

There are 2 types of laws

3 departments are jointly responsible for the criminal justice system

• Ministry of Justice – Its responsible for criminal law and sentencing for reducing reoffending and for prisons and probation.

• Home Office – It’s responsible for policing, security and counter-terrorism, borders and immigration, passports and identity.

• Office of the Attorney General – It oversees the Crown Prosecution Service, the Serious Fraud Office and the Revenue and Customs Office

Criminal Law – It protects the public from harm by inflicting punishment on those who have already done harm and by threatening with punishment on those who are attempted to do harm.

The criminal justice system employs over 400 000 staff across its agencies:-

• Police Service

• Crown Prosecution Service

• Her Majesty’s Court Service

• The National Offender Management Service

• Youth Justice Board.

Poor attainment at school, truancy and social exclusion

Drug or alcohol misuse and mental illness

Causes of Youth Crime

Troubled home life

Deprivation such as poor housing or homelessness

Peer group pressure

Referral orders – given to all young offenders (10-17) pleading guilty and convicted for a first offence.

Drug treatment and testing order – for individuals with drug misuse issues.

Curfew order – The offender has to remain in a specified place for set periods of time.

Sentences for young offenders

Fines

Community rehabilitation – For 16-17 year olds. E.g. address offending behaviour.

Reparation order – E.g. repairing damage caused to property or cleaning up graffiti.

Community punishment – For 16-17 year olds. E.g. working with the elderly or conservation work.

Discharge

Internet

Magazines

Cinema

Books

Media

Newspapers

Advertisements

TV

Reporting news locally and nationally

Radio

Videos / CDs / DVDs

Public service announcements

Advocacy, both for business and social concerns including advertising

Entertainment

Purpose of mass media

Enrichment and education

Pupils can’t be photographed in school

Under 16s cannot be photographed unless the parent agrees.

Information should be accurate and not misleading

Code of Practise

Cases with grief or shock should be handled sensitively and discretely.

You should be able to reply to an inaccurate report.

Everyone is entitled to respect for his or her private or family life.

Journalists shouldn’t intimidate, harass and persist.

People are not treated equally.

People beliefs clash, like religious or political views

Reasons for Conflicts

People are unhappy about the way that they are governed.

Competing for the same resources, such as land

People don’t feel safe.

People feel threatened.

Ethnic differences are not sensitively handled.

World Trade Organisations (WTO) – It promotes free trade by persuading countries to abolish important tariffs. The WTO settles disputes between governments.

Multilateral trade agreements – Between lots of countries

Bilateral Trade agreements – Between 2 countries

Free Trade agreements – No taxes of tariffs

Agenda 21

Section 2: Conservation and Management of Resources for Development – Atmospheric pollution, combating deforestation, biodiversity.

Section 3: Strengthening the Role of Major Groups – Roles of children and youth, women, NGO’s, local authorities, business and workers.

Section 1: Social and Economic Dimensions – combating poverty, population issues, promoting health and promoting sustainable settlement patterns.

Section 4: Means of Implementation – Science, technology, education, international institutions and finance.

Objectives of the Local Agenda 21

Green purchasing

Biodiversity

Energy conservation

Sustainable transport

Air quality and noise management

Land use planning

Waste management

Makes improvements to the environment.

Removes trade barriers to boost growth and create jobs.

Improves standards and rights for consumers

How the EU helps British Citizens

Gives Europe a more powerful voice in the world.

Fights international crime and illegal immigration

Brings peace and stability to Europe by working with its neighbours.

EU – 27 countries

UN – 192 countries

Commonwealth - 53 countries

It promotes international peace and security, democracy, liberty and equal rights, as well as economic and social development; it represents nearly 2 billion people (1/3 of the world’s population – from a wide range of faiths, races, cultures and traditions.)

Commonwealth – Countries which were once rules by Britain.

Chapter 16

The Queen is the head of the Commonwealth.

Sharing information

Saving electricity

Planting trees

Saving fuel

How to make a difference

Recycling

Compost kitchen waste