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The Highly Privileged Duty

For tourists who arrive in London the state opening of Par­liament is a welcome respite. The queen proceeds by carriage to Westminster, her crown travelling separately. An mp of the party of government is left at Buckingham Palace as a "hostage" pending her safe re­turn. Beefeaters check Westminster's cel­lars for gunpowder. A man named Black Rod is dispatched to summon the "com­moners" (i.e. mps) to the queen's presence in the House of Lords; the door of their chamber is slammed in his face and he pounds on it to gain admission. Ministers walk backwards, trying not to trip on their robes. At the centre of it all, on a throne or­nate to the point of gaudiness, the queen reads out the legislative agenda of "her" government, written on goatskin vellum.

The contentof that speech is usually more prosaic. At the heart of it are billsaimed at doing something to help stranded teen­agers who are out of school but not in work or training, speeding up house ­building and toughening the laws dealing with terrorist suspects. There is also leg­islation to strengthen Parliament, improve regulation of hospitals, and create binding targets for carbon emissions. A busy programme – 29 bills in all – but, said the Con­servative and the Liberal Democrat oppo­sition, not the big vision for the country.

The prime minister's defenders rightly note that the Queen's Speech is meant to be a to-do list rather than an inspiring story. Neither is it wrong to focus on de­tail.

But Mr. Brown has not taken earlier and better opportunities to set out a vision: his party-conference speech in September was solid but unspectacular, and the high­lights of the pre-budget report were policies hurriedly borrowed from the Tories. Yet many on his own side want him to eschew political dog-fighting and build the "progressive consensus" he has spent years talking about. A pamphlet released on November 1st by the Fabian Society, a think-tank loyal to Mr. Brown, urged him to do more of the "visionthing".

Those who want the prime minister to paint a big picture make two claims. One is that it suits his talents. Day-to-day political maneuvering works for politicians of the Bill Clinton variety; Mr. Brown's strength lies in strategy rather than tactics. His recent attempts to outfox the Conser­vatives, by prolonging speculation over an early election and making policy pro­nouncements from Iraq during their party conference, backfired. By contrast, when he stakes out an important long-term policy – for example, the need for much greater investment in public services – he often triumphs. The high spending that seemed radical when it began in 2000 is now accepted by the Tories.

The second argument is that a govern­ment without a compelling narrative must rely on competence as its reason for exist­ing. If it makes mistakes and these come to light (as one did last month, when minis­ters admitted they had underestimatedthe number of new foreign workers), voters begin to ask, what the point of it is.

Despite all this, the Queen's Speech worked for Mr. Brown in many ways. It has, for instance, drawn attention to specific policy questions that put the Tories in a dif­ficult position. Will they support the exten­sion of the school-leaving age from 16 to 18, for example, or new flexible working-time rights for the parents of older children? If they do, the impression that the Tories are now making the intellectual running may be reversed. If they don't, they are vulner­able to the charge that their vaunted com­mitment to work-life balance and educa­tional opportunity is hollow.

Security is another issue on which Mr. Brown believes the Tories can be wrong-footed. The party opposes his proposal to extend the maximum period that a terro­rist suspect can be detained without charge. There is broad pub­lic support for it, though, and some senior Conservative mps too are privately sym­pathetic. Mr. Blair was defeated on the is­sue, but his successor has grounds for hope this time.

And Mr. Brown is not entirely without a vision, though his opponents are right that he has not yet given it adequate expres­sion. He is genuinely passionate about cer­tain causes, and his legislative agenda sug­gests them. He plainly cares about social mobility, perhaps more than any other is­sue. And he has a long-standing interest in constitutional reform, an issue that seldom animated his prede­cessor. If he does not call an election until 2010 (as many in Westminster now think likely), he will have other opportunities to sell these causes in more exhilarating form. There is a story called Brownism, though it is one waiting to be told.

(The Source: adapted from www.economist.com/node/10113444 )

C. Choose the correct variant/s A, B, C or D to complete each sentence:

1. The content of the Queen’s speech is usually:

A. simple B. complicated C. sophisticated D. common

2. The Queen's Speech is meant to be:

A. a legislative agenda B. a motto C. a hindrance D. an obligation

3. At the heart of the Queen’s speech are the bills aimed at:

A. doing something to help working mothers B. speeding up house building C. toughening the laws D. dealing with terrorist suspects

4. The government is to support:

A. the extension of the school-leaving age from 16 to 18

B. the need for much greater investment in public services

C. new flexible working-time rights for the parents of older children

D. the maximum period that a terrorist suspect can be detained without charge

5. Prime Minister has got a clear vision of:

A. a security issue B. a long-term policy C. a short-term policy D. a parliamentary elections

6. They have underestimated:

A. the number of voters B. the number of new foreign workers

C. the high budget spending D. two main claims

7. The Prime Minister has a long-standing interest in :

A. constitutional reform B. work-life balance C. educational opportunity

D. social mobility

8. The Queen’s speech has drawn attention to:

A. legislation B. specific policy questions C. security issues D. claims

D. Read the text again and answer the questions below:

1. Where does the ceremony of the state opening of Parliament take place?

2. What is usually the Queen’s speech about?

3. Why is it “a to-do list” for the government?

4. What bills are usually passed?

5. Why were the issues of work-life balance and educational opportunity of vital importance in Great Britain recently?

6. How could the extension of the school-leaving age from 16 to 18 and new flexible working-time rights for the parents of older children change the public opinion about the policy of the government in a period called “Brownism”?

7. Why did the need for much greater investment in public services appear to be the most essential for the long-term policy of the political parties of that period?

8. What were the most important claims of Mr. Brown in terms of the security issue?

9. What political issues “set out a vision” of the Mr. Brown’s policy?

10. In your personal view was the policy of Mr. Brown’s cabinet successful?

E. Briefly summarize the main idea of the text using the words and word combinations in bold. Use the following helpful clichés:

The title of the article is … .

The article is about … .

The author tells us about … and underlines that … .

It should be mentioned (stressed) that … .

The author thinks (believes, supposes, notes) that … .

In my view …

I personally think (believe, suppose) … .

In conclusion I can state (say) that … .

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