Iran and Great Britain

Unitary States

Characteristics of Unitary States as Opposed to

Characteristics of Federal States regime in which subnational units have

little or no power a state whose executive,

legislature and judiciary are governed constitutionally as one single unit

one constitutionally created parliament fusion of powers sub-governmental units can be created

or abolished by the central government

Versus

state which has a constitutional practice of granting subnational units considerable power

executive, legislature and judiciary are three separate branches

separation of powers

Positives and Negatives of Unitary StatesPositives

Uniformity Not so complicated

Considered less time-consuming Considered less costly

Negatives Little distribution of power

Fewer leadership opportunities Less citizen-oriented action

Less balance Less diversity

Iran as a Unitary State Theocracy- a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the

state's supreme civil ruler, or in a broader sense, a form of government in which a state is governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided

Islamic Republic- a state under a particular theocratic form of government advocated by some Muslim religious leaders; the penal code of the state is required to be compatible with some laws of Sharia, Islamic laws are technically considered to override laws of the state, though in reality their relative hierarchy is ambiguous

Supreme Leader- title given to the ayatollah who sits atop all Iranian political institutions; has the authority to overrule or dismiss the president, appoints members of the Guardian Council and has personal representatives in the army and universities

Supreme Leader has essentially ultimate power over all policies within the state Iran is essentially a blend of limited democracy and theocracy

Great Britain as a Unitary State Constitutional Monarchy- form of national government in which the

power of the monarch (the king or queen) is restrained by a parliament, by law, or by custom

Officially Britain remains a unitary state, the central government has full authority over all policies within the competence of the regime

Devolution- the process of decentralizing power from national governments that stops short of federalism, gives greater degree of self rule to sub-central or self-identified communities

Monarch is essentially a figurehead Great Britain is a substantive democracy QUANGOS- interest groups, increasingly active

The Iranian State Power is exercised in constitutional and non-constitutional ways:

undemocratic religious elite sets the conditions for elections and representative government, elected leaders and legislators are regularly and constitutionally vetoed by the autocrats

Majles- the Iranian parliament Supreme National Security Council- organization responsible for Iran’s

intelligence, military, security and strategic policies Assembly of Experts- an informal body in Iran that has de facto power over

all major political decisions Guardian Council- the leading theological body in Iran for political purposes Expediency Council- a half lay and half clerical body designed to smooth

relations between those two communities in Iran at the highest levels faqih- Jurist, an expert in Islamic jurisprudence Iran is a procedural democracy, if that

The British State A sovereign parliament elects a government led by a prime minister House of Lords (appointed)- the weaker upper house of the British

Parliament, has power to temporarily delay enactment of legislation House of Commons (elected)- the all-important lower house of the British

Parliament, legislative branch to represent the people, provide a forum for policy debate, voting behavior of members of the House of Commons is principally determined by party affiliation

Supreme Courts and Constitutional Court unwritten constitution- Britain does not have a formal constitution, it relies

on precedent, Acts of Parliament, common law, though unwritten can undergo reform and revisions

parliamentary sovereignty- Parliament decides what is lawful, accepted by people

Government Structure of Iran

Government Structure of Great Britain

Why Unitary States? People of country share common ground Lack of constitutions/strong constitutions Lack of independent financial powers