The Universe
Wolf359Commonwealth
editing ...
Enter password:
Select file to upload:
Main Menu
* [Index] * [Alphabetical Index Page] * [Recent_changes] * [Search] * [All_pages] * [Admin] * [Sandbox] * [Wiki_style] * [style guide] * [http://www.theuniverse.org.uk] The **Languages** [lng=en|en.gif] [lng=en|English] [http://www.wikepage.org/|wike.gif][ [nofollow.gif] [rss=yes|rss_wiki.gif] [rss=blog|rss_blog.gif]
Page Contents
!Wolf359 Commonwealth Wolfers' political system is based on a constitutional monarchy under King Stabilo II (originally a distant offshoot of the old Earther Imperial family), the Wolfers are very keen on tradition and formality. The Wolfer nobility maintain that their lineage is ancient, and can be traced back to ancient times over a thousand years ago. There are a lot of traditions Wolfers adopted from old Earth, particularly those of an obscure island Monarchy off the coast of Europe (near the current location of BritCit). Many Wolfers claim direct lineage from families who rules that islaand, and many continue to follow obscure laws and practices from pre-spaceflight time as their link to their illustrious past. They claim that this tiny country, known variously as Engerlund, Ingerland or Blighty one rules the entire planet, and thus see it as their destiny to be the natural rules of humanity. {wolflogo.jpg|Flag|wolf_logo.jpg}It is not unknown for Wolfers to quote obscure (and possibly fictitious) Engerlish laws from 1200 years ago, claiming "...and this has never been repealed!". !!Political Background The Commonwealth is best defined as a constitutional federal democracy. The king has various powers that keep him influential in the day-to-day politics of the Commonwealth. How much a king or queen participates in the day-to-day running of the Commonwealth varies between monarchs. The current King participates fully in all cabinet meetings and where possible, all sessions of parliament. Parliament itself consists of a single house made up of members of the nobility, military and clergy. (From the main Commonwealth religions.) !!Political Parties and The House Currently there are three main parties represented in parliament. The progressives, liberals and conservatives. (Plus various independents.) **The Progressive Party** forms the current government. The previous government was formed by the **Liberal Party**, but was removed by a no-confidence vote caused by their non-involvement policy in the Exterminator war. Nobility make up about two thirds of The House and their positions are hereditary. Thus the seats of the nobility are passed from father to son and occasionally to daughter. (There is no rule saying women cannot sit in the house, it's just a tradition.) The military and the church get to decide who they send to the house, but it is normally a position held for life once assigned to someone. Therefore especially with the military, it normally goes to personnel who have performed outstanding services for the Commonwealth. Elections are held every ten years and all Commonwealth citizens are eligible to vote. (Only criminals and the insane are barred from voting.) The winning party then forms the next government from among its ranks. !!The Role of Corporations Although no Commonwealth government has believed in state run companies, the government does hold a 50% stake in Wimpey Fergusson (Wolf) Ltd. !!The Commonwealth The Commonwealth has changed enormously in the years since it was founded in 2930. Long gone are the days when the Commonwealth consisted of a strong central authority with subsidiary colonies. The process of change was initiated by the Archer up rising in 2969 and is still going on today. The Commonwealth and its people are quite proud of the fact that no colony has ever been taken by force. All members have joined voluntarily. Each system within the Commonwealth is allowed to run it's affairs as it sees fit providing that it abides by the Commonwealth charter, which all systems must sign, to become a Commonwealth member. As the Commonwealth believes in local governance by whatever means the local people have decided upon, there is a wide range of political systems represented within the polity. However, extreme political leaderships are not represented, as these systems tend to have various human rights abuses amongst other things, which make it impossible for them to meet the charter obligations and therefore become members. The Charter lays down a set of rules and laws that are common to all systems within the Commonwealth and all must abide by them. There are however, a minimum set of laws and often-local regulations may add extra layers to them. (The Charter also effectively only allows worlds that are 'like us' to join. This stops the Commonwealth's traditions and core principles being diluted over time as new systems join. However each new system brings it's own culture to the melting pot and the Commonwealth thereby gains strength and flexibility as a whole.) Systems that breach treaty obligations can be fined by central government, or in extreme cases the military can be sent in to sort out the situation. In theory any system can ask to leave the Commonwealth at any time. In practice this is a long drawn out process with many hurdles, including a vote of the system's population, which must result in over 85% of the population supporting the motion to leave. No system so far has requested to leave the Commonwealth. This could be due to the fact that Commonwealth systems are very well looked after by the central government. Joining the Commonwealth gives immediate access to the huge volume of trade that occurs within the Commonwealth as well as continual investment to improve the systems infrastructure. No governmental system is perfect however and although the systems of the Commonwealth are well represented at a local and quadrant level, most systems lack a major influence at the higher levels of government. !!Wolfer Military As well as trade and inward investment, the other 'glue' that holds the Commonwealth together is the military. As well as their defensive role, local police forces can call on the military in times of stress for extra assistance. The military itself is made up of all people's from across the Commonwealth. Military personnel are deliberately rotated between systems, to promote understanding of the Commonwealth's various cultures. Thus it is not uncommon for RAF/RN & RA personnel stationed on a world to only have a small number of locals amongst their ranks. The Wolfer regular military are supplemented to a small degree by the Knight Protectors of teh Grand Kingdom ([KPGK]), a paramilitary organistion that reports direct to the current monarch. !!The Cabinet !!!3215-3220 **Lord Caleb Young** : Prime Minister of the Wolf359 Commonwealth. **Admiral Lord Carley** : Minister For Defence **Lord Giles Beddingsford** : Minister for the Treasury, Duke of New Harbour **Lady Melissa Havers** : Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Baroness Locklear **Lord Jasper Fielding** : Minister for Home Affairs, Viscount Mercer **Sir Aubrey Chalvington** : Minister for Education, Knight of the Realm **Dame Wendy Nelson** : Minister for Independents, Dame of the Realm **Sir Jim Hacker** : Minister for Summits, Knight of the Realm **Lady Marsha Robertson** : Head of the Quadrants Office, Baroness Chealmsford **Lord Charles Winchester** : Minister for Arts & Culture, Marquess of Elmsford **Dame Felicia McMahon** : Minister for Tourism, Dame of the Realm **Doctor Geoffrey Harding** : Minister for Science and Industry **His Grace, Zachary Phelps** : The Most Rev and Rt Hon The Lord Archbishop of Wolf !!!3220-3230 **Lord Caleb Young** : Prime Minister of the Wolf359 Commonwealth, **Rear Admiral [Lord Hiram Chard]** : Minister for Defence **Lord Giles Beddingsford** : Minister for the Treasury, Duke of New Harbour **Lady Melissa Havers** : Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Baroness Locklear **Lord Jasper Fielding** : Minister for Home Affairs, Viscount Mercer **Sir Aubrey Chalvington** : Minister for Education, Knight of the Realm **Dame Wendy Nelson** : Minister for Independents, Dame of the Realm **Sir Jim Hacker** : Minister for Summits, Knight of the Realm **Lady Marsha Robertson** : Head of the Quadrants Office, Baroness Chealmsford **Lord Charles Winchester** : Minister for Arts & Culture, Marquess of Elmsford **Dame Felicia McMahon** : Minister for Tourism, Dame of the Realm **Doctor Geoffrey Harding** : Minister for Science and Industry **His Grace, Zachary Phelps** : The Most Rev and Rt Hon The Lord Archbishop of Wolf !!!3230 to present **Lady Caroline Featherstone** : Prime Minister of the Wolf359 Commonwealth, **High Admiral [Lord Hiram Chard]** : Minister for Defence **Lord Humbert Shepard** : Minister for the Treasury, Duke of Novo Folkestone **Lady Jocelyn Turner** : Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Baroness Hardington **Lord Jasper Fielding** : Minister for Home Affairs, Viscount Mercer **Lady Elisha Saunders** : Minister for Education, Knight of the Realm **Dame Wendy Nelson** : Minister for Independents, Dame of the Realm **Sir Jim Hacker** : Minister for Summits, Knight of the Realm **Lord George Castletown** : Head of the Quadrants Office, Baron Hackington **Lord Gabriel Hornley** : Minister for Arts & Culture, Marquess of Brightpool **Dame Felicia McMahon** : Minister for Tourism, Dame of the Realm **Professor Lady Christabell Sheraton** : Minister for Science and Industry, Baroness Evangelou **Her Grace, Constance Pray** : The Most Rev and Rt Hon The Lord Archbishop of Wolf