How Parliament Makes New Laws

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 416.

Task 6

Task 5

Task 4

Task 3

Look at the text below, and with a partner discuss which, if any, of the sequencers it contains are really necessary and if any are, why?

One of the earliest attempts at solar heating was the Dover House, designed by Dr Maria Tilkes and Eleanor Ray­mond, and built in 1949. In this house, energy from the sun is absorbed by a large area of blackened metal sheets covered by double plates of glass. Next, the heat is carried away by air circulating behind the metal sheets. After this, it is stored chemically in large tanks containing Glauber's salt, a given volume of which can hold eight and a half times more heat than water. Finally, a fan blows the hot air from the storage to the various rooms in the house.

In general readers expect that a process description will follow natural tine order. When this happens, the reality principle suggests that there is little need for explicit sequencers. However, there are cases where the use of sequencers is absolutely necessary - when a writer leaves the real sequence in order to highlight an important point (i.e. when the process is not described in the order that it actually occurs in). In such cases, the clarity principle demands that sequencers make the correct order explicit.

Read the following text and underline the sentence that contains an unexpected sequence.

One of the earliest attempts at solar heating was the Dover House, designed by Dr Maria Tilkes and Eleanor Ray­mond, and built in 1949. In this house, energy from the sun is absorbed by a large area of blackened metal sheets covered by double plates of glass. The heat is carried away by air circulating behind the metal sheets. Before the heat can be blown around the house it must first be stored in large tanks containing Glauber's salt, a given volume of which can hold eight and a half times more heat than water.

This text departs from the sequence we found in the earlier version. It does this in order to highlight the storage stage. This unexpected sequence is clearly signposted by the explicit sequencers Before and first.

Use the information in the following flow diagram to write a simple description of what happens before a motorist gets petrol. Try to highlight the fact that, in order to produce petrol, oil has to be refined. Think about whether/when you need to use sequencers. You do not have to use the same sequence in your text as in the flow diagram unless you want to. Compare your text with that of another student: they may be different but both may be satisfactory: can you see any reasons why?

The following text describes the process of making new laws in the United Kingdom; it is a more detailed description than most of those you have met so far. Notice that the first paragraph is introductory, and the description of the process does not begin until the second paragraph. Read the text carefully and underline all the sequencers, of any type, that you find in it.

1. New laws can originate in either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. A law which is being proposed is called a 'bill' until it is passed; then it becomes an 'act' of parliament.

2. To begin with the bill goes through the first reading. This just means that the title of the bill is announced and a time is set for it to be discussed. After this the second reading is really a debate. The bill may be rejected at this stage. If it is an important bill its rejection may cause the government to resign. On the other hand it may be passed, or there may be no vote. When this happens, it goes to the committee stage, where a small group of members (perhaps between 30 and 50), meet and discuss it in detail. When the committee has finished its work, it reports the bill with all the changes that have been made, to the House. This is called the report stage. The bill is discussed again, and more changes can be made. Then
the bill is taken for its third reading, and a vote is taken. When it is passed, it goes to the other House, i.e. not the one it originated in. So if a bill started in the House of Commons it would at this point go to the House of Lords.

3. When the bill has been passed by both Houses, it goes to the Queen for the Royal Assent. A bill may not become law until the Royal Assent has been given, but this does not mean that the Queen decides on what will become law and what will not. It is understood that the Queen will always accept bills which have been passed by both Houses. When the Queen's consent has been given, the bill becomes an act, and everyone that it affects must obey the new law.