Government

A government is any system in which authority is exercised over the people. There are several different types of government. A liberal democracy is a style of government where...

Democracy

Democracy is a style of government where a country’s people have a say in how their government runs. A key feature of a democracy is voting at an election, a process in which...

Elections

An election is the process that democratic countries, societies and groups use to choose their leaders and representatives. In a general election, voters choose who will govern...

Human rights

Every person in the world has basic freedoms and rights. These were agreed upon by the countries of the United Nations in 1948 when they drew up the Universal Declaration of Human...

Law

Laws are the rules of a country, made by its government. They control what people can and cannot do, in order to maintain order and stop people being harmed by others. Laws help...

Taxation

Taxes are sums of money paid to a government by individuals and businesses. This money (also called revenue) is used to fund government spending on, for example, defence, policing...

Crime

A crime is an action which breaks a country's criminal law. Some actions, for example, murder, unlawful killing, violence towards a person including rape, theft, damage to...

Prisons

A prison, also known as a jail, detention centre or penitentiary, is a place where people who have committed crimes are held. If a person is found guilty of a crime, they will...

US presidential election

A presidential election in the United States occurs every four years. Election Day is always the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The candidates are put up by the...

Government of the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy in which the reigning monarch (the King or Queen), although Head of State, does not make any political decisions. These are taken by...

International organizations

Many countries belong to one or more international organizations. They are established by treaty, an agreement made between states. The agreement sets out laws that the members...

Governments and international organizations A-Z