Wizards and the Queen

[laura]

No: HPFGUIDX 83845

 --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "meriaugust" 
meriaugust at y... 
 wrote:
> Thanks for clearing up the muddled knowledge of an American. My
> confusion basically lay in the fact that in America we have no 
> figure-head head of state, because the president is given actual 
> power, and your post helped to clear that up for me, so thank you! 
 
> Bookworm:
> In political terms, the US has both a Head of State and a Head of 
> Government - they just both happen to be the same person (the 
> President).  In the UK, France, and other countries, the Head of 
> State and Head of Government are two different people: the Queen 
and 
> Prime Minister in the UK, and the Prime Minister and the President 
> in France (if I remember my French political system lectures 
> correctly - it was a long time ago <bg>).  
> 
> The Minister of Magic would be the Head of Government.  Is he also 
> the Head of State, or since JKR is British, does she unconsciously 
> include the Queen without really talking or thinking about it?



now lola ( I was laura, but there's another laura...)

The Minister of Magic is a member of the Prime Minister's cabinet, so 
the Prime Minister is his superior.  This has has been indicated on a 
number of occasions, most recently when the Death Eaters escaped 
Azkaban, and Fudge told the Prime Minister something about 'the 
dangerous nature'(not exact quote, sorry).  As I understand it, Any 
law passed in the UK has to be signed by the Queen, so the Prime 
Minister is inferior to the Queen because he himself can't pass a 
law.  That would make the Queen the official Head of State of the 
British wizarding community.
However, functionally, the Minister of Magic must be the Head of 
State because the Queen can hardly have an in-depth knowledge about 
wizarding affairs, can she?  

Lola
xxx