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All of the below examples will be added to the updated textbooks and detailed essay plans (where relevant/better than the existing examples) on the Politics Explained website, which are both updated regularly.

Find full lists of recent examples (UK Politics, UK Government, Global Politics and US Politics & Government) from the past year in our 📋 2026 example packs! There are now over 250 key recent examples altogether across these packs.

UK Government Examples

The Legislative Process

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act (2026) - Example of the House of Lords' Role in the Legislative Process

• The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act (2026), is a good example of how House of Lords Amendments to improve bills are often accepted by the House of Commons. Several significant amendments were made, many of which focused on increasing local accountability as well as technical corrections to ensure consistency in the text and “tidy up” the bill.

  • Lords Amendment 1 and 2 added "Culture" and "Rural Affairs" as standalone "areas of competence", giving mayors and authorities a mandate to support creative industries and heritage.

  • Amendment 117 replaced “Combined Authority" with Combined County Authority in specific sections to accurately reflect where provision should apply exclusively to CCAs.

  • Following the removal of Clause 59 which the Lords successfully voted to remove (would have forced councils to abandon the "committee system"), technical corrections such as Amendment 155 were needed to remove now-redundant references.

    • In total, the government accepted 215 amendments to the bill.

Select Committees

Treasury Select Committee's Gambling Recommendations - Example of the Influence of Select Committees:

• In November 2025, the government accepted recommendations from the Treasury Select Committee’s report to increase taxes on online gambling in the Autumn Budget. The government confirmed rates would rise from 21% to 40% effective from April 1, 2026.

  • The government agreed with the committee’s assertion that an increase was needed and took on a number of recommendations, including a new, higher remote betting rate to reflect the social harms of online gambling, with the Chair of the Treasury Committee, Dame Meg Hillier, noting this "victory for common sense".

UK Politics Examples

Party Policy & Corporations

The Tobacco And Vapes Act 2026 - Example Of Policy Similarity and the Limited Influence of Corporations:

• On 29 April 2026, the Tobacco and Vapes Act received Royal Assent. The legislation makes it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009, with the legal age rising by one year each year, creating a generation that can never legally purchase tobacco.

  • Although enacted by a Labour government, the policy originated at the Conservative Party Conference 2023, where former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the bill gradually increasing the smoking age to phase out tobacco use and reduce long-term health costs. 

    • The bill received cross-party backing, with many Conservatives, including frontbenchers, supporting it in a free vote in April 2024.

  • Following the 2024 General Election, the Labour government announced they would re-introduce these measures in the first session of Parliament. 

• This shows a crucial area of alignment on Welfare and Social policy between Labour and the Conservatives, as there is cross-party consensus on long-term efforts to create a “smoke-free generation” by phasing out tobacco use.

• This is also a great example of the limited influence of corporations and lobbyists in British Politics. Companies including British American Tobacco lobbied extremely strongly against the legislation, including former Leader of the House Penny Mourdant who they hired in a part-time position, but were unsuccessful in preventing its passage.

US Politics and Government Examples

Foreign Policy and Imperial Presidency

Trump Ignores The War Powers Act:

• On 1 May 2026, the 60-day deadline for congressional authorisation of military action in Iran expired. However, President Donald Trump explicitly called the War Powers Act of 1973 "totally unconstitutional," arguing that it imposes an illegal check on the executive branch's authority to command the military and he did not need Congress’s approval to continue the conflict.

  • Under the 1973 Act, the President must terminate military action within 60 days of notifying Congress unless lawmakers authorise its continuation. That deadline, triggered by the administration’s 28 February notification of strikes on Iran, passed without approval. 

    • Trump refused to seek authorisation, instead challenging Congress’s constitutional authority to limit presidential war powers.

• This illustrates the Imperial Presidency theory, where the executive expands its authority at the expense of Congress. The Constitution enumerates the power to declare war to Congress under Article I, while the War Powers Act was designed to ensure legislative oversight. 

  • However, Trump’s decision to ignore the act prevents Congress from fulfilling its constitutional role of declaring war and providing oversight under the Constitution.

    • This is a clear example of the executive branch exceeding its constitutional limits and sidelining the legislative branch. By declaring the War Powers Act "totally unconstitutional," the President is claiming unilateral authority to sustain a war indefinitely without legislative consent. 

• This also shows the president’s dominance in foreign affairs and the weakness of congressional checks. The President acts as the primary architect of foreign policy. 

  • By ignoring the 60-day deadline, the President is testing the limits of Article II powers and undermining Congress’s constitutional role as a check on foreign policy decisions.