AO1: Bicameral structure exists in both countries, but the powers of the chambers in the US are more equal than in the UK- this suggests that the power of the Lords in the UK in particular are more limited AO2: The Lords is perceived to be less important in the legislative process in the UK as it is the unelected chamber, but the US House and Senate have their own exclusive constitutional powers, e.g. power of the purse and foreign affairs AO1: Separation of powers exists in the US whereas the UK has fusion of powers: this can lead to gridlock in the US but allows the executive to dominate in the UK AO2: This means that the Senate and the House play an equal role in passing legislation, but are limited by the potential for gridlock that can prevent effective legislation. In the UK, however, the Parliament Acts allow the House of Commons to effectively overrule the House of Lords on legislation, so preventing the AO1: Lords from checking government power effectively AO2: The US executive has explicit checks on the legislative branches through the presidential veto AO1: However, there is no equivalent in the UK, as the final legislative stage of the Royal Assent is a mere formality and so not an effective limitation on the power of parliament - whereas presidential vetoes can and do prevent legislation from passing - and can only be overturned by a 2/3 vote in both chambers of AO2: Congress AO1: Fixed term elections exist in both countries, although the Lords are not elected in the UK, which means that members of the Commons and both chambers in the US have to consider the proximity of elections when scrutinising the executive and passing legislation AO2: This particularly affects members of the House of Representatives who have a very short election cycle and are often criticised for paying more attention to the ‘folks back home’ than the national interest AO1: Both legislatures are limited in how effective they can be by the party system AO2: Increasing partisanship in both countries leads to further gridlock, particularly in the case of divided government in the US or if there is not a strong majority in the UK House of Commons