AO1: US Constitutional checks and balances on both branches of the US Congress enshrined, but not those on the UK AO2: Parliament AO1: This helps ensure that neither house can override the other, unlike in the UK where the House of Commons can use the AO2: Parliament Act 1911 to override the House of Lords AO1: More frequent elections in House of Representatives yet none for House of Lords AO2: This means that the House of Representatives is more accountable to the electorate, whereas the House of Lords has no direct mandate and so can act more independently AO1: The use of the ‘carrot and the stick’ in the House of Commons makes MPs more controlled by the executive, but members of Congress cannot be offered Cabinet positions by the executive, and the whip system is much weaker in the US AO2: This means that MPs in the UK may be more influenced by the prospect of promotion/disciplinary action than the interests of their constituents, whereas the House of Representatives can more effectively fulfil their representative function with less direct influence by the executive branch AO1: Actions by both the US Congress and the UK Parliament can be declared ultra vires by Supreme Court, but this has less effect on the UK Parliament AO2: This is more of a check on the US Congress as the US Supreme Court can declare legislation to be unconstitutional, so effectively striking down legislation, whereas the UK Parliament can only overturn secondary legislation and not primary legislation AO1: Party majority/minority more of a limit on UK Parliament AO2: The UK government is more reliant on their majority to help ensure they can pass their legislative agenda, whereas individual members of Congress are less likely to work as a party unit and so a UK government with a substantial majority may find it easier to pass legislation