Kriselda Gray wrote: ↑Mon Oct 24, 2022 9:25 am What is the difference between a Head of State and Head of Government, both in general terms and in how the UK handles it?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_of_statehead of state
noun
The chief public representative of a nation having duties, privileges and responsibilities varying greatly depending on the constitutional rules; a monarch in a monarchy, and often styled president in a republic, but variations such as collegiality exist.
the chief public representative of a country who may also be the head of government
That pretty much covers it. In Ireland, the President only has 4 real powers outside the ceremonial ones - Referring a piece of legislation to the Council of State for advice, or the Supreme court, before Signing; Refusal to desolve Parliament when requested by the Prime Minister, addressing a joine session of the House and Senead, and one other than I cant recall.A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state[1] in its unity and legitimacy. Depending on the country's form of government and separation of powers, the head of state may be a ceremonial figurehead (such as the British monarch) or concurrently the head of government and more (such as the president of the United States, who is also commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces).
In a parliamentary system, such as the United Kingdom or India, the head of state usually has mostly ceremonial powers, with a separate head of government.[2] However, in some parliamentary systems, like South Africa, there is an executive president that is both head of state and head of government. Likewise, in some parliamentary systems the head of state is not the head of government, but still has significant powers, for example Morocco. In contrast, a semi-presidential system, such as France, has both heads of state and government as the de facto leaders of the nation (in practice they divide the leadership of the nation between themselves). Meanwhile, in presidential systems, the head of state is also the head of government.[1] In one-party ruling communist states, the position of president has no tangible powers by itself, however, since such a head of state, as a matter of custom, simultaneously holds the post of General Secretary of the Communist Party, they are the executive leader with their powers deriving from their status of being the party leader, rather than the office of president.
Former French president Charles de Gaulle, while developing the current Constitution of France (1958), said that the head of state should embody l'esprit de la nation ("the spirit of the nation").[3]
https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/g ... eland.html