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Politics & Government vocabulary · Opposition and Accountability

Accountability

Meaning in politics & government, with examples

/əˌkaʊntəˈbɪləti/nounCore term

In politics & government, accountability means: The duty of people in power to explain their decisions and actions, accept responsibility for them and face consequences if they act wrongly.

In Turkish: hesap verebilirlik, sorumluluk

How it is used

A key word in discussions of good government. People demand, increase or improve accountability, and texts refer to democratic, political and public accountability. The adjective is accountable: ministers are accountable to parliament.

Example sentences

  1. The new rules are designed to improve accountability in public spending.

  2. Regular elections are one way to ensure accountability.

Common collocations

  • democratic accountability
  • public accountability
  • improve accountability
  • lack of accountability
  • be accountable to
  • transparencyThe quality of a government or organization being open about its decisions, spending and activities, so that the public can see and check them.
  • scrutinyCareful and detailed examination of something, especially the way parliament, the media or the public check the actions and decisions of the government.
  • oppositionThe parties in parliament that are not part of the government, especially the largest of them, whose role is to question the government and offer an alternative.
  • corruptionDishonest or illegal behaviour by people in positions of power, such as accepting bribes or using public money or office for private gain.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Opposition and Accountability

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