Yes Minister

If you would like to know the mechanics of the British government system, Yes Minister would be a good start. There's a slew of Yes Minister quotes and exchanges by the witty writing team of Antony Jay & Jonathan Lynn here. Including the following:

Bob: Minister are you lying the foundations for a police state?
Jim: You know, I'm glad you asked that question.
Bob: Well Minister could we have the answer?
Jim: Well yes, of course, I was just about to give it to you, if I may. Yes as I said I'm glad you asked me that question because it's a question that a lot of people are asking, and quite so, because a lot of people want to know the answer to it. And let's be quite clear about this without beating about the bush the plain fact of the matter is that it is a very important question indeed and people have a right to know.
Bob: Minister, we haven't yet had the answer.
Jim: I'm sorry, what was the question?

And this:

Sir Humphrey: MP's are chosen by the people, they're chosen by their local party, thirty five men in grubby raincoats or thirty five women in silly hats.
Bernard: And the government are selected from the best of them.
Sir Humphrey: Bernard, there are only six hundred and thirty MP's. If one party has just over three hundred it forms a government, of that three hundred one hundred are too old and too silly, one hundred are too young and too callow which leaves just about a hundred MP's to fill one hundred governmental posts. There's no choice at all, they've had no selection, no training. We have to job for them.