1.1 The development, nature and sources of the UK constitution Flashcards
What is a constitution?
A set of principles which may be written or unwritten, that established the distribution of power within a political system, relationships between political institutions, the limits of government jurisdiction, the rights of citizens and method of amending the constitution itself
A constitution comes in what two forms?
Codified
Uncodified
What is an uncodified constitution?
Not authoritative
- All law if the same; there are no ‘constitutional’ laws
Not entrenched
- Constitution can be changed through normal process of law
Not judiciable
- Judges do not have the power to declare laws as ‘unconstitutional
What is a codified constitution?
Authoritative
- Constitution is ‘higher law’ and the foundation of all politics
Entrenched
- It’s difficult to amend or abolish
Judiciable
- Judiciary can declare certain laws or actions as ‘unconstitutional’
What are some characteristics of an uncodified constitution?
- Flexible
- Fusion of powers
- Parliaments makes law
- Lack of clarity
- Executive dominance
- Rights are not entrenched
What are some characteristics of a codified constitution?
- Rigid
- Clear separation of powers
- Courts make law
- Clarity
- Limited government
- Entrenched rights
What is a unitary system?
- Sovereignty and political power reside on one location
- possible that some power may be distributed to regional and local government
- the central sovereign power can overrule the other bodies
Give two countries as examples which have a unitary system?
- UK
2. Norway
What is a federal system?
- Sovereignty is divided between central and regional bodies
- Such constitutions normally arise when a number of sovereign states agree to surrender some of their power to a central authority
Give two countries as examples which have a federal system
- USA
2. Germany
How is the UK different from other countries when it comes to the development of their constitution?
- The UK, unlike many countries, hasn’t undergone a fundamental change such as revolution or military invasion which often leads to the development of a new constitution
- The UK has evolved gradually since the English Civil Wars
The cumulative effect of the UK constitution has to be.. (give 4)
- Reduced powers of the monarchy; extended to those in Parliament
- Increase rights of ordinary citizens
- Increase the power of the elected House of Commons at the expense of the unelected House of Lords
- Draw together component parts of the UK
What 2 years were the Parliament Acts passed?
- 1911
2. 1949
What happened to the House of Lords has a result of the Parliament Acts?
Reduced power of House of Lords to interfere in House of Common’s agenda
What provoked the passing of the Parliament Acts?
Provoked by Lords rejecting radical tax-rising ‘People’s Budget’
What was established under the Parliament Acts?
- Affirmed that the Lords couldn’t delay money bills
- 1949 reduced two-year delaying power to one year
What year was the European Communities Act passed?
1972
What happened once the European Communities Act was passed?
Took Britain into the European Economic Community
What was established under the European Communities Act?
Established that EU laws would take precedence over the UK law
What does it mean by the UK constitution being uncodified?
- No single document where principles are set out
- Comes from a number of sources instead
What does it mean by the UK constitution being unentrenched?
- More flexible than codified; can be altered by simple majority in Parliament
- All laws have equal status
- To contrast, codified constitutions are higher status than ordinary laws
What does it mean by the UK having a unitary system?
- Sovereignty has traditionally been located at the centre, with component parts of UK all run from London in a similar way
- Modified since devolution in the 1990s
Why would some describe the UK has a ‘union state’ giving an example?
- Because of the existence of devolution
- Although the centre remains string, sub-nations are governed in different ways
Coronavirus; devolved nations have different restrictions
What two principles of the UK constitution were identified by constitutional theorist A.V Dicey in 1885?
- Parliamentary sovereignty
2. Rule of Law
What is parliamentary sovereignty?
Parliament is the ultimate source of power and authority in the UK
What are 3 keys aspects of parliamentary sovereignty?
- No Parliament can bind its successor; any law can be amended or repealed
- Parliament can make a law on any subject it wishes to
- Legislation passed by Parliament cannot be struck down by any other body
What is the Rule of Law?
The actions of the state are limited by law; check on the power of parliament
What are the 4 key aspects of the Rule of Law?
- Everyone is entitled to a fair trial and no one should be imprisoned without due legal process
- All citizens must obey the law and are equal under it
- Public officials are not above the law and they can be held to account by the courts
- The judiciary must be independent of political interference
What is statute law?
Laws that are passed in Parliament
Not all statue laws are constitutional but which ones are?
Only those that affect citizens’ rights and the nature of the political system
Why is statute law the most important source of the UK constitution?
Statute law is underpinned by concepts of parliamentary sovereignty
Give 3 examples of statute law
- Scotland Act 1998
- Government of Wales Act 2006
- Fixed-Term Parliaments Act 2011
What is common law?
Legal principles laid down by judges when ruling on court cases’ provide precedence for later judgements
Give 2 examples of common law
- Presumption
2. Habeus Corpus
What is presumption? (common law)
Person accused of crime is innocent until proven guilty
What is habeus corpus?
Protections against unlawful imprisonments
What are conventions?
Customs and practices that don’t have legal force but have been broadly accepted and followed
How can a convention be challenged or changed?
Through an Act of Parliament
Give 2 examples of conventions
- The Salisbury Conventions
2. Votes in Parliament before going to war
What are authoritative works?
Texts which explain the workings of the political system; lacks legal standing
Give an example os authoritative works
‘Erskine May’s Parliamentary Practice’ published in 1884 - explains rules of parliamentary life
What are treaties?
Agreements with other EU member states, which UK governments have signed since joining what is now the EU in 1973
Give an example of a treaty
Maastricht (1992) transformed the European Community into the EU
Give 2 factors contributing to the pressure for constitutional reform in the 1990s
- Demand for modernisation
2. The experience of conservative rule, 1978-97
Elaborate on ‘demands for modernisation’ factor contributing to pressure for constitutional reform in the 1990s
- Blair’s New Labour Party supported constitutional reform as a way of modernising British institutions
- More open to demands of pressure groups like Unlock Democracy; wanted more democracy and stronger guarantees of citizens’ rights
Why did Blair’s government embrace constitutional reform?
- Didn’t expect to win a majority in 1997 election
- They could join forces with the Liberal Democrats in the event of a hung parliament; supported constitutional reform
Elaborate on ‘the experience of conservative rule’ factor contributing to pressure for constitutional reform in the 1990s
- Party refused to undertake constitutional reform
- Helped to build up pressure for change, especially in Scotland; population felt ignored by distant government in London
Describe reforms made to the House of Lords under Labour (1997-2010)
-Labour initially planned
