1.2 How the constitution has changed since 1997

Question 1

How did the experience of Conservative governments, from 1979-97, increase the pressure for reform in the 1990s?

Answer 1

• The Conservatives had refused to undertake constitutional reforms
• This had helped to build up pressure for change, especially in Scotland
• Scottish opinion rejected a number of Conservative policies

Question 2

What were the 5 key areas of reform implemented by new Labour?

Answer 2

House of Lords reforms
Electoral reform
Devolution
The Human Rights Act
The creation of the Supreme Court

Question 3

What reforms were made to the House of Lords by new Labour?

Answer 3

• The right for all but 92 hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords was ended
• The influence of Labours opponents was reduced as most hereditary peers supported the Conservatives
• This gave the Lords a more ‘modern’ appearance
• Now the majority of its members would be life peers, who were supposed to have been appointed on grounds of merit
• No political party now enjoyed a dominant position in the Lords
• From 2000 a House of Lords Appointments Commission nominated a proportion of peers who weren’t linked with a party
• However, the PM and other party leaders continued to make nominations on party political grounds

Question 4

What electoral reforms were made by new Labour?

Answer 4

• Various forms of proportional representation were introduced for elections to the Scottish parliament, Welsh Assembly, Northern Ireland Assembly and European Parliament
• However, no changes were made to the Westminster FPTP system

Question 5

How did new Labour introduce devolution?

Answer 5

• Devolved bodies created for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland following referendums in 1997-98
• These reforms were a pragmatic package designed to damp down support for the SNP and to bring together the conflicting unionist and nationalist factions in Northern Ireland
• The Scottish parliament has always had more powers than the Welsh Assembly due to more demand

Question 6

Explain the so-called ‘West Lothian question’ and why new Labour had no answer to it.

Answer 6

• It is the anomaly that Scottish MPs at Westminster were able to vote on purely English matters, yet English MPs had no influence over issues devolved to the Scottish parliament
• An attempt to set up elected regional assemblies in England was abandoned after the only area in which a referendum was held to test public opinion
• The North East decisively rejected that idea in 2004

Question 7

What is the Barnett formula?

Answer 7

• Devised by Labour minister Joel Barnett in 1978, long before devolution
• This determines relative levels of public spending for the component parts of the UK based on population
• Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland receive more spending per head of population than England

Question 8

What was the Human Rights Act 1998, introduced by new Labour?

Answer 8

• It incorporated the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) into UK statute law, enshrining rights such as those to a fair trial, freedom from slavery and degrading treatment, and respect for privacy and family life
• All future legislation had to be compatible with the ECHR
• Judges couldn’t strike down laws that were incompatible with it but could highlight such legislation for amendment by parliament

Question 9

How were the limitations of the Human Rights Act demonstrated?

Answer 9

• By the government’s decision to ‘derogate from’ (declare an exemption from) Article 5, which gave individuals the right to liberty and security, in cases of suspected terrorism
• The introduction of control orders in 2005, which allowed the authorities to limit the freedom of movement of such individuals, highlighted the unentrenched nature of the act

Question 10

What was the Constitutional Reform Act of 2005, introduced by new Labour?

Answer 10

• Led to the establishment, 4 years later, of a Supreme Court as the highest court of appeal in the UK for civil cases, and except in Scotland for criminal cases
• Previously senior judges known as the law lords, sitting in the House of Lords, had performed this function
• This development is an example of the separation of powers

Question 11

What were the areas of agreement between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats in the coalition with regard to constitutional reform?

Answer 11

• Openness to further devolution to Scotland and Wales

- Parliamentary reform - including a wholly or mainly elected House of Lords

Question 12

What were the largest areas of disagreement within the coalition government?

Answer 12

• House of Lords reform and House of Commons boundary reform
• Electoral reform
• Rights

Question 13

How did the Conservatives and Lib Dems disagree on House of Lords reform and Commons boundary reform, during the coalition?

Answer 13

• Plans for a mainly elected House of Lords were dropped after a rebellion by 91 backbench Conservative MPs
• The Lib Dems retaliated by blocking the implementation of legislation designed to reduce the number of MPs from 650 to 600 - they halted it because it would have mainly favoured the Conservatives

Question 14

How did the Conservatives and Lib Dems disagree over electoral reform, during the coalition?

Answer 14

• Referendum held in May 2011, with the two parties taking up entrenched positions: Conservatives wanted to keep FPTP - the Lib Dems wanted to adopt the AV - rejected by 68% of those who voted

Question 14

How did the Conservatives and Lib Dems disagree over electoral reform, during the coalition?

Answer 14

• A referendum was held in May 2011, with the two parties taking up entrenched positions: the Conservatives campaigned strongly to retain FPTP, while the Lib Dems argued for the adoption of the AV, a preferential, though not proportional, voting system, only to see their proposals rejected by 68% of those who voted
• Change in the voting system had been a Lib Dem manifesto pledge

Question 15

How did the Conservatives and Lib Dems disagree on rights, during the coalition?

Answer 15

• The Conservatives wanted to replace the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights, whereas the Liberal Democrats were determined to retain the act
• A commission tasked with investigating the issue failed to find a way forward
• The Conservative manifesto in 2015 pledged to revisit the issue

Question 16

How did the coalition reform devolution in Wales?

Answer 16

• Referendum held in March 2011 on proposals to grant further powers to the Welsh Assembly
• The assembly received direct law-making power in all of the 20 policy areas that had been devolved to it, without needing to consult Westminster

Question 17

How did the coalition reform devolution in Scotland?

Answer 17

• Scottish parliament received more powers under the 2012 Scotland Act, including borrowing powers, the right to set its own rate of income tax and control over landfill tax and stamp duty
• Throughout the 2014 referendum campaign, Cameron and other party leaders pledged to grant more powers to the Scottish parliament

Question 18

How did the 2015-16 Conservative government offer a solution to the ‘West Lothian question’?

Answer 18

• As a concession to English opinion they introduced English votes for English laws (EVEL) - if a measure that concerns only England (or England and Wales) comes before the Commons, it can pass only with the approval of a ‘grand committee’, consisting of English (or English and Welsh) MPs
• The measure was used for the first time in January 2016, to pass a housing bill

Question 19

Explain the Fixed Term Parliaments Act (2011), introduced by the coalition.

Answer 19

• Ended the PM’s power to choose to date of a general election by establishing that a new parliament must be elected on a fixed date, at five-year intervals
• An earlier contest can be held only if two-thirds of MPs vote for one, or if a prime minister loses a vote of no confidence and fails to form a new government within a 14-day period
• In 2017, Theresa May got around the act - snap election

Question 20

How did the coalition reform the House of Commons?

Answer 20

• It implemented reforms recommended by a committee chaired by Labour MP Tony Wright, which reported before the 2010 election
• Chairs of the Commons select committees were to be chosen by MPs, rather than have their selection influenced by the party leaders

Question 21

Explain the Recall of MPs Act (2015).

Answer 21

• A response to the fact that voters had no legal means of removing scandalous MPs who refused to resign their seats
• If an MP is sentenced to a custodial sentence, or is suspended from the Commons for more than 21 days, a by-election is triggered if at least 10% of constituents sign a recall petition