4. Monarch, Crown, and Royal Prerogative

Question 1

Of what offices does the Crown consist?

Answer 1

• Monarch
• Prime Minister
• Ministers
• Government departments
• Civil servants

Question 2

Under the Bill of Rights Act 1689, who is the sovereign, and what are the two consequences of this?

Answer 2

Parliament, which means:

1. Parliament can abolish any prerogative power by passing an Act of Parliament, and
2. No new prerogative powers can be created, as government should seek them from Parliament

Question 3

Which prevails when Parliament expressly abolishes a prerogative power and replaces it with a statutory power, or passes legislation which overlaps with a prerogative power?

Answer 3

The statutory power prevails, or the statute takes precedence

Question 4

Due to statutory precedence what can the crown never do, and what would an example of this be?

Answer 4

The Crown cannot thwart the intention of Parliament, e.g. government deciding to never bring legislation into force when Parliament has allowed them this flexibility

Question 5

Can the prerogative be used to change the law or changes the sources of UK law?

Answer 5

No

Question 6

One of what two things is necessary for a statute to bind the Crown?

Answer 6

1. Statute expressly states that it binds the Crown, or
2. That a statute will bind the Crown is obvious by necessary implication

Question 7

What are the three types of prerogative powers that remain today?

Answer 7

1. Ministerial
2. Personal
3. Miscellaneous/archaic

Question 8

Who exercises ministerial prerogative powers?

Answer 8

Ministers of behalf of the Crown

Question 9

What is the constitutional concern over the ministerial prerogative stemming from the fact it is derived from common law and not statute?

Answer 9

Parliament generally has little oversight as to how the powers are used, and is usually limited to scrutinising how they are exercised

Question 10

What are the four most important ministerial prerogative powers?

Answer 10

1. Negotiation and ratification of international treaties
2. Declarations of war, and deployment and use of armed forces overseas
3. Prime Minister’s power to appoint and remove ministers
4. Grant and revocation of passports

Question 11

What are the four personal prerogative powers and by whom are they excercised?

Answer 11

The Monarch personally exercises the following:

1. Appointment of PM
2. Power to dismiss government
3. Power to prologue government
4. Granting Royal Assent

Question 12

Government’s power to ratify international treaties is controlled by what Act of Parliament?

Answer 12

Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010

Question 13

What is the process which the government must follow before they can ratify a treaty?

Answer 13

They must publish a draft of the treaty before Parliament, and it can be ratified only if neither the House of Commons nor House of Lords has voted that it should not be ratified within 21 days

Basically a negative resolution procedure with a shorter timeframe.

Question 14

What is the government’s option if either House votes that a treaty should not be ratified?

Answer 14

They can explain why it should be ratified, and then from that point once again, if neither House has voted again within 21 days that it should not be ratified, the government can ratify the treaty

Question 15

When can the government bypass the requirement to publish the treaty before Parliament and is the definition for this provided by law?

Answer 15

In an exceptional case, which has not been defined in law

Question 16

What is the cardinal convention?

Answer 16

The Monarch will always act on the advice of her ministers, even if the Monarch disagrees

Question 17

Whilst the Monarch cannot refuse to act on the advice of her ministers, what three rights does the Monarch have?

Answer 17

The right to:

1. Be consulted
2. Encourage
3. Warn

Question 18

Even though the deployment of forces overseas is a ministerial prerogative power, what has the government done since the Iraq War?

Answer 18

Sought the support of the House of Commons

Question 19

Under constitutional convention, what are the two requirements of a Prime Minister?

Answer 19

The Prime Minister must be:

1. An MP, and
2. Able to command the confidence of the House of Commons, i.e. maintain the support of the majority of all MPs

Question 20

What are the four things which occur when there is a hung Parliament?

Answer 20

1. Prime Minister remains in office unless they have lost confidence of the House of Commons
2. Monarch does not get actively involved
3. The political parties decide who forms the next government
4. When an agreement has been reached, the PM will resign (if necessary) and the Monarch will appoint a person who has the confidence of the House of Commons