constitution

Question 1

constitution

Answer 1

set of rules that set out how a country operates. it establishes duties, powers, and functions of the various institutions of government.
attempts to regulate the relationship between the governing institutions and defines the relationship between the state and rights of the individual.

Question 2

democracy

Answer 2

a system of government in which power is vested in the people and exercised by them through elected representatives.

Question 3

parliamentary sovereignty

Answer 3

cornerstone of British constitution, states that Westminster parliament is the supreme law-making body. parliament has legislative supremacy. parliament may make any law it chooses; its decisions may not be overturned by any higher authority, and many not bind its successors.

Question 4

unentrenched constitution

Answer 4

has no special procedure for amendment, unlike an entrenched one which requires separate rules and procedures for amendment.

Question 5

uncodified constitution

Answer 5

a constitution where the laws, rules and principles specifying how a state is governed are not gathered in a single document. instead they are found in a variety of sources.

Question 6

judiciary

Answer 6

the branch of government responsible for interpreting the law and deciding upon legal disputes.`

Question 7

legislative

Answer 7

branch of government responsible for passing laws

Question 8

executive

Answer 8

branch of government responsible for implementation of policy

Question 9

Westminster model

Answer 9

parliament is sovereign, executive and legislative are fused and political power is centralised

Question 10

rule of law

Answer 10

a legal theory holding that the relationship between the state and the individual is governed by the law, protecting the individual from arbitrary state action

Question 11

fusion of powers

Answer 11

the intermingling of personnel in the executive and legislative branches found in parliamentary systems.

Question 12

unitary state

Answer 12

a homogenous state in which power is concentrated at the political centre and all parts of the state are governed in the same way.

Question 13

quasi-federal state

Answer 13

the central government of a unitary state devolves some of its power to a subnational governments. it has some of the features of a unitary state and some of a federal state.

Question 14

statute law

Answer 14

law derived from Acts of Parliament and subordinate legislation

Question 15

common law

Answer 15

law derived from general customs or traditions and the decision of judges.

Question 16

conventions

Answer 16

established norms of political behaviour; rooted in past experience rather than law.

Question 17

royal perogative

Answer 17

discretionary powers of the Crown that are exercised by government ministers in the monarch’s name.

Question 18

authoritative works

Answer 18

a work written by an expert describing how a policy is run; it is not legally binding but is taken as a significant guide.

Question 19

treaties

Answer 19

formal agreements with other countries, usually ratified (confirmed) by an Act of Parliament.

Question 20

decentralisation

Answer 20

decision-making powers would be devolved to new institutions in Scotland and Wales, with the role of the local government being enhanced

Question 21

devolution

Answer 21

the transfer of some policy making powers from the centre to subnational institutions, but which sees the state-wide legislature retain ultimate authority

Question 22

coalition government

Answer 22

a government containing members of two or more political parties, usually because no party has won an absolute majority in the election. (hung parliament)

Question 23

referendum

Answer 23

a vote on a single issue is put to a public ballot by the government

Question 24

civil liberties

Answer 24

fundamental individual rights and freedoms that ought to be protected from interference or encroachment by the state