Constitution

Question 1

What are the features of the UK constitution?

Answer 1

• Uncodified (no single written document)
• not entrenched (constitutional laws are flexible + can be altered)
• unitary (power is concentrated in one single institution)

Question 2

What are the sources of the UK Constitution?

Answer 2

Statue Law
Common Law
Conventions
Works of authority

Question 3

What is statute law?

Answer 3

It overrides other laws due to the principle of parliamentary sovereignty.

Question 4

What is common law?

Answer 4

When deciding on the legality of a case, judges will use previous decisions on similar cases.

Question 5

What are conventions?

Answer 5

These are established rules of conduct + behaviour - what is expected.

Question 6

What are works of authority?

Answer 6

Works written by scholars seen as experts in the constitution.

Question 7

What is parliamentary sovereignty?

Answer 7

The principle that absolute, supreme + unrestricted power lies with parliament.

Question 8

What are the ‘Twin Pillars’?

Answer 8

1. Rule of law - under the law of the country, all person, institutions + entities are equally accountable to the law.
2. Parliamentary sovereignty - parliament has the most authority in the UK.

Question 9

What are the key documents?

Answer 9

Manga Carta
Bill of Rights
The Act of Settlement
Acts of Union
Parliament Acts
European Communities Act

Question 10

What is the Magna Carta?

Answer 10

1215 - King + government not above the law, nobody should be deprived of liberty or promoters with rout due process of law.

Question 11

What is the Bill of Rights?

Answer 11

1689 - Regular parliaments, freedom of elections and speech within Parliament.

Question 12

What is the Act of Settlement?

Answer 12

1701 - Right of Parliament to determine line of royal succession.

Question 13

What is the 1st Act of Union?

Answer 13

1707, United England + Scotland under one Parliament.
Tony Blair reversed in 1997.

Question 14

What is the 2nd Act of Union?

Answer 14

1800, Irish Parliament established, 100 MPs given in Westminister.

Question 15

What are the Parliament Acts?

Answer 15

1911 - Lords can’t delay money bills and veto replaced with 2 year delaying power. Lords had rejected tax - raising ‘People’s Budget’.
1949 - Reduced 2 year delay to 1.

Question 16

What was the European Communities Act?

Answer 16

1972, UK joins European Economic Community (EU)

Question 17

European Union (Withdrawal) Act

Answer 17

2018, UK leaves EU

Question 18

What are the Devolution Acts?

Answer 18

Scottish Parliament Act 1998
Senedd opened 1997
Good Friday Agreement 1998
Gave power over great number of issues, Parliament could revoke but unlikely.

Question 19

What is the House of Lords Act?

Answer 19

1999, Hereditary peers reduced to 92, more lords appointed, more likely informed peers.

Question 20

What was the Human Rights Act?

Answer 20

1998, Not a bill of righty’s but codified rights comparable to the rest of Europe (European Court of Human Rights)

Question 21

What was the Magna Carta and what year was it created?

Answer 21

Issued in June 1215 and was the first document to put into writing the principle that the king and his government was not above the law.

Question 22

What was the Bill of Rights and what year was it created?

Answer 22

1689, The Bill firmly established the principles of frequent parliaments and freedom of speech within Parliament – known today as Parliamentary Privilege.

Question 23

What was the Act of Settlement and what year was it created?

Answer 23

1701, this confirmed the power of Parliament to determine the succession to the throne.

Question 24

What was the Acts of Union and what year was it created?

Answer 24

1707, united Scotland to England and Wales, creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain.

Question 25

What were the Parliament Acts and what years were they created?

Answer 25

1911- The House of Lords had the power to veto (stop) legislation. However, this arrangement was put under pressure when the House of Lords refused to pass David Lloyd-George’s ‘people’s budget’ of 1909. Eventually, the budget was passed after a general election in 1910; a second general election was then fought on the issue of reform of the House of Lords. The result was the Parliament Act 1911, which removed from the House of Lords the power to veto a Bill, except one to extend the lifetime of a Parliament. Instead, the Lords could delay a Bill by up to two years. The Act also reduced the maximum lifespan of a Parliament from seven years to five years.

1949 - Further reduced the Lords’ delaying powers to one year.

Question 26

What was the European Communities Act and what year was it created?

Answer 26

1972, joined Britain to the European Community (now the European Union), with the eventual effect that EU law takes precedence over UK law.