law making Flashcards
what 3 institutions make up parliament
house of lords, house of commons, monarch
what is the legislative process
starts in the house of commons: first reading, second reading, committee stage, report stage, third reading.
then to the house of lords and repeats the process.
then to ping pong
then royal assent.
what is the consultation stage
the name of the bill is made
what is a green paper
a preposition of an initial bill is put on the green paper during the consultation stage
what happens at the first reading
the tittle of the bill is prepared, acts as a notification for the proposed bill.
what happens at the second reading
MPS debate the main parts of the bill, after commons votes on weather it should continue.
what is white paper
white paper is what the second reading is carried out on
what happends at the comittee stage
thebill is given to experts and people who would be effected by it to examine and com eup with proposed amendments
what happens in the report stage
committee reports back on what was decided in the committee stage to the house of commons and these amendments are voted on.
what happens at the third reading
final chance for debate. no changes can be made only a vote on whether or not to continue the process.
what happens during “ping pong”
when the bill goes to the house of lords and the process is repeated, if they alter anything it would go back to the house of commons for debate then back to the lords. this happens for any alterations suggested.
what is the royal assent
the king must give his approval to any new legislation before it is put in place, it is never refused and always granted.
what type of constitution does the UK have
unwritten constitution
what are the 3 parts of a unwritten constitution
parliamentary sovereignty, the rule of law, separation of powers
what is parliamentary sovereignty
the principle that an act of parliament can overrule any other form of legislation. e.g. judicial precedent, delegated legislation
who created a theory on parliamentary sovereignty
AV Dicey
what was AV Dicey theory on parliamentary sovereignty
split up into 3 parts:
1- parliament can make or unmake any law without legal constraints
2- no parliament can bind another
3- no act can be challenged by a court or have its validity questioned
what is the rule of law
The rule of law is the framework that allows an open, fair and peaceful society. It is essentially about ensuring that: public authority is bound by and accountable before pre-existing, clear, and known laws. citizens are treated equally before the law.
who cam up with the rule of law
AV Dicey
what are the 3 components to the rule of law
1- no sanction without breach: people should not be punished unless they have broken the law
2- one law should govern everyone: everyone is equal before the law
3- rights if individuals are secured by decisions of judges
what are 2 case examples of the rule of law being upholded
Al Rawi v security service (2010)
A and others v UK (2004)
what happened in the case of Al Rawi v security service (2010)
Al Rawi, former Guantanamo Bay detainees brought claims against UK Government agencies for complicity in their detention, rendition and mistreatment. The Government submitted that it had an implied right to use secret evidence procedure if it needs to rely on sensitive material to defend the claims. This material would not be shown to the claimant or his legal representatives but would be seen by a advocate appointed to act on his behalf, The Government also wished the court to be able to give a secret judgment that would have been withheld from the claimants themselves. the UK Supreme Court ruled against the use of secret evidence in civil trials without parliamentary authorisation. The Supreme Court reasoned that the courts had no power to adopt a procedure allowing the use of secret evidence, on the basis that it wouldn’t comply with the right to a fair trial.
what happened in the case of A and Others V UK (2004)
The case concerned the indefinite detention of foreign prisoners in the United Kingdom prison ‘Belmarsh’. The prisoners were held without trial under section 23 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. This decision and the subsequent detentions were challenged at court in terms of their compatibility with the aims of the European Convention on Human Rights. The House of Lords held that the provisions under which detainees were being held at Belmarsh prison (section 23) were incompatible with Article 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights.
what are some case examples of breaches of the rule of law and what happens in them
prisoners vote: conservatives proposed to ignore a ruling made by the ECHR that gave prisoners the right to vote.
Abu Qatada: he was arrested in the UK and was going to be deported to him home county of Jordan. the human rights act 1998 protects people from torcher and if this was to happen he would be subject to torcher form Jordan.
what is the act that recognises the rule of law
the constitutional reform act 2005
what is the separation of powers
the idea that 3 parts of state should remain separate although there is some overlap
what are the 3 parts of state in separation of power and what are each of them.
legislature: UK parliament, makes the law
judiciary: judges, interprets and applies the law
executive: government who enforces law
who cam up with the principle of separation of powers
monstaquier
why should all the branches remain separate according to the french bloke
- so each branch can keep a check on each other
- to ensure there there’s not to much power in the hands of the executive.
- to make sure they don’t go beyond there powers ( ultra vires)
