paper 2 cramming

Question 1

name 3 functions of the constitution

Answer 1

• establishes relationship between branches
• establishes and limits government power
• asserts rights of citizens and how they should be protected

Question 2

name the 7 stages of the development of the constitution

Answer 2

• magna carta 1215
• bill of rights 1689
• act of settlement 1701
• act of union 1707
• parliament acts 1911 and 1949
• european communities act 1972
• EU act 2020

Question 3

what are the 4 types of sovereignty?

Answer 3

• legal sovereignty
• political sovereignty
• popular sovereignty
• devolved sovereignty

Question 4

what is the rule of law?
what is a unitary constitution?
what does the fusion of powers mean?
what does parliamentary sovereignty mean?
what does it mean that the constitution is unentrenched?

Answer 4

• everyone is obligated to follow the law
• power is central to one location (westminister)
• government made up of members either in HOC or HOL
• parliament is the supreme decision making body
• not set in stone - flexible and able to amend through an act of parliament

Question 5

how have constitutional reforms impacted these features?

Answer 5

• uncodified = brexit removes important source of law
• unentrenched = scottish parliament safe from abolition due to high support for devolution (semi-entrenched)
• parliamentary sovereignty = referendums make pop sovereignty clash with par sovereignty
• unitary = quasi-federal due to devolution - different laws in different areas
• fusion of powers = greater separation due to SC

Question 6

what are the 5 types of sources that make up the uncodified constitution?

Answer 6

• statute law
• conventions - not written but binding
• authoritative works - guidance and clarity
• common law
• treaties - agreements with external bodies

Question 7

list blair’s 5 constitutional reforms

Answer 7

• devolution
• HRA 1998
• house of lords reform
• freedom of information 2000
• supreme court 2005

Question 8

what was the devolution reform?

Answer 8

• transfer of powers to different regions in the uk (decentralisation)
• asymmetric powers
• each have assembly (parliament in scotland and wales) and executive
• devolution can be suspended (NI 7 times)

Question 9

3 positives and negative impacts of devolution

Answer 9

positives vs negatives
- makes gov more region sensitive VS regional unfairness
- power sharing in NI reduced secretarian violence VS west lothian Q - should non english mps be voting on english only laws?
- electoral systems more proportional in devolved areas VS power sharing = less stability

Question 10

what was the HRA 1998?

Answer 10

• incorporated ECHR into UK law (constitution)
• binding on all bodies but parliament

Question 11

3 positives and negative impacts of HRA

Answer 11

positive vs negative
- affordable access to justice - dont have to travel to european court of human rights VS given unelected judges too much power over gov
- balance between par sov and holding parliament to high standard VS lack of entrenchment
- limits power of executive (incompatibility) VS parliament can ignore incompatibility statements

Question 12

what was the house of lords reform?

Answer 12

• removed majority of hereditary peers from house of lords (93 left)
• only life peers appointed by lords

Question 13

3 positives and negative impacts of house of lords reform

Answer 13

• undemocratic element removed VS should eventually lead to fully elected chamber - hasnt happened
• future conservatives scrutinised more thoroughly VS lords can only delay non money bills for a year and cant block manifesto
• independent body approving appointments (House of Lords Appointments Commission) VS PMs can reward supporters via peerages

Question 14

what was the freedom of information act 2000?

Answer 14

• allowed public to request official info held by public bodies - except national security

Question 15

3 positives and negative impacts of FOI act

Answer 15

• transparency - more opportunities for scrutiny VS hasnt prevented cover ups - info leaked informally
• brought uk in line with other western democracies VS weaker than other laws - exemptions of certain info
• allowed education to how government works and for interactions happen VS gov can limit further - not royal correspondence after ‘black spider memos’

Question 16

what was the introduction of the supreme court?

Answer 16

• CRA 2005 - open SC in 2009
• replaced lords role as judiciary - increasing separation of powers
• transferred 12 most senior judges
  replaced lord chancellor with lord chief justice

Question 17

2 positives and negative impacts of the supreme court

Answer 17

• independence to challenge government VS not much power as can only interpret laws and parliament gives power
• senior judges appointed by JAC, reduce political interference and no bias VS narrow social backgrounds; position used to enter political arena - miller cases

Question 18

what was the fixed parliament act 2011?

Answer 18

• general election every 5 years unless general consensus to call it earlier (2/3 maj or lose vote of no confidence)
• dates out of pms control

Question 19

2 positives and negative impacts of the fixed parliament act (REMOVED)

Answer 19

• power out of pms control - cant call snap election VS force an unpopular gov for 5 years (can be changed anyways)
• greater political stability VS not prevented snap elections (eg. 2019) - capitalise off of popularity in polls

Question 20

what further devolution took place?

Answer 20

• scotland act 2016 - increased devolved powers (welfare provision and set rate of income tax) - dev permanent unless voted against in referendum
• wales act 2014 - power to raise new forms of tax
• wales act 2017 - decide own electoral system but not for general elections
• 6 england cities and regions elected mayors to decide on transport, planning, housing etc (such as greater manchester combined authority)

Question 21

what was the recall of mps act 2015?

Answer 21

• allowed mps to be held to account and punished if they are found guilty of misconduct
• if 10% of constituents sign recall petition, a by-election is called to find replacement

Question 22

positives and negative impacts of the recall of mps act

Answer 22

• punishes innappropriate actions whilst being hard to remove VS doesn’t guarantee they will be punished if petition doesnt get enough signs (eg. Ian Paisley Jr)
• act is used appropriately and as intended (eg. fiona onasanya for a criminal conviction) VS can till stand in by-election (eg. chris davies after falsifying expenses claims)

Question 23

what was english votes for english laws 2015?

Answer 23

• scottish, northern irish, welsh mps cant vote on laws only impacting england
• west lothian question
• jan 2016 - scottish mps barred from voting on the housing bill

Question 24

positives and negative impacts of evel

Answer 24

• ensures representation in westminster and tackles west lothian question VS all mps can vote in final reading + increased gov dominance as conservatives had majority from 2015 to 2019 elections

Question 25

what was the EU (withdrawal agreement) act 2020?

Answer 25

- britain left the european union

Question 26

3 positives and negative impacts of EU act 2020

Answer 26

- law respected results of the referendum vs divisive issue - issue of disrupted trade of NI and republic addressed (NI using EU rules on goods) VS different trading arrangements in the UK - no NI mp voted for law - transition period allowed preparation VS put off difficult decisions regarding future relationship

Question 27

4 arguments about further reform

Answer 27

english parliament english regional assemblies replace HRA with british bill of rights codified constitution

Question 28

what are the 7 key features of the house of commons?

Answer 28

frontbenchers backbenchers select committees legislative committees party whips the speaker

Question 29

what are the 5 key features of the house of lords?

Answer 29

life peers hereditary peers lords spiritual crossbench mps (no party affiliation) lord speaker

Question 30

what are the 7 stages of the legislative process?

Answer 30

- first reading - no debate or vote - second reading - debate and vote - committee stage - report stage - third reading - sent to other house (ping pong) - royal assent

Question 31

what are the 5 types of legislation?

Answer 31

public bills primary legislation secondary (delegated) legislation private members bills private bills

Question 32

what is parliamentary privilege?

Answer 32

- being able to say anything in parliament and not be punished

Question 33

what are backbenchers and their functions?

Answer 33

- legislation - priv members bills - debate - representation - scrutiny - can join select committee, threaten rebellion

Question 34

how influential are backbenchers? 3 points each

Answer 34

- more inclined to defy the whip VS rare, threatens promotion - BBC has allowed issues to be raised VS debates in westminister hall - not the same status - more influence in hung parliaments vs less influence in majority

Question 35

functions of house of commons

Answer 35

- scrutiny - legislation - representation

Question 36

powers of house of commons

Answer 36

approve/reject legislation - vote of no confidence - order ministers to floor to answer questions - select committee or in writing - amend legislation - debate on important issues

Question 37

what are peers and their functions?

Answer 37

- representation - legislation - scrutiny

Question 38

functions of house of lords

Answer 38

- representation - legislation - scrutiny

Question 39

powers of house of lords

Answer 39

delay amendment recommendations question ministers debate

Question 40

what is the opposition?

Answer 40

- party with second largest majority

Question 41

3 limitations of the lords

Answer 41

dont have financial priveldge delay for up to 1 year salisbury convention manifesto

Question 42

roles of the opposition

Answer 42

- force gov to justify and explain - shortcomings of the government - present alternative - preparing to be alternative gov if gen elec - setting agenda for supply days (20/yr)

Question 43

4 types of parliamentary questions

Answer 43

pmqs urgent questions ministerial questions written questions

Question 44

parliament's effectiveness of the legislative function

Answer 44

- quantity vs gov dominates - quality vs maj gov rish through process - checked vs amaendments can be defeated

Question 45

parliament's effectiveness of the representative function

Answer 45

- voting can show issue opinion vs fptp is unfair and lords are unelected - multiparty vs whips and 2019 no independents - stand up for constituencies vs most mps vote with party

Question 46

parliament's effectiveness of the scrutiny function

Answer 46

- accountability vs punch and judy politics - lords decrease in conservatives vs ping pong questioned when majority support - minority parties hard to find support vs maj tends to limit scrutiny

Question 47

what are select committees?

Answer 47

- committees with specialised focus on policy area - government party has majority - recommendations - response within 2 months

Question 48

3 arguments for and against the effectiveness of select committees?

Answer 48

for - taken seriously - 40% reccs are accepted - beckbench concern - freedom from gov - can summon witnesses for evidence against - can only make recommendations - powers to compel witnesses are limited - governing party has maj seats

Question 49

what are public bill committees?

Answer 49

- created temporarily to examine a bill and scrutinise - created after 2nd reading - often dominated by whips - lack of expertise (sarah wollaston 2011)

Question 50

example of 3 important select committees

Answer 50

public accounts committee backbench business committee liason committee

Question 51

3 arguments for and against electing members of house of lords

Answer 51

- hereditary peers are undemocratic vs most have been taken out - democratic legitimacy vs balance currently, no party dominates - social diversity vs expertise

Question 52

what are the 5 key roles of the executive?

Answer 52

- legislation - budget and finance - develop and make policy decisions - foreign policy - crisis - organise and manage state services

Question 53

what are the 4 main positions in executive?

Answer 53

- pm (and advisors) - ministers (and junior ministers) - departments - cabinet members - senior civil servants

Question 54

what are the 4 main roles of the pm?

Answer 54

- appoint cabinet and chair meetings - lead - chief policy maker - chief diplomat

Question 55

what is the cabinet?

Answer 55

- selected individuals with specific roles - senior cabinet members - cabinet committees carry out detailed work

Question 56

what are the 3 main roles of the cabinet?

Answer 56

- determining presentation of government policies - approving policy and settling disputes - determine reaction to crisis

Question 57

who are ministers?

Answer 57

- secretary of state - minister of state (junior minister) - parliamentary under secretary of state - parliamentary private secretary

Question 58

what are the 4 main roles of ministers?

Answer 58

- draft leg - speak in debates on leg - appear before select committees

Question 59

how does the executive propose legislation?

Answer 59

- green paper - open to adjustments - white paper - to the house with details

Question 60

what is individual ministerial responsibility?

Answer 60

- when a cabinet member acts with misconduct they are expected to resign - even just based on association (estelle morris - alevels in 2003) - pm can dismiss them (2017 michael fallon)

Question 61

limits to individual ministerial responsibility?

Answer 61

not taking responsibility of personal misconduct, policy failings, or department

Question 62

examples

Answer 62

2017 michael fallon estelle morris - alevels in 2003 gavin williamson refused to take responsibility - alevel results algorithm in 2020

Question 63

what is collective ministerial responsibility and why is it important?

Answer 63

- if a cabinet member disagrees publicly with legislation they resign

Question 64

limits to collective ministerial responsibility?

Answer 64

ministers disagree but dont resign

Question 65

example

Answer 65

robin cook - blair foreign sec resigned over opposition to iraq war

Question 66

give 3 reasons for the breakdown of collective ministerial responsibility

Answer 66

- divisions over issues - cameron brexit - referendums - personality clashes

Question 67

5 sources of the pm's power

Answer 67

patronage royal prerogative parliamentary majority party support personal mandate

Question 68

power of patronage

Answer 68

the ability to hire and fire members of party/cabinet

Question 69

examples of pms who were able to claim personal mandate or not

Answer 69

claim - blair - wide support and majority not claim - rishi and gordon succeeded leader without general election

Question 70

features of cabinet government

Answer 70

- cabinet is regularly consulted - cabinet cooperates on policy - pm is leader but not dominant

Question 71

features of prime ministerial government

Answer 71

- pm is domineering in cabinet - pm uses media to send messages out - not parliament or cabinet - cabinet packed with pms supporters

Question 72

3 features promoting the importance of the cabinet

Answer 72

- dealing with crisis - policy formulation - settling disputes

Question 73

3 circumstances affecting the power of the cabinet

Answer 73

- size of majority - characters within cabinet - issues

Question 74

3 features of a presidential government

Answer 74

- leader cant be summoned through legislature - media holds to account - hears advice but can ignore cabinet - directly elected + separate mandate to those in legislature

Question 75

thatcher government

Answer 75

strengths: - success in falkland war - strong image - majorities weaknesses: - poll tax - poor image among working class

Question 76

blair government

Answer 76

strengths: - good image - fresh - liked by both working and middle class - majorities weaknesses: - invasion of iraq - opposition from brown

Question 77

what are the 4 main roles of the judiciary?

Answer 77

- law - interpret, establish case law, declare common law - dispense justice - public enquiries - judicial review

Question 78

what is the supreme court?

Answer 78

- highest court in land - only parliament can overturn decisions

Question 79

what are the 4 main roles of the supreme court?

Answer 79

- hear cases of public importance - decide whether devolved judiciaries acted within powers - hear cases of constitutional importance

Question 80

what is the principle of judicial neutrality?

Answer 80

- judges must not be biased - cannot show partisanship publicly - all judgements based on principle of law

Question 81

what is the principle of judicial independence?

Answer 81

- judges cannot be influenced by other branches - enforce rule of law without external pressures - check on executive

Question 82

how is judicial independence upheld?

Answer 82

- appointed by independent commission - incomes cant be threatened - judge for life - cant be dismissed if disagree with decision

Question 83

arguments for and against that supreme court is independent and neutral

Answer 83

for - all have experience so are familiar with neutrality - independent appointment process JAC - cases have demonstrated willingness to take on gov against - media openly question decisions - social diversity - unconscious bias - parliament can limit powers - review set out in 2019 con manifesto

Question 84

arguments for and against that supreme court protects rights

Answer 84

for - incompatibility statements - FOI cases - enforces rule of law against - incompatibility statements not binding - gov limit FOI - act of parliament can overturn rights

Question 85

methods of supreme court 'sovereignty'

Answer 85

- ECHR - pressure to amend - impose common law - rights of citizens - ultra vires

Question 86

judiciary / executive conflicts

Answer 86

- freedom of info - freedom of expression - judicial review - rights

Question 87

arguments for and against that supreme court is too powerful

Answer 87

for - too much influence over public policy and domocratic process - conflict through active court against - passive body - politicans undermine independence

Question 88

3 ways parliament can control the executive and examples

Answer 88

- veto gov legisaltion - may brexit deal in 2019 with 230 defeat - commons can amend legislation - backbenchers and lords reccomend - backbench rebellions

Question 89

3 ways the executive can control parliament and examples

Answer 89

- majority exercise power - patronage = loyalty - lords can delay but not veto leg

Question 90

3 factors displaying the changing relationship between the executive and parliament

Answer 90

- type of government - issue - authority of pm

Question 91

4 main features of the EU

Answer 91

- social charter - free single market - most monetary union - customs union - no tariffs

Question 92

what was the factortame case?

Answer 92

eu laws on fishing rights took priority over uk laws that banned foreign vessels in uk waters

Question 93

political impact of brexit

Answer 93

- 2 pms resigned over issue - divisions over type of brexit - 51.9 voted for and 48.1 voted against - new trade agreements - different for NI

Question 94

constitutional impact of leaving the EU

Answer 94

- european court of justice no longer has jurisdiction - highest court of appeal on eu matters in SC - divide with scotland - NI has separate trade agreement with eu to avoid customs check with republic - decisions on wheether current eu laws should be permanently transferred or scrapped

Question 95

3 arguments for and against the view that parliament is still sovereign

Answer 95

for - brexit - par has full legal sovereignty (factortame) - sovereignty over devolved bodies - parliamentary sovereignty against - political sovereignty - public determine the power - devolution shifted sovereignty to public bodies - executive sovereignty