Relationship between Executive and Parliament Flashcards
Legal sovereignty
Concept defined by law, belongs to person, body or state with unlimited legal authority
Formerly exercised by monarch but now belongs to parliament
Political sovereignty
Stands above legal sovereignty, derives its authority from the ppl
When ppl elect a parliament, they delegate their authority to representatives
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: Executive
Although parliament is sovereign, real authority has shifted to executive
If large enough majority, can use whips + control legislative timetable to act on dominance
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: Supreme Court
Supreme Court seen as a challenge to parliamentary sovereignty as made HofL lose power but in theory can be abolished by parliament
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: Devolution
Involves transfer of powers to new bodies allowing them to make law on some subjects
UK parliament could abolish them but would be v unpopular so unlikely
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: Referendums
Increased no. of elections since ‘97 seen as threat to parliament, even though result isn’t legally binding, would be hard to go against public’s view
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: HRA
Passing of HRA increased power of judges as gives right to declare legislation incompatible with act but can’t compel parliament to change their law
How far has power shifted between branches of govt: EU membership
Supporters of EU say sovereignty hasn’t been lost but pooled i.e power is shared
UK gained influence it couldn’t have on its own
What are treaties?
Legal documents that set out powers of EU institutions
How are European Treaties negotiated?
Mainly negotiated by European council
Heads of govt. that make up council can commit their countries to deals they make with each other
European parliament then votes on treaty then ratified by member states, usually by taking a vote
What are the two main types of EU law?
Directive and regulation
What are Directive laws?
Sets out goal that EU member states must work towards then pass own laws to achieve this
What are Regulation laws?
Binding on all member states and is immediately enforceable
6 principals of EU integration: Promoting peace
Founding members determined to avoid another European conflict like WWII
6 principals of EU integration: Economic integration and the single market
Member states wanted to promote economic growth by creating customs union
6 principals of EU integration: Enlargement
After Cold War, EU expanded boarders to inc. eastern and central European states that had previously been communist so 10 new members in 2004
New states couldn’t join until they became liberal democracies
Also issue of influx of eastern European workers, one of UK’s reasons for leaving
6 principals of EU integration: Economic and Monetary Union
Establishment of EMU meant creation of European central Bank and a single currency
Euro introduced in 1999, intended to promote cross-border trade + travel as no exchange necessary
By 2015, 19 states had Euro
6 principals of EU integration: Social Policy
To balance economic freedoms of single markets
From ’80s, EU developed social dimension ensuring workers didn’t suffer disadvantage + discrimination
6 principals of EU integration: Political union
Instead of their being a single institution corresponding to the executive or legislature of a typical nation state, there’s a perpetual state of balance between institutions that operate in an inter-governmental way
