Sources of the UK Constitution

Question 1

What are the key historical documents in the UK Constitution?

Answer 1

Magna Carta (1215)
Bill of Rights (1689)
Act of Settlement (1701)
Acts of Union (1707)
Parliament Acts (1911 and 1949)
The European Communities Act (1972)

Question 2

What are the five sources of the UK Constitution?

Answer 2

Statute law
Works of auhority
Common law and case law 
Conventions
EU treaties/law

Question 3

What is statute law?

Answer 3

Arguably the most significant source of the UK’s constitution
Laws passed by Parliament
Parliament is sovereign, so statute laws are sovereign
For example, the Freedom of Information Act

Question 4

What are works of authority?

Answer 4

Books written to help explain the workings of the UK’s uncodified and somewhat complicated constitutional arrangements
For example, Erskine May’s Parliamentary Practice (1844)

Question 5

What is common law?

Answer 5

Judges make decisions based on long-established practices or form an opinion of a fair and just outcome
UK judicial system works on the principle of precedence, meaning once the senior judiciary have decided on a case, similar cases will be considered in same light

Question 6

What are conventions?

Answer 6

Traditions and customs that have developed over centuries throughout the UK’s evolutionary system
Not laws
For example, it is convention for a PM to resign after they have lost an election
As significant as laws

Question 7

What is an example of EU treaties/laws?

Answer 7

The Treaty of Rome 1957, the Maastricht Treaty 1992 and the Lisbon Treaty 2009

Question 8

Relationships between the sources

Answer 8

Statute law takes precedence over all other sources (EU law used to)
Common law cannot contradict statute law, but has equal authority to it
Authoritative works and conventions are not binding but are considered extremely strong guidance, which are usually adhered to