Stages in the development of the UK Constitution Flashcards
Magna Carta 1215
Little in Magna Carta has survived, save for a few common law traditions and some principles that have been turned into statute law. However, it was a key moment in history.
It established that the rule of law should apply and the monarch should operate within the framework of law. It was centuries before this principle became normal practice, but Magna Carta was an important staging post in the development of constitutional rule.
Bill of Rights 1689
This Act of Parliament resulted from the replacement of King James II by the joint monarchy of William III and Mary. Parliament was anxious that the new monarchs would not exceed their powers, so the Bill of Rights effectively stated that Parliament was sovereign and would have the final word on legislation and the government’s finances.
Act of Settlement 1701
The Act established the legal rules governing the succession to the throne. It also stated that the monarch should be a member of the Church of England. However, its main significance was that it established the monarch’s position as the ruler of the whole of the United Kingdom of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland (Northern Ireland after 1921).
Acts of Union 1707
These two Acts abolished the separate Scottish Parliament and so established the modern nation of Great Britain. Following a similar Act of Union of 1801, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was established, altered to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland following the independence of the Irish Free State in 1921. Of course the devolution of power to Scotland in 1998 brought back the Scottish Parliament, although it is still not the sovereign body in that country.
Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949
These two Acts settled the relationship between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Before 1911, the two houses were, in theory at least, of equal status.
In 1911, however, the House of Lords lost its powers to regulate the public finances and could only delay legislation for 2 years; it could no longer veto proposed legislation for good.
The 1949 Act reduced the delaying period to 1 year. As a result, the House of Commons is very much the senior house.
European Communities Act 1972
This was the Act that brought the UK into the European Community, which later became the European Union. The UK joined in 1973. This Act is now considered history, as the UK voted to leave the EU in 2016. It was, however, for nearly 50 years, a key feature of the UK Constitution.
European (Notification of Withdrawal) Act 2017
This gave parliamentary consent to the UK’s exit from the European Union.
