The constitution Flashcards
(49 cards)
What are the sources of the UK consitution
(6)
- Common law ( judge made law).
- statute law ( parliamnetry staututes/acts
- authorrtative works
- Convention
- treaties
- historical Landmark decisions
Give 3 examples of statute law
- The HRA
- The scotland act
- the wales act
- the goodfriday agreement
Give an example of a common law
Bushels law (1670), The judge tried to fien the juary for not voting a certain way, edward bushel ignored this and a seperate judge ruled that judges my not try to “lead the jury bythe nose”
Give 3 examples of consitutuinal conventions
- The PM declairs war, overidden in 2003 when balir brought iraq to parliament
- The sailsbury convention, that teh house of lords will not appose/delay policies put to them tehat were in the winning parties manifesto.
- the public shold be consulted via a refurendom before parlaiment make cosnitutionally sigificant chances
Give 4 examples of historrically land mark dessiosn
- The parliament act 1911 and 1949 -limmiting the power of the lods first to only delay a bill 2 years then 1
- the representation of the peopels act 1918 and 1928 expandinf the franchise
- the bill of rigths 1689
- the magncarta 1215
when was the parliament act
1911 and 1949
Give an exampel of a consitutionally significant authortative work
2010, Gus O’Donnell on the precedures to be followed if a outrigth governement is not reached
Give an example of a constitutionally significant Treatie
The EU-UK withdrawal agreement 2020
when was the blair government
1997-2007
what are the primary aims on consitutional reform
(4)
- decentralisation of power
- democrtisation
- transparency
- right sprotection
(but they are all interconected)
what were the significant consitutional reforms of the balir era
(4)
- HRA 1998
- devolution
- The house of lords act 1999
- The constitutional reform act 2005 separation of powers ( converting the law lords to the supream court )
what is a non herritage peir in the hosue of lords called
a life pear
How are life pears appointed
The House of lords commision, but officially through the PM
Give exampels of 2 sucess of lords reform two failers of lords reform
- Only 92 herritage pers were left in 2000 (much better democrtisation
- life pears = policy experts to finalise bills
- still 92 left !
- partizan
2. Blair was critisised as giving life pearage to his political alies and labour Donors, appointing 203 lords and 162 labour. ( “cash of honers scandel”)
when was the fixed term parliament act
2011 not 2015
when was the recall of MP’s act
2015
What were the successful and attempted consitutional reforms of the coallison governemt 2010-2015 (5)
- The fixed term parlaimet act 2011
- attemted elctoral reform (the AV refurndom) (2011)
- further devolution - (Scottish independence and more power to assemblies )
- elected police commissioners
- the recall of MP’s act 2015
the highest police comissiner tuenout is really ……….. % not 25%
49%
The lowest police turn out for a police commisioner election has been ?
18%
How has the fixed term parlaiment act been unsusessful in practicallity
- every time the government has wanted to call a snap election sice they have been successful in egtteign the 2/3 majority needed to pass an act to make it happen
1. e.g. 2019 and 2017 - furthermore, but parties ( labour and conservative) said tehy would repeal the act in their 2019 manifesto
What is the convetion that The lords will not delay legistation that is in the winning parties manifesto
The Sailsbury Convention
What consitutional reforms Have there been sice 2015
- EVEL (solving the westloathian probelem)
- BREXIT
Give two diadvantages of an elected lords
- loss of specialsit scrutiney
- democratic gridlock of bills as both parties will have a democratic mandate
arguments (+ countre them ) for there being a codified consitution with an entrenched bill of rights
**rights protection **
* Righst are only codified in statute law and not entrched, this means tehey acn be repealed by a simple majority rule in the commons. ( an entrenced bill of rigth swold help protect peopel from a tyranical overly powerful governement)
* 1. For example in 2022 the government repeal and replaced the HRA with the a new bill of rights. This makes it much harder fro people to amke cases to courts for their human rights being challenged.
* The Plastic nature of the cositution also allows for the government to easily codify new rights into law, e.g. the freedom of information act 2000, the equallity act 2010
**clarity in the realtionships of the branches **
* The Uk is a unitary systema s apposed to a federal one like the US, so right now it is assumed that parliament is soverign. This means that tecnically the legislagture can ignore the will of the electorate in refurendoms and the Judicary in the form of supream court rulings.
1. After 911, in the early 2000s parliament passed a serrise of legislations, one after the other, after each were declaired imcompattable with artical 5, (right to a free trial), of the ECHR, ( bascially one replacing the next). In doign so they esentully ignored the Law lord/ The supreme corut.
2. However, in the end The 2006 Terrorism act was reduced in the amount of time it allowed for terrorist suspension from 90 days to 28 days, beause of the ruling of the supream court, wicth is somewhat of a win when in 200, accordign to the Anti terrorism crime and security act, they could be suspened indefienty
**limmit the powers of the PM and governemnt **
* * if the governemnt has an substancial majority they can act how ever they choes to “ weilding the sword of parliamentry soveignty” as they like, to suit their own agenda
1. For example, before 2015 PM’s could simply desdided when they wanted to call an election with a majority vote in parliament. Therefore they could all them when the polls were good and ensure their victory, allowign for them to secure a long time in office
2. for example both balir and thacher called 3 ealy elections and secured power for a decalid before being lobbies to resign in one way or another.
3. Howerver 2015 fixed term parliament act
4. howerver both torries and Labout proposing to remove it in their 2015 maifesto
