The constitution

Question 1

What is the consitution?

Answer 1

A constitution defines the process by which laws are made by clarifying where sovereignty lies

Question 2

What is sovereignty?

Answer 2

Sovereignty defines where power lies

Question 3

Important dates in the development of the consitution

Answer 3

1215: Magna Carta is signed, sovereignty shifts from the King to the Barons
1689: Following the ECW, Parliament introduces the idea of constitutional monarchy. Sovereignty shifts from the monarch to Parliament
1707: Act of Union. Sovereignty shift from Scotland to England
1911: Parliament act passed. Sovereignty shift from Lords to the Commons
1972: Britain enters the EU. Sovereignty shift from Westminster to the EU
2016: Britain leaves the EU, reversing previous sovereignty shift

Question 4

What are the 3 principles of the British constitution?

Answer 4

It is uncodified
It is not entrenched
It is unitary

Question 5

What is codification?

Answer 5

Codification means to have the constitution written as a single document

Question 6

What does it mean if a constitution is entrenched?

Answer 6

If a constitution was entrenched it would mean that any change would have to pass 2 tests:
- It would need to be proved that the change was in the long term interests of the country
- It would need to have widespread popular support

Question 7

What does it mean if a constitution is unitary?

Answer 7

It means that all branches of the legislative process are united in one place: Westminster. Even the devolved bodies can be overruled by Westminster.
The opposite of a unitary constitution would be a federal one

Question 8

What is devolution?

Answer 8

The process of moving legislative powers away from the centre

Question 9

What are the arguments for the codification of the constitution?

Answer 9

• Codification would educate the public about constitutional issues and promote greater respect for political institutions
• Codification would mean greater clarity about the rights of citizens and the powers of government
• A constitutional court would be able to assess the constitutionality of actions by parliament and the executive, judging their behaviour by a clear set of rules - it increases the legitimacy of the political process
• Bring the UK up to date with other countries e.g. France and the US

Question 10

Arguments against codification

Answer 10

• Difficult to find consensus on what to include in a codified constitution and it would entail years of debate and consultation
• Uncodified constitution allows for greater flexibility
• Uncodified constitution means the government is able to take decisions rapidly in changing situations - the government is unconstrained
• Codification places power into hands of unelected and unaccountable judges
• Pragmatic

Question 11

Pressure for constitutional reform in the 1990s, and reasons given by Blair’s government for constitutional reform

Answer 11

Demands for modernisation:
- New Labour was more open to demands from pressure groups, such as Charter 88, who wanted more open democracy and stronger guarantee of citizens’ rights

Experience of Conservative rule 1979-1997:
- The Tories’ refusal to undertake constitutional reforms helped to build up pressure for change, especially in Scotland, where the opinion rejected a number of conservative policies
- Accusations of ‘sleaze’ or corruption against many Parliamentarians also helped create a climate of opinion where the health and integrity of traditional institutions were questioned

Question 12

What were the constitutional reforms under New Labour?

Answer 12

• Devolution
• House of Lords Reform
• Electoral Reform
• Human Rights Act
• Creation of the Supreme Court

Question 13

House of Lords Reform under New Labour

Answer 13

• There are approximately 800 members of the Lords prior to Labour being elected, most of them were hereditary
• Lords tended to be predominantly Conservative and had been a barrier to passing Labour policies
• Under Labour the amount of hereditary peers reduced to 92, and the remainder of the Lords is now made up of appointed peers
• A House of Lords Appointment was set up in 2000
• A fully appointed Lords would be subject to croneyism
• A fully elected Lords would be democratic, but also a replication of Commons
• Abolishing the Lords means policies would lack scrutiny

Question 14

Electoral reform under New Labour

Answer 14

• We have a FPTP system, and there has been calls to change it to other systems, such as proportional representation or alternative vote
• Although PR was introduced for the devolved bodies, Labour was reluctant to change from FPTP for Westminster after they won big victories in 97, 01 and 05. It is smaller parties that want change

Question 15

Human Rights Act reform under New Labour

Answer 15

• Labour enshrined the HRA within British law
• This codified many rights and freedoms we previously took fro granted but were not automatically protected because out constitution was not codified
• This doesn’t mean that if a case finds the government is breaching a human right, it automatically has to back down, but the Judiciary can make recommendations to Parliament for amendment

Question 16

Creation of the Supreme Court reform under New Labour

Answer 16

• The 2005 constitutional reform act created the Supreme Court
• Prior to this, the highest form of authority were a group of law lords
• There is an obvious conflict of interest if those who make the law are responsible for interpreting and dispensing the law. This would be a fusion of powers
• The creation of the Supreme Court was in order to ensure separation of powers

Question 17

What are the problems with the House of Lords?

Answer 17

• ‘Passengers’ in the Lords who make very little, or no contribution
• If the lords become fully elected, it is essentially a second commons, there will be less scrutiny, and in events of landslides, legislation can be forced through
• If the Lords were fully appointed, then the Lords is subject to accusations of croneyism, and legislation can be forced through
• Most hereditary lords hold Conservative views, so can black Labour legislation if the lords is mostly hereditary

Question 18

Reforms under the coalition

Answer 18

• Lords
• Commons
• Electoral
• Rights
• Devolution
• Fixed term parliament
• Recall of MPs act

Question 19

Lords reform under the coalition

Answer 19

Proposed a mainly elected house of lords
It wasn’t enacted as there was a rebellion by 91 backbench conservative MPs

Question 20

Commons reform under the coalition

Answer 20

Proposed to reduce the number of MPs from 650 to 600 to produce constituencies of a smaller, more equal size
It wasnt enacted because the Lib Dems blocked it after rebellion of backbench tories, and because it would’ve favoured the Tories

Also proposed that the chairs of HoC select committees should be chosen by MPs
This was enacted

Question 21

Rights reform under the coalition

Answer 21

Conservatives wanted to replace the HRA with a British Bill
This wasnt enacted as the Lib Dems were determined to retain the HRA

Question 22

Devolution reform under the coalition

Answer 22

Proposed further powers to the Welsh Assembly and Scottish parliament, as well as English votes for English laws
This was enacted

Question 23

Fixed term parliament reform under the coalition

Answer 23

Ended prime ministers powers to choose the date of a general election, instead it must be every 5 years
This was enacted, but Boris Johnson removed it when he became PM

Question 24

Recall of MPs act 2015 under the coalition

Answer 24

If an MP is sentenced to a custodial sentence or suspended from Commons for more than 21 days, a by-election is triggered if 10% of constituents sign a recall petition
This was enacted

Question 25

Where was devolution enacted?

Answer 25

Scotland
Northern Ireland
Wales
Manchester
West Midlands
West Yorkshire
Manchester

Question 26

Devolution in Scotland

Answer 26

• The Scottish parliament and government were set up in Edinburgh in 1999
• It consists of 129 MSPs, elected every 4 years using the Additional Member System
• Powers that Scotland has includes; education, economic development, environment and planning, justice, local government, some aspects of transport policy, police and fire services, housing, health and social services, agriculture, fisheries, and forestry, tourism, sport and culture
• The Scottish government is also allowed to vary income tax 3p above or below the UK rate, but this has never been used
• Scottish students dont pay for university, and there is free nursing care for the elderly
• In 2016 the Scottish gov. ended the right of council house tenants to buy their own homes

The Cayman Commission, set up under Brown’s government led in 2012, to the granting of additional powers including;, taxation powers, borrowing powers, regulation of air powers, drink driving alcohol limits

The Scottish independence referendum, held in September 2014, led to further powers being transferred in 2015-16

Question 27

Devolution in Wales

Answer 27

The Welsh National Assembly based in Cardiff was set up in 1999
Assembly Members are elected by the Additional Member System
There are 60 members
The government was orgininally located within the Assembly, but they formally separated in 2006

They have 20 devolved powers, including; education and training, economic development, the environment, housing, transport, fire and rescue, health, local government, agriculture, fisheries and forestry, planning (except major energy infrastructure) , culture, including the Welsh language and sport

Question 28

Devolution in Northern Ireland

Answer 28

• Established in 1998, after Blair signed the Good Friday agreement, which intended to bring the two main communities in the province together
• The communities are unionists, who want to keep NI within the UK, and nationalists, who want a united Ireland
• The creation of a power-sharing executive, in which both sides were to be represented was the most important feature of devolution
• The Northern Ireland Assembly consists of 90 Members of the Legislative Assembly, elected by Single Transferrable Vote
• STV ensures the representation of both side, rather than the dominance of the larger grouping
• The Assembly can legislate on what are known as devolved or ‘transferred’ matters; education, economic development, transport, housing, environment and planning, culture and sport, agriculture, justice and policing, health and social service , local government, employment and skills, welfare and pensions
• There are a number of ‘reserved matters’ that are normally the domain of Westminster, but on which the Assembly can legislate with the consent of the NI secretary

Question 29

West Midlands devolution

Answer 29

• Ambitious devolution deal agreed upon in November 2015, and devolution was deepened in 2017
• Works much like a constituency, but is given money by the state to better its people
• Mayor cannot change powers such as taxes or education

Question 30

London devolution

Answer 30

• Formally enacted with establishment of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, after 1998, when Londoners voted in favour of a devolved government
• The Greater London Authority was officially formed in 2000
• Devolution was adopted to address governance gaps after the Greater London Council was abolished in 1986, as London is a large, complex city with distinct needs and pressures from local campaigns
• It was part of a wider devolution agenda in the late 1990s
• The Mayor’s focus lies on improving London through: Transport, economic + environmental policies, and culture + community programmes
• The Mayor lacks the ability to extend the budget set by the GLA and legislative power

Question 31

Devolution in Yorkshire

Answer 31

• Deal agreed upon in March 2020 and became law in January 2021
• Has powers over; transport, adult education, skills + jobs, infrastructure, housing + regeneration, some economic powers

Question 32

Devolution in Manchester

Answer 32

• Greater Manchester Devolution Agreement enacted in November 2014
• Granted powers over transport, housing and planning and health
• The position of mayor was established in 2017
• Enacted to allow local control, growth of the economy and public service reform
• Has power over transport, economic development, and housing
• Don’t have power over taxation, education and the NHS

Question 33

Debates on further devolution reform

Answer 33

• Devolution has modified the heavily centralised constitution by enabling policies that meet the needs and wishes of people at the local level
• In NI devolution has helped to end violence between the unionist and nationalist communities by creating a power sharing system
• Scottish independence, which was rejected in the 2014 referendum (45% voted for independence), has been revived since the UK voted to leave the EU, as most Scottish people voted to remain. The SNP has called for a new referendum on independence however in 2024, the SNP vote collapsed - no more demand
• The devolution settlement is uneven in the way it applies to the component parts of the UK. A federal solution would create greater uniformity

Question 34

Debates on further electoral reform

Answer 34

• Electoral reform has produced more proportional results in elections to the Scottish, Welsh and NI devolved bodies
• The rejection of AV in the 2011 referendum indicates that there is no public appetite for the extension of reform to Westminster. FPTP usually delivers strong governments with a clear mandate, and it preserves the valuable link between MPs and their constituencies
• The under-representation of smaller parties, and the way in which the current system produces governments with a majority of seats but not a majority of votes, are arguments for further reform

Question 35

Debates around further House of Lords reform

Answer 35

• We now have an upper house based much more firmly on merit and experience. Its greater assertiveness in holding the government to account is an argument for leaving the Lords as it is. An elected chamber would mirror the commons, producing a house dominated by professional politicians and reducing the range of expertise currently available
• The Lords lacks democratic legitimacy because none of its members are elected

Question 36

Debates around further human rights act reform

Answer 36

• HRA provides protection of citizens’ rights without threatening parliamentary sovereignty. As it is not entrenched, the government can modify the way it operates when required, such as the creation of control orders in 2005
• There is a case for the strengthening of the act in the grounds that governments can currently take away important liberties by a simple majority vote in parliament
• Conservative critics would like to see the act replaced by a British Bill of rights, which would make the UK Supreme Court the final judge of citizens’ rights

Question 37

Arguments for extending devolution in England

Answer 37

• England is the most prosperous and heavily populated part of the UK, but it’s the only one without a devolved body. Under the 1978 Barnett formula for deciding on levels of public spending, England receives less per person than the other parts of the UK. A federal solution would promote greater equality between the different parts of the UK
• ‘EVEL” makes Scottish MPs second-class representatives at Westminster, weakening the unity of the UK. It doesn’t really resolve the West Lothian question
• Devolution has led to policies to meet the differing needs of Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish people, so why wouldn’t it work for England?
• There is a strong regional identity in some parts of the UK, e.g. Devon and Cornwall. This could be a basis for regional assemblies which might coordinate local policies and attract inward investment

Question 38

Arguments against devolution within England

Answer 38

• England’s size and wealth mean that it would dominate a federal structure. Also, how would an English parliament relate to Westminster? for example, a separate English executive could clash with the UK government over the handling of domestic English issues
• ‘EVEL’ may have resolved the West Lothian question. It has been used at Westminster to pass a housing bill in 2016. Scottish MPs dislike it but its introduction has not thus far caused the UK to break up
• Most English people don’t make a logical distinction between England and Britain as a whole, and see Westminster as ‘their’ parliament
• The defeat of Blair’s proposals in 2004 suggest that there isn’t a strong enough sense of identity across the UK to make regional assemblies viable