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Public Law > UK Constitution > Flashcards

UK Constitution Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the core objectives of constitutionalism?

A
  • Govt power exercised within legal limits
  • Power dispersed/not concentrated in one body/person
  • Govt accountable to the people
  • Fundamental rights and freedoms
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2
Q

What is Dicey’s definition of a constitution?

A

That set of rules which directly or indirectly affect the distribution and exercise od sovereign power in the state

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3
Q

What areas can the functions of the state be divided into?

A

Legislature
Executive
Judiciary

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4
Q

Who is the UK’s sovereign body

A

The legislature - parliament

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5
Q

Is ‘the UK has no written constitution’ accurate?

A

No- it is ‘uncodified’

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6
Q

Where do constitutional rules come from?

A

Constitutional legislation
Case Law
Constitutional conventions

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7
Q

What did Thoburn say would form constitutional legislation

A

One which conditions the legal relationship between citizen and state and
Englarges/diminishes the scope of fundamental constitutional rights

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8
Q

How are constitutional conventions described?

A
  • Informal rules of political practice
  • Evolutionary
  • No clear source in legislation/case law
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9
Q

What are the significant conventions relating to the legislature?

A

HoL defer to HoC
Salisbury Convention
Financial bills - minister
Sewel Convention
HoC consulted before major foreign policy initatives

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10
Q

What is the Salisbury convention?

A

HoL shouldn’t reject at second reading legislation that carries out a manifesto commitment

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11
Q

What is the Sewel convention?

A

Westminster Parliament won’t legislate on devolved matters without consent of devolved administration

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12
Q

What are the significant conventions relating to the executive?

A

Monarch = ministers advice
No refusing royal assent
Monarch appoint PM
PM chooses cabinet
PM/Chancellor = MPs
Vote of no confidence

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13
Q

What are the significant conventions relating to the judiciary?

A

Not politically active
Parliament not criticise their professional conduct

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14
Q

What are the key functions of parliament?

A

Debate/scrutinise proposed legislation
Propose amendments
Hold executive to account
Scrutinise public expenditure/taxation

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15
Q

Who makes up the Executive?

A

Monarch, PM and cabinet, Govt depts

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16
Q

What are the core govt depts for constitutional law?

A

Cabinet office
Foreign office
Home office
Ministry of Justice
Treasury

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17
Q

Where do government departments derive their powers from?

A

Statute or common law

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18
Q

What does exercise of prerogative power mean today?

A

Exercise of power by the government without parliamentary approval

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19
Q

How are accounting officers appointed?

A

By the treasury

20
Q

Can allocation of funds to government departments be done by prerogative power?

A

No - requires parliamentary approval

21
Q

What is delegating power?

A

Lawful exercise of power granted to a minister by legislation/common law, to a government official of lower rank in the same department

22
Q

What is the Carltona principle?

A

The actions of government departments is synonymous with the actions of the minister in charge

23
Q

What is the legal me mechanism by which people can claim the government has acted beyond its powers in law and to which court?

A

Judicial review - administrative court

24
Q

What constitutional principles are the government subject to?

A

Laws may not be suspended
Taxation requires consent of Parliament
Habeus corpus
Freedom from arrest
Impeachment

25
Q

What is the role of the judiciary?

A

Determine outcome of legal disputes
Decide appropriate punishment for criminal cases
Interpret legislation
Judicial review - govt lawfully exercised powers

26
Q

What key changes did the constitutional reform act 2005 make?

A

Lord chancellor - Lord chief justice
Established Supreme Court
Created judicial appointments commission

27
Q

How is the Lord chancellor appointed?

A

By king on advice of PM

28
Q

What is the role of the Lord chancellor?

A

Administration of court system
Secretary of State for justice

29
Q

What are the statutory safeguards to prevent excessive influence by the Lord chancellor?

A

Legal duty to uphold independence of judiciary
Must not seek to influence particular judicial decisions

30
Q

How is the Lord chief justice appointed?

A

Special panel convened by Judicial Appointments Commission

31
Q

What are the responsibilities of the Lord chief justice?

A

Represent views of judiciary to parliament
Welfare, training and guidance of judiciary
Deployment of judges/allocation of court work

32
Q

What is the principle of non-justiciability?

A

Courts have no/limited jurisdiction to decide whether an act is lawful

33
Q

What are the three reasons lady hale have for judges being guardians of the constitution?

A

Rule on validity of laws passed by delegated legislatures
Restrict government to exercise powers within parliaments limits
Protect fundamental rights against encroachment by the state

34
Q

When did England and Scotland unite to form Great Britain?

A

1707

35
Q

What are the devolved legislatures?

A

Scottish Parliament
Scottish government
Senedd (Welsh Parliament)
Welsh government
Northern Ireland assembly
Northern Ireland executive

36
Q

What is the enabling act for Scottish devolved legislation?

A

Scotland act 1998/2016

37
Q

What is the enabling act for devolved Welsh legislation?

A

Government of Wales act 1998/2016
Wales act 2017

38
Q

What is the enabling act for devolved northern Irish legislation?

A

Northern Ireland acts 1998/2006

39
Q

What are reserved matters?

A

Decisions still taken in Westminster

40
Q

Who does responsibility for fiscal policy and public expenditure belong to?

A

HM treasury

41
Q

What does section 28(8) Scotland act 1998 say?

A

Uk Parliament will not normally legislate on devolved matters without consent of Scottish Parliament

42
Q

How is consent for uk to legislate on devolved matters shown?

A

Legislative consent motion

43
Q

What does section 28(7) Scotland act 1998/s5(6) NI Act/s107(5) GOWA say?

A

Lack of consent can be overridden

44
Q

How is the Northern Ireland executive ran?

A

Power sharing model - first minister and deputy first minister from two largest parties

45
Q

Who can decide whether legislation of devolved governments goes beyond their scope?

A

Supreme Court

46
Q

What are the monarchs remaining powers? (Limited by constitutional convention)

A

Appointing PM
Dissolving Parliament
Royal assent

47
Q

What are some of the remaining prerogative powers?

A

Summoning, proroguing and dissolving Parliament
Appointing/dismissing ministers
Mobilising armed forces/declaring war
Negotiating treaties

Public Law (8 decks)

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