UK Constitution, PM and Gov Flashcards
What is a constitution?
essentially a rule book for unions- sets out how officers are elected, how decisions and policies are made, how officers can be held accountable and responsibility of members
What is a constitution for a country?
- a shared set of values- these are instilled in law and upheld by parliament, courts and other institutions
- can be written in a single document e.g U.S.A
- UK doesn’t have a written or codified constitution- we have an ‘unwritten’ (uncodified) constitution
What are the principles of the UK’s “unwritten” constitution?
- Sovereignty of Parliament- Parliament is supreme- Represents the will of the people through the representative democracy- No parliament can bind a future parliament
- Rule of Law- Citizens and Institutions are subject to clearly defined laws- No one is above the law, including PM
- Separation of Powers:
- Gov (executive)- proposes & enacts laws
- Parliament- makes laws- scrutinises and holds gov to account
- Judiciary- Enforces law
- They do overlap each other at times however
- Queen (Monarch) sits in the middle of all of it- her majesty’s gov etc.
What are the royal prerogative powers?
- Appoints PMs and gov ministers
- Prorogues and dissolves Parliament- brings Parliament to an end before a general election
- Opens Parliament with “Queen’s Speech”
- Grants honours/patronage and pardons (Royal Prerogative of mercy)
- Appoints judges
- Declares war and makes peace
- Signs treaties- usually PM or relevant minister who does it tho
- Power to advise, encourage and warn (weekly meetings with PM)
How is the monarchy funded?
- The Sovereign Grant, a single grant from the Treasury- introduced in 2013 to replace the Civil List and Grants-In-Aid
- The grant is set at 15% of the net income of the Crown estates
- It’s used to pay for the Queen’s official duties
What are the 3 branches of the state?
- The executive- government
- The legislature
- The judiciary
What are the 3 branches of the state?
- The executive- government
- The legislature
- The judiciary
What is collective responsibility?
Supporting the “gov line” in public despite personal feelings- if they can’t support them publicly, they usually have to resign
What is ministerial responsibility?
Taking responsibility for their own conduct and the performance of their department
What powers does the PM have?
- They appoint people as Ministers
- Chairs meetings of the cabinet
- Appoints members of the cabinet committees
- Keeps sovereign (Queen) informed of Gov business on weekly basis
- Can declare war and peace- through prerogative power
- Recommends passage of bills for royal assent
- Recommends prorogation of Parliament for summer recess and other holidays
- Draws up his/her party’s manifesto at elections
- Writes the Queen’s speech- announcement of proposed Gov legislation
- Recommends senior clergy positions and appointments of senior judges
- Many of these powers are officially held by the Queen but are held by the PM in practice
What are the potential constraints on a PM?
- Size or absence of majority in H of C
- Unity of the party- Rebellious backbenchers- also threatened defeats leading to big U-turns
- Constraints on appointments and dismissals- need to reflect different sections of the party/coalition
- Success/failure of policies
- Effectiveness of opposition
- Attitude of the media
- Public pressure
- The law
Describe the civil service
- Unelected part of the Gov
- Carry out work of gov departments but should be politically impartial
- Roughly 412,000 full-time civil servants
- Around 60 departments
- 100 exec agencies e.g DVLA, Jobcentre Plus
- Non-departmental gov bodies (NDPBs)
- Appointments made on merit
What are permanent secretaries?
- Most senior civil servants in each gov department
- Responsible for running departments oh day-to-day basis
- Constantly in comms with Cabinet
- Offer non-political advice
