UK Constitutional reform

Question 1

list the key developments in the UK constitution 1215-1997

Answer 1

1215- Magna Carta
1689- Bill of Rights
1701- Act of Settlement
1707- Act of Union for Scotland
1801- Act of Union for Northern Ireland
1911- Parliament Act
1949- Parliament Act

Question 2

what did magna carta achieve?

Answer 2

no one is above the law and right to a fair trial

Question 3

what did the bill of rights (1689) establish?

Answer 3

established that the monarch’s power is reliant on the consent of parliament, sets up parliamentary privilege and free elections

Question 4

what did the Act of Settlement (1701) establish?

Answer 4

gave parliament control over the line of succession for the throne

Question 5

what did the 1911 Parliament Act establish?

Answer 5

prevented the Lords from delaying money bills, and established they could only delay bills for 2 years

Question 6

what did the 1949 Parliament Act establish?

Answer 6

reduced the amount of time the HoL could delay bills from 2 years to 1 year

Question 7

what are the 5 main features of the UK constitution

Answer 7

unentrenched, uncodified, unitary, parliamentary sovereignty and rule of law

Question 8

what are the 5 main sources of the UK constitution

Answer 8

statute law, common law, conventions, treaties and authoritative works

Question 9

what is statute law

Answer 9

all legislation created by parliament, but only legislation dealing with the nature of politics and government are considered constitutional- all other sources are overridden by statute law due to Parl sovereignty

Question 10

what is common law

Answer 10

judicial precedent and rulings- royal prerogative created by common law

Question 11

what are conventions

Answer 11

customs and practices that are accepted as the way of doing things e.g PM is the leader of the largest party in parliament

Question 12

what are authoritative works

Answer 12

written guides on the workings of the UK constitution

Question 13

what are treaties

Answer 13

agreements between countries

Question 14

what is an example of a treaty

Answer 14

Maastricht Treaty 1992 establishing the EU signed by John Major

Question 15

what did the House of Lords act (1999) achieve?

Answer 15

reduced the number of hereditary peers in the HoL to 92

Question 16

what are the arguments that more reform is needed in the HoL

Answer 16

there are still 92 hereditary peers, 26 bishops with no representation of other religions, it is unelected which decreases representation and too big there are over 800 peers 2017 Burns Report recommended reducing the size as it is v costly

Question 17

what did the Scotland Act (1998), Northern Ireland Act (1998) and Government of Wales act (1998) achieve?

Answer 17

established: Scottish Parliament 1998, Northern Irish Assembly and Welsh Assembly

Question 18

what are the arguments that the Scotland Act (1998), Northern Ireland Act (1998) and the Government of Wales Act (1998) fell short?

Answer 18

Wales overlooked- given less devolved powers than Scotland- needed further devolution
Scottish Independence- devolution did not prevent 2014 Scottish independence referendum
West Lothian Question- Scottish, Welsh and NI MPs can vote on laws that only effect England

Question 19

what did the Human Rights Act (1998) achieve?

Answer 19

incorporated the ECHR into law- this includes freedoms such as- right to life, right to fair trial, freedom of expression and freedom from discrimination.
States must also give foreigners the same rights as all citizens in the state and the SC can strike down secondary legislation

Question 20

what are the benefits of the Human Rights Act 1998?

Answer 20

fundamental rights are clearly laid out and codified in one place, rights upheld- there was an 8-fold increase in Human Rights cases and claims brought to the high court since 1998

Question 21

what did the Constitutional Reform Act (2005) achieve

Answer 21

separated government and judiciary- by creating an independent Supreme Court, Reformed senior judicial appointments by creating Judicial Appointments Committee, Lord Chancellor role was changed from speaker in HoL, head of judiciary and cabinet member to just a ministerial position, with the Lord speaker and Lord Chief Justice being different roles

Question 22

what are the benefits of the Constitutional Reform Act (2005)?

Answer 22

separation of the 3 branches of government, making the judiciary separate from the legislature
removed the law lords

Question 23

what are the arguments that more reform is needed regarding the Constitutional Reform Act (2005)

Answer 23

The UK Supreme Court is weaker than counterparts as they cannot strike down legislation and a lack of diversity in the SC and legal system

Question 24

what electoral reform has taken place in the UK since 1997?

Answer 24

Scottish Parliament and Welsh assembly use the AMS system, the Northern Irish Assembly use STV and there was a referendum in 2011 to switch to AV but it was rejected.

Question 25

what constitutional reforms took place 2010-2015

Answer 25

Fixed Term Parliament Act (2011)- took away power of the PM to call elections and est. 5 years minimum between each election, Devolution to Wales- law making powers and control over business tax given to welsh assembly in Government of Wales Act (2014) and in 2015 they were granted control of £3 billion in income tax, Elected Mayors and Commissioners