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UK Politics > 3.1.1.1 The nature and sources of the British constitution > Flashcards

3.1.1.1 The nature and sources of the British constitution Flashcards

1
Q

What is the uncodified constitution

A

This describes a constitution where the laws,
rules and principles specifying how a state is to be governed are not gathered in a single document. Instead, they are found in a variety of sources - some written (eg. statute law) and some unwritten (e.g. convention).

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2
Q

Codified Consitutions

A

A single, authoritive document that sets out the laws, rules and principles by which state is governed and which protects the rights of citizens.

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3
Q

Key provisions of the bill of rights, 1689

A

-The suspension ore execution of laws without parliamentary consent was made illegal
-The levying of money for the crown through prerogative and without consent of parliament was made illegal
-subjects were given the right to petition the king
-Raising or keeping an army in peacetime, unless by the consent of parlaiment, was made illegal
-Members of parliament must be elected in free elections
-The impeachment or questioning of debates and proceedings in parlaiment was made illegal in any court or place outside of parliament.
-Parlaiiments were to be held frequently

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4
Q

Statute law

A

law derived from acts of parliament and subordinate legislation

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5
Q

common law

A

law derived from general customs or traditions and the decisons of judges

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6
Q

conventions

A

established norms of political behaviour; rooted in past experience rather than the law

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7
Q

authoritative works

A

refers to a handful of long established legal texts that have come to be accepted as the refernce points for those wishing to know precisely ‘who can do what’ under the uk constitution

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8
Q

royal prerogative

A

discretionary powers of the crown that are exercised by government ministers in the monarch’s name

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9
Q

rule of law

A

a legal theroy holding that the relationship between the state and the individual is governed by law, protecting the individual from arbitary state action

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10
Q

parliamentary sovereignty

A

the doctrine that parliament has absolute legal power within the state

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11
Q

individual rights

A

the rights needed by each individual to pursue their lives and goals without interference from other individuals or the government.

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12
Q

collective rights

A

the rights of groups to protect their interests and identities

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13
Q

key provisions of the magna carta, 1215

A

-the king could not raise tax without the consent of the people
-the right to due process in the law was guaranteed
-the right to trial by jury was guaranteed
-justice had to be free and fair
-the nobles could select a commitee of 25 to scrutinise the actions of the king

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14
Q

what was significant about the magna carta?

A

it took power away from KIng john and gave it to the barons.
also paved the way for the creation of parliament

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15
Q

Parliament

A

the highest legislature, consisting of the Sovereign, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons.

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16
Q

Legislature

A

the legislative body of a country or state.

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17
Q

Government

A

the group of people with the authority to govern a country or state; a particular ministry in office.

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18
Q

executive

A

denoting or relating to the part of a political administration with responsibility for putting into effect laws drawn up by the legislature.

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19
Q

separation of power doctrine

A

The doctrine of the separation of powers requires that the principal institutions of state— executive, legislature and judiciary—should be clearly divided in order to safeguard citizens’ liberties and guard against tyranny.

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20
Q

Constitutional monarchy

A

a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making.

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21
Q

prime minister

A

the head of an elected government; the principal minister of a sovereign or state.

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22
Q

entrenched

A

refers to the fact that the constitution cannot be changed easily

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23
Q

Unitary side

A

a system of political organisation in which most or all of the governing power resides in a centralised government, in contrast to a federal state.

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24
Q

bill of rights

A

an authorative document of the rights of citizens, often entrenched as apart of a codified constitution

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25
Q

constitution

A

the set of rules and principles on how to govern a country

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26
Q

limited government

A

a system which the powers of government are subject to legal constraints as well as checks and balances within the political system

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27
Q

key histroical documents

A

-magna carta, 1215
-bill of rights, 1689
-act of settlement, 1701
-acts of union, 1707
-parliament acts, 1911 and 1949
-european communities act, 1972

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28
Q

fundamental law

A

constitutional law that is deliberately set above regular statue in terms of status, and given a degree of protection against regular laws passed by the legislature

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29
Q

examples of statue law

A

-great reform act 1832
-human rights act 1998

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30
Q

judicial review

A

the power of senior judges to review the actions of government and public authortites and to declare them unlawful if they have exceeded their authority

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31
Q

what was the royal prerogative used for?

A

was used to dissolve parliament was ended by the fixed term parliament act 2011

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32
Q

an example of a convention

A

cabinet manual 2011

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33
Q

examples of authorative works

A

-A.V Dicey’s an introduction to the rule (1885)

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34
Q

devolution

A

the process by which a central government delegates power to another, normally lower, tier of government, while retaining ulrimate sovereignty

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35
Q

authority

A

the right to take a particular course of action

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36
Q

power

A

the ability to do or make something happen

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37
Q

governance

A

a form of decision making which involves a wide range of institutions, networks and relationships

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38
Q

government

A

the set of institutions that exercise authority and make the rules of a political unit

39
Q

westminster model

A

a form of government exemplified by the british political system in which parliament is sovereign, the executive and legislature are fued and political power is centralised

40
Q

judiciary

A

the branch of government responsible for interpreting the law and deciding upon legal disputes

41
Q

positive of westminster model

A

-government is representative and responsible
-government is strong and effective
-voters are presented with a clear choice between the governing party and the opposing party
-the rule of law defends basic civil liberties

42
Q

negatives of westminister model

A

-insufficent checks and balances
-concentration of powr in the centre
-limited oppourtunities for political participation
-not a strong rights culture

43
Q

civil liberties

A

fundamental individual rights and freedoms the ought to be protected from interference or encroachment by the state

44
Q

elective dicatorship

A

where there is excessive concentration of power in the elective dictatorship

45
Q

constitution

A

the laws, rules and practices which determine the institution of the state, and the relationship between the state and it’s citizens

46
Q

british constitution

A

highly unusual as it is uncodified, this means that the major principles of the political system are not found in a single authorative document

47
Q

concepts of parliamentary sovereignty

A

-parliamnent can legislate on any subject of its choosing
-legislation cannot be overturned by any higher authority
-no parliament can bind its successors

48
Q

legitimacy

A

rightfulness: a political system is legitimate when it is based on the consent of the people and actions follow from agreed laws and procedures

49
Q

referendum

A

a vote on a single issue put to a public ballot by the government

50
Q

key features of the parliamentary system

A

-the executive and legislative branches are fused
-the legislature can dismiss the executive
-parliamentary elections decide the government
-collective government
-seperate head of state

51
Q

constitutional monarchy

A

a form of monarchy in which monarch is head of state

52
Q

fusion of powers

A

the intermingling of personnel in the executive and legislative branches found in parliamentary system

53
Q

seperation of powers

A

the principle that the legislative executive and judicial branches of government should be independent of each other

54
Q

roles of the prime minister

A

-political leadership
-national leadership
-appointing the government
-chairing the cabinet
-managing the executive

55
Q

key elements of the house of commons

A

-legitimacy
-exclusive powers
-conventions

56
Q

various institutional advantages

A

-control of the legislative agenda
-secondary legislation
-prerogative powers

57
Q

what has made parliament more efficent?

A
  • select commitees
    -back bench business
    -backbench rebellions
    -weakening of prerogative powers
    -an assertive house of lords
58
Q

judicial review

A

the process by which judges determine whether public officals or public bodies have acted in manner that is lawful

59
Q

quasi-federal state

A

the central government of a unitary stateate devolves some of its powers to subnational governments. it has some features of a unitary state and some of a federal state

60
Q

significance of the magna carta

A

-guaranteed the right to a swift trial
-placed limitations of taxation
-offered protection from arbitary imprisionment

61
Q

significance of the bill of rights

A

-placed limitations on the power of the monarch
-enhanced the status of parliament
-prohibited cruel and ususal punishment

62
Q

significance of the act of settlements

A

-barred roman catholics ot those married to from taking the throne
-resulted in the house of hanover assuming the english throne
-said to have paved the way for the acts of union

63
Q

significance of the acts of union

A

-united the kingdoms of england and scotland to form great britain, governed from westminster

64
Q

significance of the parliament acts

A

-removed the power of the house of lords to block money bills by imposing a maximum 2 year delay
-reduced the power of hte house of lords to delay non-money bills by reducing the time limit to 1 year

65
Q

features of a codified constitution

A

-The rules and principles governing the state are
collected in a single authoritative document: the
constitution.
-It has the status of fundamental law and is
superior to all other law.
-It is entrenched, with special procedures for its
amendment that make it difficult to change.
-The courts, particularly a constitutional court, use
the constitution to determine whether the actions
of other key players are constitutional.

66
Q

features of an uncodified constitution

A

-There is no single authoritative document. Instead,
the rules and principles governing the state are found
in a number of sources, both written and unwritten.
-Constitutional laws have the same status as
regular statute; there is no hierarchy of laws and
no tundamental law.
-It is not entrenched so can be amended in the
same way as ordinary law.
-Judicial review is limited because there is no single
authoritative document that senior judges can use
to determine whether or not an act or action is
unconstitutional.

67
Q

four key principles of the uk constitution

A

-parliamentary sovereignty
-the rule of law
-a unitary state
-parliamentary government under a constitutional monarchy

68
Q

cabinet goverment

A

a systrem of government in which executive power is vested not in a singke individual but in a cabinet whose members operate under the doctrine of collective responsibility

69
Q

parliamentary government

A

a political system in which government takes place through parliament and in which the executive and legislative branches are fused

70
Q

prime-ministerial government

A

a system of government in which the prime minister is the dominant actor and is able to bypass the cabinet

71
Q

westminster model

A

-a form of government exemplified by the british political system in which parliament is sovereign, the executive and legislature are fused and political power is centralised

72
Q

strengths of the uk constitution

A

-adaptability
-strong government
-accountability

73
Q

weaknesses of the uk constitution

A

-outdated and undemocratic
-concentration of power
-lack of clarity

74
Q

four themes that drove the labour’s constitutional reform

A

-modernisation
-democratisation
-decentralisation
-rights

75
Q

modernisation

A

institutuions such as parliament, the executive and the civil service were using outdated and inefficent procedures that demand reform

76
Q

democratisation

A

participation in the political process would be encouraged through electoral reform and greater use of referendum

77
Q

decentralisation

A

decision-making powers would be devolved to new institutions in scotland and wales, with the role of local government being enhanced

78
Q

rights

A

the rights of citizens would be strengthened and safeguarded

79
Q

rights constitutional reforms

A

the human rights act 1998
the freedom of information act 2000

80
Q

electoral constitutional reform

A

new electoral systems for devolved assemblies, for european parlaimnet and elected mayors

81
Q

devolution constitutonal reform

A

a scottish parliament with primary legislative and tax raising powers
a northern ireland assembly with primary legislative power
a welsh assembly with secondary legislative powers

82
Q

parliamentary constitutional reform

A

all but 92 hereditary peers are removed from the house of lords limited reforms to the workings of the house of commons

83
Q

Judicialry constitutional reform

A

the constitutional reform act 2005 focused on judcial reform. Led to the supreme court being set up in 2009, became the uk’s highest court and removed the judicial role of the house of lords.

84
Q

coalition government in 2010-16 reforms

A

a degree of compromise between the conservative and the liberal democrats. Although some significant changes were made to the UK’s constitutional arrangements, most of the other significant changes.

85
Q

example of the coalition reforms

A

-fixed term parlaiment act 2011
-the scotland act 2012
-the protection of freedoms act 2012
-house of lords reform act 2014
-the wales act 2014

86
Q

Barnett formula

A

a mechanism devised in 1978 by the then chief secretary to the treasury, Labour MP, Joel Barrnett. This formula translates changes in public spending in England into equivilant changes in the block grants for Scotland, wales and northern ireland, calculated in the basis of population

87
Q

English Votes for English Laws

A

The 2013 report of the commision on the consequences of devolution for the house of commons recommended that only English MPs should be allowed to vote on measures which were identified as affecting only England.

88
Q

arguments in favour of the UK adopting a codified constitution

A

-provide greater clarity on what is and what is not constitutional
-the rules of the governing the British political system would be set out
-the rights of citizens would be given further constitutional protection
-would tackle the centralised powers by setting limits on the power of the executive and introducing more efective institutional checks and balances

89
Q

implications of the scotland act 2016

A

-devolved institutions were granted new powers over taxation, such as VAT and income tax
-these changes meant that, for the first time, scottish parliament was responsible for raising 50% of its money
-legislative powers on issues such as road signs, speed limits and some welfare benefits
-given control over it’s electoral system, although two-thirds in scottish parliament was needed to make changes.

90
Q

Aims for further constitutional reform

A

-In 2013, the electoral reform society published ‘reviving the health of our democracy, where they argued the uk’s constitutional arrangements should be remodelled with delivering three key outcomes:
-active participation and engagement
-fair representation
-good governance

91
Q

examples of encouraging active participation and engagement

A

-simplifying voter registration
-lowering the voting age to 16 - used in 2014 scottish referendum
-making wider use of e-democracy
-opening up candidate selection

92
Q

delivering fair representation

A

-electoral system
-redrawing electoral districts

93
Q

providing for good governanace and restoring trust

A

-completing lords reform
-modernising the commons - Recall of MPs Act 2015
-enhancing local democracy

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