The constitution Flashcards
(36 cards)
1
Q
What is a constitution?
A
A set of rules and principles by which a country is organised.
2
Q
What are the three features of the nature of the consitution?
A
1) Uncodified.
2) Unentrenched.
3) Unitary.
3
Q
How is the constitution uncodified?
A
- Not written down in a single document.
- Some parts of the constitution, like treaties, are written down whilst other parts are not.
4
Q
How is the constitution unentrenched?
A
- Constitution is not hard to change.
- It can be changed with a simple majority in parliament.
- This means that the constitution is not different from normal laws and does not have higher status or extra protection.
5
Q
How is the constitution unitary?
- Using devolution argue for and against the unitary nature of the constitution.
A
- The constitution is unitary because power is centralised in one place - UK Parliament which was sovereign.
- Debated whether this is still the case since devolution.
CASE FOR STILL UNITARY = Parliament has handed power to devolved bodies but can take it away when it wants, therefore retaining legal sovereignty.
CASE FOR NOT UNITARY = Britain is now a quasi-federal state because once power is permanently devolved, it is difficult to revoke.
6
Q
A.V. Dicey, a constitutional theorist came up with the Twin pillars that underpin UK constitution, what are they?
A
1) Parliamentary sovereignty.
2) The rule of law.
7
Q
Explain the concept of Parliamentary sovereignty.
A
- Parliamentary sovereignty refers to the fact that the UK Parliament is sovereign within the UK constitution.
- It is the key law making and amending body in Britain, can make laws on any subject, including changes to the constitution.
- It cannot bind its successors or be bound by its predecessors.
- No law, including constitutional laws can be entrenched.
- No higher body or court, including the supreme courts, can strike down a law passed by parliament; This was not the case when Britain was in the EU, ECJ could do so, EU law superseded UK law.
8
Q
Explain the concept of The rule of law.
A
- No one is above the law and everyone must obey it.
- Therefore the law treats everyone as equal.
- Everyone has the right to a fair trial and to know their charge.
- Judges must be neutral and free from political interference - this is ensured by them being well paid and difficult to sack.
9
Q
What is the Westminster model?
A
Used to describe a form of constitution and government that is based on the British political system.
10
Q
What are the features of the Westminster model?
A
- Parliamentary sovereignty.
- Centralised political power.
- Fusion of executive and legislature (all members of government are members of parliament and so are accountable to parliament).
11
Q
There are seven historical documents that are important to the development of the UK constitution.
List them.
A
- Magna Carta 1215.
- 1689 Bill of rights.
- 1701 Act of settlement.
- 1707 Acts of union.
- The 1911 and 1949 Parliament acts.
- The 1972 European communities act.
- The 2020 UK - EU withdrawal act.
12
Q
What was the Magna Carta 1215?
A
- Set out for the first time the principle that no one should be deprived of liberty and property without the due process of law.
- Important for what became the rule of law.
13
Q
What was the 1689 Bill of rights?
A
- Included regular provisions for parliament, included free elections and freedom of speech within parliament.
- Important for the move towards Parliamentary sovereignty and away from the power of the monarch.
14
Q
What was the 1701 Act of settlement?
A
- Established the rights of Parliament to determine the line of succession to the throne.
- Further increased the power of parliament in comparison to the monarch.
15
Q
What was the 1707 Acts of union?
A
- United England and Scotland under one parliament in Westminster, with representatives from both countries.
- Increased centralisation of power in the UK parliament.
16
Q
What were the 1911 and 1949 Acts of Parliament?
A
1911
- Set out that HOL could not delay money bills and only had a 2 year delaying power for other bills rather than the veto they previously had.
1949
- Delaying power further reduced to 1 year in 1949.
Acts therefore reduced the power of the HOL and increased the powers of HOC in comparison to HOL.
17
Q
What was the 1972 European communities act?
A
- Confirmed the UK’s entry into the EU.
- Set out the principle that EU law takes precedence over UK law when conflicts occur.
- Therefore harmed parliamentary sovereignty.
18
Q
What was the 2020 UK - EU withdrawal act?
A
- Following the 2016 Brexit referendum, this act removed the UK from the European union.
- This increased sovereignty and power of UK Parliament.
19
Q
Explain in which ways the seven key documents developed the UK constitution.
A
- Reduced the power of the monarch and extended the power of parliament.
- Increased the rights and freedoms of citizens.
- Centralised power in the UK.
- Increased the power of the HOC at the expense of HOL.
- Defined relationships with the EU.
20
Q
Explain how the development of the UK constitution was unique.
A
- The UK constitution developed gradually rather than through fundamental, transformative changes such as revolutions; Potential reason for why the UK constitution is uncodified and unentrenched.
- This is different from the US whose constitution is codified and entrenched due to being drawn up after establishing independence from Britain.
21
Q
The UK constitution is not codified (written down) in a single document, but instead is contained in five different sources.
List the sources.
A
1) treaties.
2) statute law.
3) common law.
4) authoritative texts.
5) conventions.
22
Q
What are treaties and how are they significant?
A
- A treaty is an agreement the UK has signed with other states and is therefore bound by.
- As these agreements are written down, it is unlikely that the UK will go back on its international obligations, especially the case when the UK was part of the EU as EU treaties took precedence over UK statute laws passed by parliament.
- Makes the UK constitution partly codified and more entrenched.
23
Q
Give examples of treaties.
A
- UK signing ECHR: meaning that bodies and individuals in the UK must follow the convention and can be held accountable by the ECtHR, which is not part of the EU.
- 2020 UK - EU withdrawal agreement: which established the terms of the UK’s exit from the EU and the new relationship between bodies such as customs and VAT procedures.
24
Q
What are statute laws and how are they significant?
A
- Statute laws are written laws produced and passed by parliament.
- Most laws are not constitutional, only those that affect the political system + citizens rights are.
- Most important source and includes most parts of the constitution.
- Statute laws only require a simple majority in parliament so can easily be changed / removed / introduced; This makes the UK constitution flexible and easy to change as there is no need for supermajorities.
POSITIVE OF FLEXIBILITY
- allows for public opinions to be reflected.
NEGATIVE OF FLEXIBILITY
- tyrannical government could easily change the constitution in favour.
25
Give examples of statute law.
- 1969 representation of peoples act lowered the voting age to 18.
- HRA of 1998 incorporated ECHR into UK law.
- The Scotland and government of Wales act, 1998, introduced devolution in Scotland and Wales respectively.
26
What are authoritative texts and how are they significant?
- Authoritative texts are books that explain how the british political system works / functions.
- Useful guide and help to shape the political and constitutional landscape and how politicians behave.
- HOWEVER not binding and cannot be enforced by the law.
27
Give examples of an authoritative text.
A.V. Dicey study of 1885 set out parliamentary sovereignty + rule of law as the 'twin pillars' of the UK consitution.
28
What is common law and how is it significant?
- Common law refers to principles laid down by judges in their rulings on court cases that provides precedence for later judgements.
- Important in cass when it isn't clear how statute law should be applied as it provides clarification on their implementation.
- HOWEVER problems can arise such as it makes it more difficult and less clear how to enforce the law, 'judge-made' laws that give too much power to unelected judges.
29
Give examples of common law.
- The presumption that a person accused of a crime is innocent until proven guilty was common law until it became statute law in 1679.
30
What are conventions and how are they significant?
- Conventions are customs and practices about how the government should behave, no legal force but have been broadly accepted over time.
- They can be changed and challenged by statutes = which means that the constitution is weak and relies upon respect for political institutions, making the constitution difficult to enforce, HOWEVER can help to quickly overt crises.
- Constitutional conflicts often arise when the assumptions on which a convention is based changes.
EXAMPLE = Salisbury convention = HOL cannot block anything in a governments manifesto.
- 1. based on the unelected nature of the HOL.
- 2. based on - the conservatives had a majority in HOL and so convention should no longer apply due to 1999 HOL act which removed the majority of hereditary peers (most of whom were conservative).
- Whether a convention still applies or not can be tested by the amount of backlash that occurs when they are broken - backlash either in house of commons or public.
- Therefore conventions can be seen as changing with political circumstances.
31
Give examples of conventions.
1) Individual ministerial responsibility = holds that ministers should resign over serious mistakes in their department.
2) Convention that the monarch will always give royal assent to an act passed by parliament ; last time not granted was 1707.
3) The use of referendums to decide key constitutional issues = devolution red, AV ref, Scottish independence ref, 2016 EU ref.
32
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS / CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES:
It can be argued that there are a number of developments that have decreased parliamentary sovereignty.
What are they?
1) UK being part of EU = EU law superseded UK law, EU law 'higher law' and European court of Justice could strike down laws passed by parliament.
2) Human rights act = gives judges power to review legislation passed by parliament and see if it is incompatible with the act.
3) Devolution = introduced other key law making bodies.
They could be abolished by the UK parliament but very unlikely and difficult.
Theoretically Parliament could reverse many of these but practically it is near impossible.
33
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS / CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES:
Explain the 2019 prorogation court case.e
- 29 August 2019 Johnson prorogued (temporarily suspended) Parliament in order to avoid parliamentary scrutiny of the government's Brexit plans and to make it harder to block a no-Brexit deal.
- The supreme court ruled it as unlawful, reversing the prorogation.
- The supreme court noted that parliamentary sovereignty would we undermined if prerogative powers were used to prevent parliament from exercising its legislative authority.
- Introduced the constitutional principle that the executive is accountable to parliament.
34
List reasons why New Labour adopted policies of constitutional reform.
- Constitutional reforms became a prominent issue due to the growing popularity of the Liberal democrats + Labour leader John Smith.
- New Labour were unable to appear as a party of radical change as they promised not to increase income tax or public spending; Constitutional reforms would allow Labour to seem like a party of hope and clear change without pledging to spend a lot of money.
- Growth in support for nationalist movements in Scotland and Wales created pressure for devolution; Labour believed that they would succeed in devolved elections whilst the conservatives would struggle.
- New Labour presented themselves as a modern, democratic, 'new party', especially in comparison to the conservative party and government who has countless 'sleaze scandals'.
35
What were the four key principles of New Labour's constitutional reform programme?
1) Democratisation = extending democracy + reforming undemocratic features of the constitution.
2) Decentralisation = dispersing power away from the central government to devolved bodies and local governments.
3) Restoration of rights = better protecting the rights of citizens.
4) Modernisation = Reforming the House of Commons and the House of Lords to improve effectiveness of parliament.
36
Provide an overview of the constitutional reforms introduced by New Labour.
- Human rights act 1998.
- Electoral reforms.
- Devolution.
- House of Lords reform.
- The supreme court.
- Other minor reforms = The freedom of information Act 2000 and more reforms to the House of commons.
