Flashcards
The British Constitution
Cards in this deck (18)
- 1What is the difference between political clarity of responsibility & institutional clarity of responsibility?Political is when there's a single-party government to blame when things go wrong. Institutional is when the government is to blame, not other institutions, such as the courts.
Parliamentary sovereignty concentrates institutional power in parliament but is exercised by the Government with a parliamentary majority. - 2What does a constitution do?It sets out the relationship between the state & individuals & different institutions of the state. Constitutions define the distribution of power.
- 3What are Lijphart's 3 dimensions of the constitution?Whether it's written (codified) in a single document or unwritten (uncodified) across a number of sources. Whether it's flexible & easy to change or rigid & hard to change. Whether there is judicial review or no judicial review.
- 4What are the features of the British constitution?It's uncodified, it's not written down in one place but instead scattered across statute book, conventions, etc. Flexible, there are no special provisions for changing constitution. So, it can change with the times but it's also susceptible to abuse. There is no judicial review. Traditionally, courts could not over-ride parliament or strike down laws. Now it includes EU law & Human Rights Act.
- 5What are Dicey's twin pillars of the constitution?Rule of Law (equality before the law) & Parliamentary Sovereignty (Parliament has, under the English constitution, the right to make or unmake any law whatever).
- 6What is parliamentary sovereignty?Parliament has a monopoly of legitimate law-making power. Historically no US-style judicial review by courts. According to Ridley, the British constitution is a one-sentence constitution stating that Parliament can make or repeal any law whatsoever.
- 7What are the sources of the constitution?Statute law - Parliament Act 1911, European Communities Act 1972, Scotland Act 1998. Common law (judge-made law) - Jjudicial decisions & royal prerogatives, freedom of speech, power to make treaties & doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty. Works of authority - recognised guidance on constitution, A.V. Dicey.
- 8What are the sources of the constitution?Conventions (unwritten but accepted rules of behaviour) - monarch assents to legislation & appoints dominant party’s leader as PM, all ministers drawn from Commons or Lords, collective cabinet responsibility & salisbury convention.
- 9What are the sources of the constitution?EU law - this led to a major modification of parliamentary sovereignty. EU law can over-ride UK law in order to make single market work - factortame court case (1990). But, the UK will be leaving EU, thus reasserting primacy of UK law proving that parliamentary sovereignty was always intact.
- 10What are the UK's constitutional doctrines that express majoritarian values & primary of parliamentary sovereignty?The Crown and Parliament - the PM exercises prerogative powers once held by Monarch, such as, appointing ministers, civil servants & officers in the armed forces, making treaties & declaring war. Individual ministerial responsibility - ministers are responsible for actions of their Departments.
- 11What are the UK's constitutional doctrines that express majoritarian values & primary of parliamentary sovereignty?Doctrine of Responsible Government - the government is responsible to parliament & should resign if it loses vote of confidence, individual ministers are responsible to parliament & the government is responsible to the electorate (mandates & accountability).
Collective responsibility - ministers must defend Government decisions or resign. - 12How have the British people been protected from executive tyranny?Through party competition & public opinion. In a majoritarian democracy the executive is superior to courts. But there have been long periods of single party rule & public opinion is sometimes illiberal - immigration. In a liberal democracy, liberties are protected by the judiciary.
- 13What is the European Convention on Human Rights?It was drafted by the Council of Europe in 1949 & cases are to be brought before European Court of Human Rights. It was ratified by the UK in 1950 but it is not incorporated into UK law. Individual UK citizens could petition court from 1966.
- 14What is the 1998 Human Rights Act?HRA incorporated ECHR into UK law by the Labour Government. It gave individuals rights enforceable in UK courts. It is considered constitutional legislation but there are no special provisions for change. All legislation requires minister to confirm it's compatibility with ECHR rights. The actions & regulations of public bodies must also comply with ECHR.
- 15Has the 1998 Human Rights Act impacted upon parliamentary sovereignty?The courts must interpret laws in line with ECHR & if this is not possible then higher courts can issue a declaration of incompatibility. It is up to parliament to change the law & courts cannot strike down primary legislation. Thus, parliamentary sovereignty retained but there is shift away from majoritarianism as it requires some constitutional entrenchment.
- 16How do some conservatives feel about HRA?Conservatives opposed HRA because it means the supremacy of a foreign court & convention. They wish to replace HRA with the British Bill of Rights in order to make the UK Supreme Court the ultimate arbiter of human rights matters in the UK.
- 17What is the future for parliamentary sovereignty?The Diceyan doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty is undermined by EU membership, HRA & devolution (dispersal of power). The Labour Government (1997-2010) advanced these shifts away from majoritarianism but the current Conservative government seems to be moving in the opposite direction.
- 18How easy is it to change the constitution in different countries?In Britain, constitutional law is like any other, it requires a simple majority in parliament. In America, you need a 2/3 majority in both houses & 3/4 majority in state legislatures. In Ireland, a referendum is required to change the constitution, so people act as veto players.
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- The New British Politics Yr 2 Flashcards on The British Constitution, created by Miss Rogers on 17/10/2018.
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