The Constitution / Parliament

Defining features of the UK constitution

1. Unentrenched → laws and rules can be changed by ordinary parliamentary procedure

2. Uncodified → several written and unwritten sources rather than a single supreme written document

3. Unitary → political power in legally concentrated in parliament

Case study for the defining features of the UK constitution

• emergency Covid restrictions and lockdown

• 2022 elections act having to bring photo ID to polling stations for elections and some referendums

5 sources of the UK Constitution + examples

1. Statute law → laws made by parliament i.e EU Withdrawal Act (departure from the EU)

2. Common law → judge-made law that develops legal principles i.e Miller v Brexit Secretary the Supreme Court ruled parliament must approve triggering article 50

3. Conventions → unwritten rules guiding political behaviour i.e Salisbury convention

4. Works of authority → academic texts written by those regarded as the experts

5. Treaties → international agreements between UK and other states i.e European Convention of Human rights

Magna Carta

• 1215

• Limited royal power

• Forms foundations of rule of law

UK constitution twin pillars

1. Rule of law → all UK laws apply to everyone

2. Parliamentary sovereignty

Bill of Rights

• 1689

• Limited monarchs power

• Confirmed the supremacy of parliament

Parliament act 1911

• removed House of Lords veto over money bills

Parliament act 1949

• reduced the Lords’ delaying power from two years to one year

• Further strengthened the supremacy of the House of Commons

House of Lords act 1999

• removed all but 92 hereditary peers

• Introduced much larger appointments of life peers

• Introduced to modernize the House of Lords

• Problems: House of Lords remains unelected

The House of Lords and Rwanda Bill as a case study

Many members of the House of Lords raised the concerns of human rights and international law, using their power to delay and amend legislation

Northern Ireland devolution: Good Friday Agreement (1998)

• Northern Ireland experienced conflict known as The Troubles

• Created a power sharing assembly and executive in Northern Ireland

• Northern Ireland saw a return to local governance

Welsh devolution: Government of Wales Act 1998

• created the Welsh Assembly with secondary legislative powers due to a demand for greater regional decision-making in wales

• Created asymmetrical devolution as wales and Scotland were granted different powers

Scottish devolution: Scotland Act 1998

• created the Scottish parliament

• Granted primary legislative powers

• Introduced to recognize scotlands distinct political identity

• Significant policy divergence from the rest of the UK with a rise in nationalism

Human Rights Act 1998

• incorporated the European Convention of Human Rights into UK law

• Allow individuals to enforce their rights in UK courts

• UK courts can issue declarations of incompatibility

• Since 2015, the conservative part has proposed a British bill of rights to replace it

• Hasn’t prevented Guam rights abuses for example: Terrorism Act 2006: 28-day detention without charge

Constitutional reform act 2005

• created the Supreme Court which opened in 2009

• To strengthen the separation of powers

Supreme Court case studies

1. Miller v Prime Minister 2019 → Johnson to prorogue parliament was unlawful, prevented parliament from carrying out its constitutional role

2. Rwanda bill being ruled unlawful and against human rights

Fixed term parliaments act 2011

• Introduced fixed five year parliamentary terms

• Removed the prime ministers ability to call elections t a politically advantageous moment

• Reduced partisan advantage in election timing

• Limited PM power

Scottish independence referendum 2014

• 85% turnout

• 55% remain

• Growth of SNP

• Independence was a central SNP policy following devolution

• Didn’t settle the independence debate

Recall if MPs act 2015

• allowed constituent to trigger a by-election if their MP was suspended from Parliament for at least 10 sitting days or received a prison sentence

• The act has been used around 6 times

2019 recall if MPs case study

In 2019 the labour MP for Peterborough was sentenced to prison for perverting the course of justice after lying about a speeding offense

Brexit referendum 2016

• 72% turnout

• 51% leave

• Support growth in UKIP

• Expand our economy beyond the EU

• Expand trade further and make ties with more countries

• Less parliamentary sovereignty before leaving

• 6% economy decrease since leaving the EU

• EU migration drop of workers

• Staff shortages facing labor gaps i.e hospitality

English votes for English laws

• 2015-2021

• Tackle the west lothian question

• Fewer than 50 laws were voted on using the EVEL procedure

Elections act 2022

• photo ID at ejections

• Reduce electoral fraud

• Act raised concerns about disenfranchisement

Public Order Act 2023 + example

• expanded police powers to manage protests, introduced new criminal offenses

• example: used against just stop oil allowing police to intervene and arrest several activists

Mayors

• devolved powers

• Transport budgets

• Localizard economic, housing budgets

Make-up of the House of Commons

• 650 MPs

• Frontbenchers are ministers or shadow spokespeople

• Backbenchers are all the other MPs who primarily focus on constituency work and committee scrutiny

Legislative function of parliament

• make and unmake laws

• Make laws to suit the majority of the uk public

• Parliament is superior to other institutions such as devolved bodies

• Parliament mostly consider government made bills rather than private members bills

• Governments can have low majorities in the commons so passing certain laws can be hard

• Lords rarely propose legislation they just ‘clean up’ give enemy proposed ideas

Representation as a function of parliament

• elected chamber of the commons

• Each MO should act on behalf of their constituents

• The House of Lords remains entirely unelected

• Due to the voting system, the commons don’t reflect how the population votes

• Parliament dosent represent women or ethnic backgrounds → 18% population v 14% commons

parliament function of scrutiny

• PMQs → theatrical “dodger dave”, direct questioning

• UQ’s

• Select committ and s

• Debates can be help discussing the merits of government actions

• MPs can subject questions to ministers

• Government has a majority typically in the commons so many of them support the PM

• Governments tend to have a majority in the select committees

Legitimacy as a function of parliament

• being elected in the commons has approval of the people

• Government actions are scrutinized increasing legitimacy

• The lords is not elected reducing legitimacy

• A number of scandals have undermined public faith and trust in parliament

Power of the Commons

• Legislative powers- the chamber process and passing laws and can stop bills

• ‘Confidence and supply’ powers - the government only exists if it has confidence in the commons

• ‘Supply’ refers to the commons granting the government money through supporting legislation involving the supply of taxation

Power of the Lords

• delay bills by the commons for up to a year (except ‘money bills’ or manifesto bills)

• Veto powers i.e if the commons tried to delay an exception they can block this

Why would the Commons be seen as more powerful than the Lords?

• lords can only delay bills

• Commons can vote down legislation

• Commons has vote of no confidence option, unlike the lords

• MPs are more independently minded then the past so are more likely to toe the part line making the commons more assertive

Why would the lords be seen as more powerful than the commons?

• party control is weaker as lords don’t need to be re-elected

• More political balance in the lords- no one party dominating

• More expertise/specialist knowledge

• Government tends to dominate the commons - bias

The Legislative Process (stages)

• First reading (bill intro, no debate)

• Second reading (debate on main principles)

• Committee stage (line-by-line scrutiny)

• Report stage (whole House considers the committees amendments)

• Third reading (final debate and vote)

• Second chamber (goes to the House of Lords for the same stages)

• Royal assent

Proposed/enacted House of Lords reform

• removal of hereditary peers (1999)

• Age caps

• Changing the appointments commission

• Making it an elected chamber

• Reducing the size

Proposed/enacted House of Commons reform

• lowering the voting age

• Tighter regulations on political donations

• Voting system reform debate (2011 AV referendum 42% turnout)

• Select committee power → how to strengthen their power to scrutinize better

Ways of scrutiny

• PMQ’s → backbenchers and the Opposition can directly question the PM, has become theatrical, gain media attention

• Select committees → cross-party committees if backbench MPs to investigate specific policies, evidence based scrutiny

• House of Lords → legislative process limited due to things like Salisbury Convention

The Whip system

• ensure attendance to votes and debate

• Enforce party lines

• Intelligence gathering, report to the PM/party leader

• One line whip → non-binding vote

• Two-line whip → attendance and voting according to party is expected

• Three-line whip → attendance is strict and mandatory

Case study for three line whip

2025 welfare cuts rebellion against Keir Starmer, demanding all labour MPs to vote in favor of the bill, 47 MPs rebelled against the government

Parliamentary priviledge

Grants MPs and Lords legal immunity, primarily consisting of freedom of speech being allowed to raise controversial issues, typically used to highlight individuals who have taken out super-injunctions

Role of the Opposition

• second largest party in the commons

• ‘Government in waiting’

• Scrutiny → make up the shadow cabinet, challenge legislation, competing manifestos

• Opposition days → 20 days per parliamentary session to set topic of debate forcing the government to respond to critical issues

Parliament representation stats

• Women : 27.5% (0.3% increase from last year) v 51% UK population

• Ethnic groups : 14% v 18% UK population

• Disabilities : 2% v 25% UK population