Public Affairs NCTJ - Power Structures

What is a constitution?

A single document setting out the structure and principles of government and its relationship with its citizens.

The British Constitution

The UK has an unwritten constitution

What is the UK’s branches of government?

Legislature (Commons and Lords) makes the law.

Executive (government and civil service) executes the law

Judiciary (judges) adjudicates the law

What is the separation of powers?

Different branches of the state should be in separate hands so as not to concentrate too much power in too few hands.

Overlaps: executive and legislature; monarchy is head of all 3 branches

Checks and balances are sfaeguards

Principles of the constitution

Democracy (freedom of speech, freedom of association, free press, free, fair and regular elections)

Parliamentary Sovereignty - supreme lawmaking body

Government reflects will of the people

Independent judiciary (law applied by courts not government)

Rule of law - i.e state acts within the law.

Constitutional monarchy

The UK has a constitutional monarchy

King or Queen “reigns but does not rule”

Ministers rule in their name

Monarch is above politics; impartial

Has the right to encourage, the right to advise and the right to warn.

Conventions of the monarchy

Respects the party system

Takes advice from ministers, especially PM

What is royal prerogative?

Formal powers of the monarch

The prerogative powers

‘Appointment’ of the PM

‘Appointment’ of ministers

‘Dismissal’ of government

King’s speech (written by government)

Declaring war (PM does this)

‘Approving’ legislation (Royal Assent - a formality)

Royal Pardon (on government advice)

The monarch’s real powers

Advise, encourage and warn - weekly meeting with PM

Moral leader - head of the Church of England

Ceremonial roles - head of state and Commonwealth

How is the monarchy funded?

Sovereign grant - percentage of profits from Crown Estate (land and holding belonging to state but not government or monarch)

Privy purse - income generated by Duchy of Lancaster (only part of Crown Estate still owned by monarch)

Personal income - salaries, shares, Duchy of Cornwall rents and products

Powers of the PM

Leader of the majority party in the House of Commons

Appoints and dismisses members of the government

Chair of the cabinet, decides agenda and sums up discussions

Has own office and adviser - almost a PM’s department at Number 10.

More PM powers

Drives through his/her own policy agenda

Negotiates at international summits such as G20

Represents the government abroad

Declares war/signs peace treaties

Patronage - advises monarch on senior appointments in church and state officials

Structure of government

Cabinet - c27

Ministers 80+

Departments, Ministers and Civil Servants

Departments consist of minister and civil servants - e.g Home Office, Treasury, Dept of Health and Social care, MOD, Ministry of Justice, Dept of Education

Ministers are full time politicians - they decide the political direction of the government, led by the PM, formulating policies. They are part of government, rarely ‘experts’.

Civil servants are employees of the state - they put ideas and policies into practice, they are not politicians, not elected, they serve under different governments

Ministers - elected government

There are more than 100 of them, all appointed by PM

All sit in the Commons or the Lords so they can be accountable to Parliament

20-30 in the cabinet i.e the Secretaries of State

The rest = ministers of state or “junior ministers”

Role of Secretary of State - i.e. senior minister in each department

Appointed by the PM (technically the monarch on advice of the PM)

Sits in the cabinet contributing to discussions and determining policy

Runs the department and frames policy

Drafts legislation and pilots it through Parliament

Gives evidence to select committees

Answer questions on department in Parliament

Takes part in debates, makes speeches in support of government.

Ministerial Conventions

Two Main Conventions

1. Collective Responsibility - i.e. individual ministers broadly support government policy

2. Ministerial responsibility - i.e. must account for policies, decisions and actions

Ministerial responsibility

Ministers are responsible for all actions of their department

The convention is, that if something goes seriously wrong they must resign

But they don’t always. In practice an apology may be accepted instead

In reality, it is impossible for ministers to keep on top of everything

Other principles in ministerial code

Ministers and their civil servants must be truthful to Parliament and parliamentary committees

Ministers should be:

1. Be open with Parliament and public

2. Have no conflicts of interests

3. Not accept gifts or hospitality that may influence their judgement.

4. Separate their roles as minister and constituency MP

5. Not misuse government resources for party purposes

6. Uphold political impartiality of civil servants

Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards

Deals with the application of the House of Commons Code of Conduct and related Rules that apply to MPs, e.g.

Registration of financial interests held by MPs

Investigation of allegations that MPs have breached the rules set out in House of Commons Code of Conduct

The Civil Service

Under Cabinet Secretary (i.e. head of the civil service)

549,660 paid officials (31 March 2025) in government departments and agencies

Appointed on merit

Politically neutral – they serve all governments with equal loyalty and dedication

For example: Sir Gus O’Donnell, former Cabinet Secretary served Brown (Labour) and later Cameron (Conservative)

Permanent Secretary

The civil servant at the head of each department = Permanent Secretary

Advises the Secretary of State on procedures and policies

Keeps department running. Directs and supervises:

1. the work of the department

2. department’s finances

How powerful is the civil service?

Ministers rarely remain in office for more than two years; Civil servants are permanent employees

Ministers rarely have specialist knowledge

Civil servants advise ministers on policies and prepare policy options. They can be extremely powerful

The role of special advisers (SPADs) = ‘Temporary Civil Servants’

SPADs are appointed by a Party, not by the government to cover/lead a specialist area or department

Each Cabinet Minister may appoint up to 2 special advisers

Other government ministers can appoint 1

Opposition parties pay for their own SPADs

Once a party is in government, SPADS are paid from public funds (same as civil servants)

House of Commons

650 MPs

Commons is the elected first chamber of our bi-cameral (i.e. two house) Parliament.

It is the Legislature i.e. the law-making body of the State.

Executive = The Government, which sits in the Legislature.

Parliament is the supreme law maker: it can “make or unmake any law”.

Hansard is the official record of parliamentary proceedings

Front bench of Commons is where PM and government ministers sit; Opposition front bench sits across from them.

Key people in commons

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, MP

Elected by fellow MPs

Role usually alternates between Labour and Tory. Previous Speaker John Bercow resigned while predecessor Michael Martin stepped down over expenses scandal

Keep order in the House

Ch