UK Politics revision (and start of US), Democracy in the UK, Key elections and statistics, Landmark rulings/cases US and UK

Public bill committees

Committees responsible for looking at bills in detail.

The three 'U's of the UK Constitution

-Uncodified (derived from many sources)

-Un-entrenched (Flexible and can be changed)

-Unitary (parliament holds all power)

Twin Pillars

Parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law

Who came up with the 'twin pillars'?

A.V. Dicey

Parliamentary Sovereignty

-Parliament can make or repeal any act

-No other body can overrule parliament

-No parliament can bind its successors

Rule of Law

principle that the law applies to everyone, even those who govern- inevitably clashes with parliamentary sovereignty

main sources of the UK constitution

- Statute law

- Common law

- The royal prerogative

- Conventions

- Works of authority

- International agreements

Common Law

a system of law based on precedent and customs

e.g. no law making murder a criminal offence, but statute laws dealing with the punishment for murder

Royal prerogative

Powers in the name of Crown

e.g. power to seek dissolution/prorogation of parliament

-ceremonial

-Johnson 2019 prorogation

Conventions

-Unwritten rules/procedures generally concerned with parliament

-Formal invitation by monarch to form a government

-Leader of party with most seats formally asked

>had Cameron not formed coalition with lindens, monarch would have asked Brown

Why are conventions rarely broken?

-It often leads to deadlock

-Salisbury-Addison Convention 1945, now lords do not block/delay bills in a party's manifesto

When was the last time royal assent was denied?

1707, Queen Anne refused to sign Scottish Militia Bill

Works of Authority

Writings of experts which describe constitutional practice and procedures

A.V. Dicey's Intro to the study of the law of the Constitution

The Cabinet Manual (2010)- guide for the first coalition government in over 60 years

International Agreements

-Government is obliged to adhere to the terms of international agreements they have signed

e.g. ECHR

Statute Law

A law or act passed by government

e.g. Representation of the People Act 1969 defined rights of UK citizens

Has the British Constitution become more democratic over time?

-Magna Carta (just the Barons and King John)

-Bill of Rights 1689

-Act of Settlement 1701

-Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949

-European Communities Act 1972

Bill of Rights 1689

A bill passed by Parliament and accepted by William and Mary that limited the powers of British monarchs and affirmed those of Parliament.

e.g. parliamentary privilege

Act of Settlement 1701

No Catholic could be king of England- Not democratic

Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949

-Acts limiting the Lords' power

-1909 removed lords' veto

1949- Lords could only delay a bill for 1 year after a modification of the Act

More democratic but still not truly as Lords still unelected

When was the Life Peerages Act?

1958

European Communities Act 1972

Act of Parliament led the UK to join the European Economic Community, and made all UK law 'subject to' directly applicable European law

Arguably infringed on Parliamentary sovereignty

Valence

voting on the perceived competence of a party

Modernisation of political institutions

-HoL Act 1999 removed all but 92 hered. peers

-Constitutional Reform Act 2005 separated Supreme Court from Law Lords

-Succession to the Crown Act 2013 allowed eldest child to ascend regardless of gender

-HoL Reform Act 2014 allowed peers to resign/retire from their seats (Lloyd-Webber) and the removal of peers convicted of srs crime offences

Greater democracy in the political system acts

-Referendums Act 1997 gave Scotland and Wales referendums on whether to have devolved assemblies

-Greater London Authority Act allowed direct election of Mayor of London

-2011 Fixed-term Parliaments Act (FTPA)

Fixed-term Parliaments Act of 2011

This Act of Parliament guaranteed that an election would be held every five years, unless certain circumstances

PMs can only call GE with 2/3rds parliament support

Aimed to protect LibDems from Tories ditching them when polls were favourable

Generally overridden as opposition leaders support calls for general elections so not to be seen as 'political cowards'

Bypassed by the Early Parliamentary General Election Act 2019

Forms of Constitutional Reforms (UK)

-Modernisation of political institutions

-Greater democracy in political system

-Devolution

-Human Rights

'good chaps' theory

-Relies on politicians doing the right thing

Heavy relied upon by Conventions

Human Rights Act 1998

Incorporated the ECHR into UK law

Allowed UK courts to take ECHR into account when judging HR cases

Equality Act 2010

Protects people from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. It sets out the different ways in which it is unlawful to treat someone.

Data Protection Act 2018

Aims to protect the rights of the owners of data

Controls on handling of personal data by government and private bodies

Freedom of Information Act 2000

- Public Services are required to publish information under this Act

- Members of the public can request information under this Act

e.g. BBC request for local councils to say how many they recorded were sleeping rough 2019

2012 British Academy report on ECtHR

-1996-2012, around 14.5 000 cases from UK citizens to ECtHR

-UK government only found in breach of convention in just over 1% of cases

Why does the Constitution struggle to protect rights?

-Lack of entrenchment (we could withdraw from ECHR)

-Current framework open to political attack (Tory calls for 'British Bill of Rights')

-ECtHR judgments against UK policies spark media attacks

-Brexit removed safety net for certain non-discrimination/labour/migrant rights under EU law

-Passing of anti-terror laws dilutes protections

Bull v Hall 2013

-The Bulls refused to allow same sex couple to share a double room in their hostel

-The Bulls fought for their individual rights to refuse customers because of their faith

-The couple fought for the protection of LGBTQ rights

Individual Rights

Rights of an individual regardless of personal characteristics

e.g. human rights

Collective Rights

-Rights for a group that share a characteristic

e.g. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 collective right of gay community

When was the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act

2013

Examples of collective vs individual rights

-Terrorism Act 2006 allowed detention for 28 days without trial

>infringed on individual right to habeas corpus (guarantee of a court trial)

-Covid Lockdowns protected right to life (protection from COVID) but challenged the right to liberty

FGM Act 2003

-The collective cultural rights

-Individual rights of the child

Ashers Baking Company LTD

Northern Irish bakery who were taken to court for their refusal to bake a cake with slogan in favour of same-sex marriage. SC ruled that company refused to bake cake because of slogan, not because of identity of customers

-Freedom of expression

-Freedom of (not) speech

How many MPs are there in the House of Commons?

650

How many constituents does each MP represent on average?

68,000

The highest in 2019 was Isle of Wight (113,000) and lowest was just over 21,000

How many independents won seats in 2019?

None, Clair Wright was the closest in East Devon

What are the two categories of Lord (not hereditory/life)

-Lords Temporal (hereditary/life)

-Lords spiritual (CofE bishops)

How many hereditary peers before Blair's reforms?

around 700

(went down to 92)

How long has Britain been a parliamentary state?

Since the Glorious Revolution 1688

What two acts took power away from the Lords and into the commons?

-Parliamentary Acts 1911 and 1945

Who was the first female MP?

Nancy Astor in 1919

How many Black MPs were elected in 1987?

3

Parliament still retains ancient traditions

-Voting in division lobbies

-'Ayes' 'noes'

What are the main functions of parliament?

-legislative

-representative

-scrutiny of the executive

-deliberative (in times of crisis)

Role of Prime Minister

Heading the cabinet, leads government legislative policies

Role of the speaker

Acts as a 'referee'

Suspends MPs who break the rules

Chooses who speaks

Can be controversial- Bercow accused of favouritism to opposition during Brexit

Primus inter pares

The first among equals- the idea that the PM leads a group of ministers, rather than acting presidentially

Role of the Leader of the House of Commons

-Government 'business manager'

-Job to make sure Commons runs smoothly

-Timetables discussions over bills

Reese-Mogg accused of pushing Brexit to the top of commons debates as a eurosceptic

Role of the whips

-In charge of party discipline

-Make sure MPs vote how their leaders want them to

-Suspend the whip for political disloyalty/disobedience

Examples of MPs having the whip removed

-in 2019, 21 Tory backbenchers had whip removed after they defied PM by voting for a motion for parliament to take control over Brexit (not government)

-Nadine Dorries' whip removed 2012 for appearing on I'm a celeb

front bench

members of the Cabinet and on the other side the members of the Shadow Cabinet

Backbenchers

Members of a parliament who are not in the government or shadow cabinet.

Increasingly rebellious

Corbyn the most rebellious between 1997 and 2010

West Lothian Question

Question raised during devolution debates of whether MPs from N. Ireland, Scotland and Wales, should be able to vote on matters only affecting England

EVEL (2015-2020/1)

English Votes for English Laws.

Votes on legislation just affecting England should require majority of both all MPs and English MPs alone

SNP were barred from voting on an EVEL NHS bill- they claimed it impacted Scotland

Gina Miller case 2017

SC declared PM couldn't enact article 50 through royal prerogative without parliamentary approval

(Parliament enacted legislation to enter EU so had to enact it to leave too)

Green paper stage

The first proposal of a Bill- proposed to a discussion group

Primary legislation

an Act or statute created by parliament

Secondary legislation

Powers given to the Executive by Parliament to make changes to the law within certain specific rules.

e.g. Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 allows for more drugs to be added to the list of banned substances via secondary legislation

Less scrutiny over SIs as parliament cannot amend them

White Paper

The first draft of a bill- published by government

Stages of legislative process

-First reading

-Second reading

-Committee stage

-Report stage

-Third reading

-House of Lords stages

First reading

-Formal introduction/reading of bill's title

-A formality as there is no debate

Second reading

-Main debate on the principles of the bill in the commons

-Rare for government defeat at second reading

>last time this happened was 1986 Sunday Trading Bill

Committee stage

-Bill is sent to public bill committees

-Members of committees suggest amendments and call experts to discuss

-Government always has a majority on committee, so major changes are rare

Report stage

Committee members report back to the House. The House reviews amendments to the bill.

Third reading

Final debate and vote on the amended bill

The House of Lords stages

The whole process is repeated in the Lords

-Any Lords amendments must be accepted by the Commons

-Bills often go back and forth between houses

-Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 was considered 5 times by the Lords

-Can be overruled by the Parliament Act 1911

The Parliament Act 1911

-Commons can use this to bypass the Lords and their bill becomes law within a year

-Last used to pass the Hunting Act 2004

Statutory Instruments (SIs)

Secondary Legislation powers

Private Members Bill

legislation proposed by a backbencher

e.g. Abortion Act 1967 and abolition of capital punishment 1965

Ballot Bills

20 MPs names a year drawn from ballot

They can present a bill

Only stand a chance of passing if they are uncontroversial or government does not oppose them (MPs can block these by speaking until time runs out

e.g. the 'Turing Bill' 2016 was blocked by a government minister speaking for 25 minutes- stopping it from progressing

Handout Bills

-Minor additions/changes to existing laws handed to MPs from ministers who may not have the time to put them forward

-Usually a form of Ballot Bill

Ten Minute Rule Bill

-No speech

-No debate

-MP normally uses to address non-controversial policy issues/anomalies in the law

Less useful as no speech/debate

Indirect backbench pressure on government legislation

-Goverments often try to 'buy off' potential rebel backbenchers before bringing a bill to commons

-Sometimes by changing aspects of the bill

2006 Labour backbenchers convinced Blair's government to bring in the Corporate Manslaughter Bill

Burkean theory

where MPs take into account their own views as well as their constituents'

Burke believed that people should trust MPs to use their better judgement to make informed decisions

Example of an MP using Burkean theory

-Nick Boles represented a Leave constituency

He personally supported Remain campaign and voted against his party several times

Some argue he was putting perceived national interest above the interest of his party/constituents

Why has Burkean theory weakened?

-Dominance of party politics and whipping

Where is Burkean theory often used?

-'Votes of conscience' and other 'unwhipped' votes

e.g. votes on abortion or assisted dying

2013 vote on same-sex marriage was unwhipped, and over half the Tory party rebelled against Cameron's backing of the bill

Theories of Representation

-Burkean/trustee

-Delegate

-Mandate

Delegate Theory

The idea that an MP should exactly mirror their constituents' views in deciding on public policy.

voters do not necessarily reward MPs who act as delegates (e.g. Stephen Lloyd and Zac Goldsmith)

Examples of MPs using delegate theory

-Stephen Lloyd (then Libdem) promised to back Brexit against his own beliefs and party policy to honour the Leave result in his constituency

>lost his seat 2019

-2015 Tory Goldsmith promised he would resign if government backed a third runway at Heathrow (which he did in 2016)

>lost the following by-election as independent

delegate theory not always rewarding

Mandate Theory

-Most prevalent

-MPs primary role is to represent and carry out their party's policies/manifesto

-Elected MPs of one party who defect or resign and stand again, almost always lose

>ex labour Frank Field 2019

>ex Tory Milton 2019

Who was the exception to the trend of MPs losing their seats after changing party as mentioned in mandate theory?

-Carswell defected conservative->UKIP 2014 and won seat 2015

-Clacton electorate was strong Leave electorate, so arguably they were voting for the same policies

Why are backbench rebellions sometimes limited due to mandate theory?

-MPs can't rebel against their party's views when they are in a manifesto pledge

-Policy outside of the manifesto such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq are not subject to mandate theory

-in 2003 139 Labour MPs rebelled

When is mandate theory not employed at re-election of a candidate?

-Strong constituency feeling against the MPs PARTY

-Controversy surrounding the MP

> Nadine Dorries' loss of seat 2023 after failing to attend parliament

Parliamentary privilege

The right of MPs or Lords to make certain statements within Parliament without being subject laws of slander or contempt of court

Example of parliamentary privilege being used

Lord Hain named Sir Phillip Green as the man under investigation as the media was subject to injunction, and therefore could not publish it

Emergency debates

A debate granted at short notice by the Speaker. These are relatively rare.

-MPs have 3 minutes to put request to the house

-2017-19 22 emergency debates

-Partisan or not

Example of an emergency debate

2017 debate on the contaminated blood scandal

How many emergency debates were there 2017-19 session?

22

Backbench Business Committee 2010

Created in 2010, this committee is allocated 35 days in each session of Parliament, for scheduling debates on subjects suggested by backbench MPs

-no votes

Petitions Committee 2015

The Petitions Committee considers public petitions presented to the House and e-petitions submitted through the House of Commons and Government e-petitions site

-Petitions with over 100,000 must be considered

Debates poorly attended

Examples of petitions

-Lots in pandemic

-2017 ban Pres. Trump from making state visit to the UK over 1m signatures (Trump came but no visit to parliament)

-Removing parking charges for NHS staff 415,000 signatures (government payed for the costs)

The significance of debates in parliament

-Most MPs do not change their minds as a result of debates

-Party whipping anyway

-Payroll votes

-Westminster Hall debates are poorly attended

-Debates most effective on emotional topics that invoke PUBLIC scrutiny