The UK Constitution and Its Sources

Timeline of Legal Formation: * 1707 – Act of Union: Scottish Parliament abolished; United Kingdom of Great Britain established. * 1801 – Act of Union: Irish parliament abolished; United Kingdom of Great Britain & Ireland established. * 1920 – Government of Ireland Act: Devolved power to the Northern Ireland parliament at Stormont. * 1922 – Irish Free State Acts: Recognised the Irish Free State; the formal title "United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland" was established.
Northern Ireland History: * 1921–1969: Period of systematic discrimination against Catholics; rise of Nationalist and Unionist tensions. * 1969: Violence began between the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Ulster Volunteer Forcer (UVF); UK army deployed. * 1972 – Direct Rule: Westminster resumed control via a Secretary of State (SoS) for N. Ireland. * 1998: Peace settlement reached in the Belfast / Good Friday agreement.
Devolution: * Defined as the decentralisation of power from Westminster to legislative authorities in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. * UK Parliament retains powers over international relations and UK-wide matters (Defence, Foreign Affairs, Immigration). * Devolution is considered a "process not an event."

General Definition: Rules regulating government structure, organ relationships, and principal functions.
Wade & Phillips (1931): Rules consist of strict legal rules and "conventions" (non-enacted usages accepted as binding).
Core Functions: Determines law-making processes, government limits, court powers, and citizen rights.
Codified Constitution: * A single document representing the highest law (e.g., USA, France, Rep. of Ireland). * Courts can declare conflicting laws "unconstitutional" and nullify them.
Uncodified Constitution: * Rules are found in multiple documents, customs, precedents, and laws (e.g., UK, Israel, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia). * The UK's version is described as "organic" and "peculiar."

Codified Strengths: Harder to change (stronger), allows courts to strike down invalid laws, and provides clarity.
Codified Weaknesses: May result in archaic rules that are difficult to update; can lead to over-politicization of courts.
The UK Argument (Against Codification): It is currently flexible and has worked historically ("if it isn't broke, don't fix it").
The UK Argument (For Codification): The current system is a "messy" jumble of rules, making it too easy for governments to bypass constitutional limits.

Constitutionally Significant Statutes: Acts of Parliament that clarify relationship between individuals and the State or organise institutions. Examples include: * Magna Carta 1215 * Bill of Rights 1689 * European Communities Act 1972 (EU membership on 1 January 1973) * Human Rights Act 1998 * Constitutional Reform Act 2005 * EU (Withdrawal) Act 2018
Common Law: Judge-made law developed through court practices and case-by-case refinement.
Royal Prerogative: Historical powers of the Monarch now generally exercised by government Ministers. No new prerogative powers can be created (R v. SSHD ex p. Northumbria Police Authority [1988]).
Constitutional Conventions: Non-legal rules of conduct with "normative force." Jennings described them as the "flesh which clothes the dry bones of the law."
International Law and Treaties: The UK is bound by terms in international law (e.g., ECHR, UN Convention Against Torture) and must interpret national law in conformity with these treaties where possible.