Unit 2- Uk Constitution
- Created by: BThompson
- Created on: 14-04-16 12:16
View mindmap
- The UK Constitution
- Sources of UK constitution
- Parliamentary statutes
- acts of Parliament that have effect of establishnga principle
- Historical principles
- principles that have developed over yeard
- Sovereignty of parliament and parliamentary government
- principles that have developed over yeard
- Common law
- Laws that have been used throughout history
- PM's prerogative powers that courts guard
- when there's no statute in place, these laws are used.
- PM's prerogative powers that courts guard
- Laws that have been used throughout history
- Tradition
- practices and traditions of parliament
- allowing the queen to announce new legislation
- the queen's speech
- allowing the queen to announce new legislation
- practices and traditions of parliament
- Parliamentary statutes
- EU and the constituton
- Passed Europeans committee act on 1972
- Britain joined EU
- EU law superior to British law
- Factortame case
- British courts must implement EU law
- HoL not highest court of appeal, European court of justice is
- proposals requiring unaminous vote in the EU council has effective veto.
- E.G harmonious taxation
- Where proposals only need majority vote, UK accept these.
- Parliament shouldn't pass any statutes that conflict with EU law
- Passed Europeans committee act on 1972
- Sovereingty in the UK
- Parliament remain legally sovereign
- all laws must be passed by parliament
- any devolved powers can be taken back, with regards to EU
- Parliament has to effectively accept the result of referendum
- Power gone to PM or gov, through prerogative powers he uses on behalf of the crown
- Parliament remain legally sovereign
- attitude towards constitutional reform
- Conservatives believe reform should not be a conscious policy
- Natural procedure
- When there has been a political breakdown
- Call for removal of house of lords, removal of hereditary peers
- would disrupt political process of UK
- Call for removal of house of lords, removal of hereditary peers
- Labour and liberals have more dominant issues
- constitutional reform has few votes and so squeezed off the agenda
- even when labour and socialists haven't been able to agree on reform.
- constitutional reform has few votes and so squeezed off the agenda
- Constitutional reform before 1997
- very little change
- UK joining EU committee 1973
- Pol role of Monarchy grad dissapeared
- role of HoL weakened
- Salisbury convention
- 1911 parliament act said HoL can't interfere with financial affairs
- Power drifted form local gov to central
- through legislation & conventions
- Electoral reform
- changed as parties come and go
- Libs supportive- current FPTP is undemocratic & unrepresentative
- other sides say it leads to strong and stable gov.
- Labour moved away from reform of gen election, strong victories of 35% in 2005
- 66% majority in commons.
- made changes in devolved areas.
- changed as parties come and go
- Labour supported constitutional reform 1997
- support equal rights democracy and abolition of traditional establishment powers
- 1997 seemed definite they'd win election
- stop one party dominating after long period of conservative gov
- public support for reforms as growing
- Principles of labour reforms
- Demo- cratisation - HoL and unrepresentative electoral system
- decentral isation -dispersing power away to local authorities,
- restoration of rights- European convention of human rights, freedom of info act
- modernisation -of the civil service and parliament
- Parliamentary reform
- 1998 con peers and majority labour, reduced hereditary peers to 92
- system more democratic
- remains whether to make it elected
- system more democratic
- changes to commons, powerful select committees, PM questions
- Brown tried to shift power from gov to commons.
- 1998 con peers and majority labour, reduced hereditary peers to 92
- Conservatives believe reform should not be a conscious policy
- assessment of constitutional reform
- fully appointed HoL still not accountable or representative
- HoC remains ineffective and inefficient, gov not accountable enough
- electoral reform has not taken place in parliamentary or local elections
- Possible future reforms
- transfer powers from gov and PM to commons
- deploy troops, decide on a date of general election, declare war, ratify or reject foreign treaties
- changing general election day from thursday to weekend
- introducing e-petitions
- initiate consultation on bill of rights and possible codification
- transfer powers from gov and PM to commons
- London mayor
- after era of Thatcher who abolished GLC and split London up into 33 boroughs, labour party wanted to restore power to london
- pushed through reforms for creation of London mayor & greater London authority
- didn't live up to promise, only had influence
- main influence being congestion charge and public transport in London, increasing police
- Human rights Act 1998
- Causes
- bring UK closer to rest of EU, police and courts too powerful, gov had lost ECHR nearly 50 times
- in return for active citizenship, Scotland, Wales and N.Ireland were already bound by convention
- bring UK closer to rest of EU, police and courts too powerful, gov had lost ECHR nearly 50 times
- how it works- judgments of ECHR aren't biding, parliamentary acts remain sovereign, cases heard in British courts
- Gov listens- E.G. Belmarsh, anti terrorism act needed to be amended.
- Causes
- Freedom of information
- gave citizens right to know info gov and public bodies and on them.
- Harder for gov to be secret and conceal documents
- Labour changed its mind and said there should be sufficient reasons for release of document rather than reasons to conceal it
Comments
No comments have yet been made