The British constitution

A constitution is a set of rules which define the relationship between the various organs of government and between the government and citizens of a country. Its purpose is to set the parameters of governmental power and the right and duties of the citizens. The constitution of every country will determine the system of government in that country. The British constitution is important to English citizens. It is not written. The statement that the British constitution is not ‘written’ does not mean that the British citizens possess no important constitutional documents; it merely means that the constitution is not embodied in any single document, or series of documents, containing our essential constitutional laws. The British citizens have many enactments, but they are of great importance. The sources of the UK constitution can be found in custom, case law books of authority. These are in formal or ‘moral’ rules- a code of practice for government which has evolved over the years. They are primarily concerned with the relationship between the Crown (or Monarch) and the executive and the legislature.

The doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty governs the relationship between the legislature and the judiciary. There are two aspects to the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty:1. Parliament may enact any law it wishes; 2. no authority, including the courts, has the power to question the validity of the legislation. The originals of the doctrine are historical arising from the political changes of 1688 which sought to limit the power of the monarchy. There is no law which states that Parliament is supreme but the doctrines accepted and recognized by the courts.

The procedure is known as “The Queen in Parliament”. It is the duty of the British judiciary to enforce the will of Parliament as expressed through its legislation.

Another feature of the British Constitution that is relevant to the constitutional role of the judiciary is the theory of the separation of powers. Because there is no written constitution in the UK, the limitations on government power are largely self-imposed, relying on unenforceable conventions and a political culture based on the rule of law.

An additional feature of the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty is that each new Parliament is supreme. The traditional view is that no Parliament can limit the actions of a future Parliament. Much of the debate in this area is the issue of a Bill of Rights.

The process of judicial review is a practical application of the rule of law. It forms the basic of a growing body of administrative law which regulates the relationship between the courts, public administrative bodies. The judicial review does not enable the courts to question the merits of administrative action or the validity of an Act of Parliament.

Дата добавления: 2015-07-20