Study sheet: Understanding UK Constitutional Principles

📋 Course Outline

1. Branches of Power
2. Principles of the Constitution
3. Sources of the Constitution
4. Checks and Balances
5. Constitutional Reforms

📖 1. Branches of Power

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Legislative power : The legislative power is the function that makes laws through Parliament.
• Executive power : The executive power is the function that runs government decision-making and administration.
• Judiciary power : The judiciary power is the function that settles disputes through courts of justice.
• Parliament : Parliament is the institution combining the House of Commons and the House of Lords, acting with the Monarch for legislation.

📝 Essential Points

• In the UK, Parliament is made of the House of Commons plus the House of Lords together with the Monarch.
• The executive side includes Government, the Cabinet, and the Prime Minister.
• Courts provide judicial power, and there are Supreme Courts with 12 Justices (2009).

💡 Memory Hook

Legislature makes laws (Parliament), executive runs the country (Government/Cabinet/PM), judiciary settles disputes (courts).

📖 2. Principles of the Constitution

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Sovereignty of Parliament : Sovereignty of Parliament is the constitutional idea that Parliament is the supreme state power exercised through lawmaking.
• Rule of Law : The Rule of Law is the principle that everyone is subject to the law, with no punishment outside legal breach.
• Self-enforcement : Self-enforcement is the idea that government should be limited by law and should enforce those limits itself.

📝 Essential Points

• Parliament is described as supreme because it passes statute laws and does so via elections plus Royal Assent.
• Sovereignty is linked with equality before the law, including the Monarch, the Prime Minister, and MPs.
• Restrictions on power by laws are tied to the absence of punishment unless someone breaks the law.
• Government is expected to be limited and to enforce those limitations through self-enforcement.

💡 Memory Hook

Sovereignty = Parliament wins; Rule of Law = legal breach only; Self-enforcement = government polices its own limits.

📖 3. Sources of the Constitution

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Authoritative works : Authoritative works are non-legislative sources that help guide constitutional understanding.
• Statute Law : Statute law is constitutional authority created by Acts of Parliament.
• Common Law and Case Law : Common law and case law are constitutional authorities developed through judicial decisions.
• Conventions and Customs : Conventions and customs are constitutional practices whose force comes from long-standing political usage.

📝 Essential Points

• The UK constitutional sources are grouped as Statute Law, Common Law and Case Law, Conventions and Customs, and European Union Law.
• Named statutes include the Bill of Rights Act 1689, the Habeas Corpus Act 1679, and the Petition of Rights 1628.
• Named statutes include the Magna Carta 1215 and the Act of Settlement 1701.
• A set of statute examples listed includes the Parliament Act 1911 and the Reform Acts 1832/67/84.
• The slide lists the Act of Union 1707 as part of statute law sources.
• The EU-related sources are stated as European Union Law plus institutions linked to EU and human-rights judicial bodies.

💡 Memory Hook

Think of sources as four layers: statutes, judges (common/case law), practices (conventions/customs), and EU law.

📖 4. Checks and Balances

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Elective dictatorship : An elective dictatorship is the danger of the executive dominating politics even though it comes through elections.

📝 Essential Points

• Checks and balances in the UK are aimed at preventing an elective dictatorship by limiting executive domination.
• The listed checks include courts, the Opposition, the media, and party discipline plus general elections.
• The material also includes EU law and courts/institutions as additional checks, including the Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights.
• There are explicitly stated to be no checks on Parliament.

💡 Memory Hook

Checks limit executive power, not Parliament: courts/Opposition/media/elections (plus EU), but Parliament is unchecked.

📖 5. Constitutional Reforms

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Human Rights Act : The Human Rights Act is a constitutional reform statute connected to bringing human-rights protection into UK law.
• Devolution : Devolution is the reform process that sets up Parliaments in the UK’s states.
• Constitutional Reform Act : The Constitutional Reform Act is a reform aimed at restructuring parts of constitutional governance.
• Fixed-Term Parliament Act : The Fixed-Term Parliament Act is a reform statute that sets a fixed 5-year tenure for Parliament.

📝 Essential Points

• Reforms highlighted run from 1997 to 2020 and are linked to a 1997 Labour landslide and its manifesto.
• 1997-2020 reforms include the Human Rights Act 1998 and devolution measures starting in 1998.
• The devolution block includes Acts to set up Parliaments in each of the UK’s states in 1998, plus the House of Lords Act 1999.
• Other reforms listed include the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Freedom of Information Act 2000, and the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.
• The May 2010 Coalition Agreement is associated with the Fixed-Term Parliament Act 2011 and the Succession to the Throne Act 2013.

💡 Memory Hook

1998 human rights + devolution; 1999 Lords; 2005 constitutional reform; 2011 fixed terms; 2013 succession change.

📅 Key Dates

1. 1973Problem of the UK and the EU is raised with reference to 1973.
2. 1997Constitutional reforms (1997-2020) are linked to a 1997 Labour landslide election and manifesto.
3. 1998Human Rights Act and devolution acts to set up Parliaments in each UK state.
4. 1999House of Lords Act 1999.
5. 2000Freedom of Information Act 2000.
6. 2005Constitutional Reform Act 2005.
7. 2010Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, with a May 2010 Coalition Agreement stated.
8. mai 2010Coalition Agreement stated as occurring in May 2010.
9. 2011Fixed-Term Parliament Act 2011 (5-year tenure).
10. 2013Succession to the Throne Act 2013 (no more primogeniture).

⚠️ Common Pitfalls & Confusions

1. Mixing up Parliament with the executive: Parliament is the legislative supreme power, while the executive is Government/Cabinet/PM.
2. Assuming Parliament can be checked by other institutions: the material states there are no checks on Parliament.
3. Confusing Rule of Law with fairness alone: it is tied to equality before the law and punishment only for legal breach.
4. Treating sovereignty as absolute in all senses: sovereignty is described alongside restriction of power by laws and government self-enforcement.
5. Missing that the judiciary is linked to courts with a stated 2009 figure for Supreme Courts and 12 Justices.
6. Overlooking that devolution reforms start in 1998 and are linked to setting up Parliaments in UK states.

✅ Exam Checklist

1. Identify the three branches of power and what each branch does in the UK.
2. State what institutions compose Parliament for the legislative function.
3. Explain how executive power is structured (Government, Cabinet, Prime Minister).
4. Explain how the judiciary power is exercised through courts, including the stated 12 Justices (2009).
5. Define Sovereignty of Parliament and describe how it is exercised (elections plus Royal Assent).
6. State how sovereignty is connected to equality before the law, including the Monarch, PM, and MPs.
7. State the Rule of Law link to punishment only for breaking the law.
8. Describe self-enforcement as the expected way government should enforce legal limits on itself.
9. List the main groups of constitutional sources (statute law, common/case law, conventions/customs, EU law).
10. Name the statutes listed for statute law sources, including 1689, 1679, 1628, 1215, 1701, 1707, 1911, and the Reform Acts 1832/67/84.
11. Explain the aim of checks and balances and name the listed checks (courts, Opposition, media, party discipline, general elections).
12. State the explicit exception that there are no checks on Parliament.
13. Reproduce the 1997-2020 reform set at the level of key laws and dates: Human Rights Act 1998, devolution 1998, Lords Act 1999, FOI Act 2000, Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Governance Act 2010 (May 2010 coalition).
14. State the Coalition-linked reform dates: Fixed-Term Parliament Act 2011 and Succession to the Throne Act 2013.