1. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

2. Constitution and Parliament
Magna Carta King not above the law
Petition of Right habeas corpus
Bill of Rights end of "divine right of kings"; Parliament supreme
Act of Union 1707 (with Scotland)
Act of Union 1800 (with effect from with Ireland)
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Constitution and Parliament

3. Constitution and Parliament
Representation of the People Acts 1832, 1867, 1884, 1918, 1928: gradual extension of the franchise until universal franchise in 1928.
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Constitution and Parliament

4. Constitution and Parliament
November 1910
PRO ref: HO 144/1106/200455
Source:
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Constitution and Parliament

5. Constitution and Parliament
Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 restricted powers of the House of Lords (now delaying power of one month for financial legislation and approx one year for other legislation)
European Community Act 1972
1986 Single European Act
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Constitution and Parliament

6. Constitution and Parliament
Devolution (Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, Northern Ireland Assembly, with devolved powers)
House of Lords Act First stage in a two-stage process of constitutional reform concerning the House of Lords: but will the second stage happen within this Parliament or the next?
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Constitution and Parliament

7. Constitution and Parliament
No one single document "the Constitution"
Constitution made up of
statute law
common law
conventions
laws and customs of Parliament
European law
authoritative texts (Dicey ...)
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Constitution and Parliament

8. Constitution and Parliament
Statute law:
Representation of the People Acts (until 1969, when the voting age was lowered to 18)
Bill of Rights 1689, Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949
Acts of Union, European law
etc
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Constitution and Parliament

9. Constitution and Parliament
Common law:
Law based on case law and customs -- unwritten, but having the "binding force of precedent"
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Constitution and Parliament

10. Constitution and Parliament
Conventions
Rules not based on law but agreed rules:
For example the Queen gives assent to Bills (she has never refused to do so, and indeed no monarch has done so since Queen Anne in 1707)
Another example: there is a convention (known as the 'Salisbury' convention) that the Government's manifesto commitments, in the form of Government Bills, are not opposed by the House of Lords.
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Constitution and Parliament

11. Constitution and Parliament
Law and custom of Parliament
e.g. speaker remains impartial
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Constitution and Parliament

12. Constitution and Parliament
European law
Overrides British statute law
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Constitution and Parliament

13. Constitution and Parliament
Authoritative texts
Texts describing correct Parliamentary procedure which are accepted as "rules" which all parties recognise
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Constitution and Parliament

14. Constitution and Parliament
Parliament is sovereign. It can make and unmake laws.
Statute law overrides common law.
European law overrides British law -- though some people suggest that if there were too great a clash Parliament, which voted to allow Britain into the EU, could vote to pull it out.
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Constitution and Parliament

15. Constitution and Parliament
The "Rule of Law" -- nobody is above the law, and nobody can be punished for doing something which is not against the law.
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Constitution and Parliament

16. Constitution and Parliament
Is Britain's "unwritten Constitution" a "Good Thing" or a "Bad Thing"?
Various views:
A Good Thing
Flexible and adaptable
Checks and balances
A Bad Thing
Civil liberties not formally protected (see for ex current debate on introducing biometric ID cards)
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Constitution and Parliament

17. Constitution and Parliament
Separation of powers
Montesquieu: Britain in the 18th century a model of government. Powers separated between the
Executive
Legislative
Judiciary
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Constitution and Parliament

18. Constitution and Parliament
However no such separation of powers really exists
Ministers (the Executive)
... practically all sit in Parliament (the Legislative)
... and the lord Chancellor (Justice minister) sits (sat) in the House of Lords and is (was) also leader of the Judiciary
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Constitution and Parliament

19. Constitution and Parliament
Her Majesty's Government
Her Majesty's Opposition
two-party system (the result of the "first-past-the-post" or "simple majority" electoral system)
reflected in a Chamber with two opposing sides
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Constitution and Parliament

20. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

21. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

22. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

23. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

24. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

25. Constitution and Parliament
The 2001 election
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Constitution and Parliament

26. Constitution and Parliament
The 2005 election
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Constitution and Parliament

27. Constitution and Parliament
Elections:
Simple majority
(scrutin uninominal à un seul tour)
"First past the post"
Consequences:
Encourages two-party system
Usually enables stable government
Squeezes out smaller parties
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Constitution and Parliament

28. Constitution and Parliament
Elections:
Simple majority
(scrutin uninominal à un seul tour)
"First past the post"
Possible for a party to win a
general election with fewer votes than
the runner-up (e.g. 1951).
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Constitution and Parliament

29. Constitution and Parliament
1951 General election results
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Constitution and Parliament

30. Constitution and Parliament
compare with
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Constitution and Parliament

31. Constitution and Parliament
and see what happened in 1974 (Feb) ...
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Constitution and Parliament

32. Constitution and Parliament
and 1974 (Oct) ...
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Constitution and Parliament

33. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

34. Constitution and Parliament
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Constitution and Parliament

35. Constitution and Parliament
pressure for electoral reform (esp. PR)
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Constitution and Parliament

36. Constitution and Parliament
and 1974 (Oct) ...
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Constitution and Parliament