Public Law I - Sources of Power PDF

PUBLIC LAW I – SOURCES OF POWER The nature and characteristics of the UK Constitution Dr Tarik Olcay University of Dundee Week 1  LEARNING OBJECTIVES Describe the main characteristics of the UK Constitution Explain the nature of th...

PUBLIC LAW I – SOURCES OF POWER The nature and characteristics of the UK Constitution Dr Tarik Olcay University of Dundee Week 1  LEARNING OBJECTIVES Describe the main characteristics of the UK Constitution Explain the nature of the UK Constitution  THE NATURE AND CHARACTERI STICS OF THE UK CONSTITUTION An uncodified constitution An accountable government Legal & political constitutionalism A multi-layered nature  AN UNCODIFIED CONSTITUTION codify: to arrange (laws or rules) into a systematic code No single authoritative source of constitutional law The UK has a sovereign parliament Parliament can make or unmake any law A flexible constitution – in the sense that no constitutional rule makes it more difficult to change the constitution compared to ordinary laws Constitutional conventions – rooted in tradition and have been adhered to for centuries Advantage: the constitution does not become out-of-date Disadvantage: the constitution can be amended too easily even with a narrow majority & protection of rights at the behest of the government  ACCOUNTABILITY Parliamentary sovereignty – Parliament can pass any law The Government has support in Parliament and drives law-making agenda The critical role of the executive government The government holds substantial power – important to keep in check Accountability involves requiring the Gov’t to explain and justify what it is doing and why, and making sure the wrongs committed by the Gov’t are corrected Primarily through which mechanism – legal or political?  LEGAL AND POLITICAL CONSTITUTIONALISM Traditionally – a political constitution relationships between state institutions based on political understandings, not legal rules protection of the constitution is through political process, not legal processes (courts) Recently, move to a legal constitution (e.g. Human Rights Act 1998, expansion of judicial review) relationships between state institutions based on legal rules and put faith in the judicial, not the political, system ensuring protection of minorities requires legal process  The question today is how to strike the balance between legal and political constitutionalism  MULTI-LAYERED NATURE Devolution UK traditionally a unitary and central state Late 1990s – the creation of separate governments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland European Union (EU) The EU law was superior to domestic law until the UK left the EU Brexit Scotland & NI voted Remain