British Constitution Principle - Essay Example

There is no constitution in England. Instead, there is an unwritten one with Acts of Parliament, traditions, and numerous court judgments. Modern day states save for the UK, New Zealand, and Israel has adopted a film Constitution. There is a constitution in Britain although it exists in a unique sense. This constitution has different kinds of laws, practices, and traditions which have changed over the years. The UK has an uncodified constitution also referred to as an unwritten Constitution. It is a formal document articulating government's authority. This constitution is not reliable given that the constitutional law benefits from the same status as natural laws. Despite this, it has legal rules that have been adopted. The major principles are significant. However, the doctrines are not codified in one law though are still accepted by courts. The unavailability of a codified constitution in the UK has been explained in different ways. The main reason is that decision-makers have a lot of power and authority. In addition to the new constitution, decisions play a significant role in achieving better separation of power. This paper analyzes views on the British Constitution of Principles including separation of power, the rule of law and parliamentary sovereignty. Finally, the best principle in British Constitution is articulated.

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The concept of separation of powers remains a core pillar in constitutional context (Winetrobe, 1996). It has a superficial openness on the one hand and a deeper difficulty on the other. It is because it has not just a detailed section but a prescriptive part. Recognition of 'separation of powers' principles by pioneers of the American structure towards the end of the 18th century validated its significance in subsequent constitution-making. Also, separation of powers comes in three classes including legislative power (Parliament), executive power (Government) and judicial power. There are two chambers in the UK Parliament including The House of Commons and The House of Lords. The UK Parliament might allow laws on any issue, without limits in the law. The first chamber of the UK Assembly is the House of Commons. It has 650 members who are elected directly. They are called Members of Parliament. The simple standard system also referred to as First Past the Post selects members. The other chamber of the UK Parliament is the House of Lords. It is made up of Life Peers, Ninety-two Hereditary Peers, and twenty-six Lords Spiritual. According to Allen (2015), Life Peers are chosen for life by the Head of State. It is based on the advice of the Prime Minister. The UK administration is headed by the Prime Minister. The position of the Prime Minister is assigned by the Queen to a member of the House of Commons able to command the House. The Cabinet comprises the Prime Minister and senior Ministers. Moreover, it is the collective control of the UK Government. On the other hand, ministers must be members of either House of Parliament. Their appointment and termination are done by the Head of State with advice from the Prime Minister. It is further noted that the judiciary is independent and fair. Ministers have to uphold the principle of judicial independence. England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have distinct courts classifications. The UK Supreme Court is the most superior court in the UK. It is the final court of appeal on all issues, save for criminal appeals in Scotland. The selection of senior judges is made by the Head of State with the help of the administrative. Acts of Parliament articulate the procedures for selecting candidates for judicial office. Appointment, on the other hand, is done on merit.

An integral component of the UK constitution is the parliamentary sovereignty. Some researchers consider it as the most significant part. The principle of parliamentary sovereignty explains the lack of codified constitution in the UK. The theory was initially described by academics in the 19th century. Despite this, Garlicki (2011) noted that in the post-war history of the United Kingdom, particularly the modern history, this doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty had been strained by some of the constitutional improvements the Labor governments implemented during the 1970s. The principle of parliamentary sovereignty of the UK Parliament is always portrayed as an independent legal procedure that has no match in comparative constitutional law. According to Eleftheriadis (2009), by according absolute power to the Westminster parliament, the sovereignty of Parliament remains the most differentiating component of the UK constitution. The notion of parliament sovereignty emerged in response to the struggle between the king and the parliament. The 1689 bill acknowledged the parliaments supremacy over the crown. The concept was referred to as the constitutional monarch.' The monarch is just a symbolic power. Based on sovereignty, two major authorities exist including legal and political sovereignty. Parliament can constitute in any issue with no barriers. It implies that the courts cannot declare it as invalid. However, in the past, the principal legislative consultant was the Queen, and she was able to pass any rules. It was acknowledged as the Queen in Parliament and the concept that parliament does not mismanage its powers given the contracts. However, there is no hard rule stating in the constructive. On the other hand, it is likely that the legislature could disregard this fact and use its powers in a manner that is not official. It may be unlikely. However, the assumption is that parliament would not do so given the presence of the contracts.

A fundamental principle of the unwritten constitution in the UK is the rule of law. The conception of the rule of law holds that the law should equally apply to all. In so doing, a relationship is created between government and the public. Also, the rule of law spreads to all conducts and behaviors. Furthermore, it covers both private and public officials. The most important sub values of the rule of law include the fact that no one above the law, everyone is equal before the law, the law reigns supreme and judicial independence. No one being above the law shows that everyone is bound by the rule. The law applies to ministers, public officials and other members of society. The process is supposed to affirm that government officials employ their influence in a reasonable manner and do not surpass the intended limits. On the other hand, equality before the law implies treating everyone alike. For this reason, all people need to have the same legal rights in addition to equal access to the legal organization. Supremacy of the law implies that there should be punishments for any violations. The law cannot just apply to some situations and not others. Finally, judicial independence seeks to set out and protect political rights, civil liberties and most importantly, the rule of law. Society must benefit from the courts and should be efficient in all their conducts. When it comes to utility, courts need to justly punish crimes, safeguard civil liberties resolve disputes in a fair manner. Judicial independence signifies the notion that a judge decides cases in a way this true and neutral based on the evidence and the law. Judges are compelled to maintain judicial independence by the law, their legal practice, prospects, and legal culture. On the other hand, the legal principles and judicial education support decisions that are intelligent, open, fair and principled and going above partisanship. Furthermore, laws and ethical codes safeguard judicial independence. Judges are required to adhere to high ethics and to bar themselves from sitting on cases. Courage is an essential attributed required of judges. Courageous judges resist fears to judicial independence. Moreover, they actively advocate and support judicial independence. According to Abrahamson (2003), the law must be allowed to manage judicial independence under the protection of the law. It must be done without favor and fear.

This essay initially talked about the British constitution principle including separation of power, parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law. These policies play a significant role in the British constitution. However, parliamentary sovereignty remains the most vital component for the British Constitution. The principle of UKs parliament sovereignty is important to the British constitution. It can be defined in three ways: Parliament can make any law they want; no legislature can create a law which cannot be changed by a future parliament; a law passed by parliament can only be reversed by parliament. It confers unlimited authority to the Westminster Parliament. In the same vein, it submitted that the governments have no power to consider statutes as invalid. There are no necessary constitutional laws that cannot be changed by Parliament other than the doctrine of parliament sovereignty itself. For this reason, the only time when courts are eager to interrogate the legitimacy of laws is when there is a proposal as to them not being passed in the right way. It means passing through both Houses and receiving the Royal Assent. The law is referred to as the 'Enrolled Bill' rule. The Parliamentary role can be analyzed by a court of justice. However, it cannot change or reverse the law. It must appear that bill has gone through both houses and received the Royal Assent. On the other hand, the court of justice cannot inquire into the ways it used to get into Parliament, what was initially done or what passed in Parliament during the different phases of its growth through both Houses of Parliament.

In conclusion, this paper analyzed the British Constitution Principle. It became apparent that there are three components of the British constitution including separation of powers, parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law. Separation of authority refers to a system of checks and balances required by the government. There are three classes of separation of power including executive authority (Government), legislative power (Parliament) and the judicial system. The prime minister is the head of the executive. There are also two types of Parliament: House of Commons and House of Lords. They are tasked with the responsibility of making laws and monitoring the government. The UK has three kinds of judicial systems. One is for England and Wales, the other for Scotland and the last one for Northern Ireland. Parliamentary sovereignty remains an integral component of British Constitution. It implies Parliament has the supreme legal authority in the UK. Parliament can pass and reject all the laws. The rule of law is one of the major components of the UK constitution. It implies that law should apply equally to all. Moreover, the paper established that Parliamentary is the most significant part of UK law. It is because has the supreme power of the constitution. Both houses of parliament approve the rules. The court cannot overrule the legislation given that this house has all the power. Moreover, the Parliament can pass all laws in the UK and future Parliament is unable to change the previous law approved by the old Parliament. The two houses also have the supreme power to control the government. The major difference between the two houses is that the House of Commons is elected by the public while the House of Lords is not.

References

Eleftheriadis P 2009, Parliamentary Sovereignty and the Constitution Canadian Journal of

. Law and Jurisprudence, 2009; Oxford Legal Studies Research Paper No. 45/2009. Available at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1486146 Accessed on 4th March 2017

Garlicki M 2011, The Doctrine of Parliamentary Sovereignty after the Lisbon Treaty

Available at:htt...