Past Qs

 Do you agree that the sovereignty of the parliament is the dominant characteristic of British
Political System? Explain in detail the role of British Parliament.

I. Introduction
o The Parliament of England is the mother of all parliaments.
o Bi-Cameral Legislature.
 House of Lords
 House of Commons
o UK is a unitary state which means all powers are vested in the central government.
II. Opinion of the Experts
o From a legal point of view, the sovereignty of parliament is the dominant characteristic
of English political institutions.
o Parliament has the power to make any law except the law that bounds its successors.
A.V. Dicey
o The power and jurisdiction of the Parliament is so “transcendent and absolute” that it
cannot be confined within any bounds. Sir Edward Coke
o It can do everything which is not naturally possible. Sir Blackstone
o A law may be unjust and contrary to sound principles of reason but when Parliament
errs, its errors can only be corrected by itself. Sir Thomas May
III. Core Theory
o Parliamentary sovereignty holds that the legislative body has absolute sovereignty, and
is supreme over all other government institutions, including executive or judicial bodies.
o Since Parliament is representative of people’s wishes and people’s wishes must reign
supreme in democracy.
o Montesquieu: “General Character”
o Rousseau: “General Will”
IV. Reasons
o 1. Uncodified Constitutions: UK does not have a codified constitution; it is based on
conventions, statues and precedents. Hence, there are no constitutional limitations on
the powers of Parliament.
o 2. Absence of Separation of Powers: Pure parliamentary form of government means
there is a fusion of executive and legislature.
o 3. Absence of Judicial Review: Judiciary does not exercise the power of Judicial Review
in UK.
 1. (case law) Pickin v. British Railway Board: Expressed that Judiciary has an
unequivocal belief that “the courts in the country have no power to declare
enacted law to be invalid.”
V. Evolution of Parliamentary Power
o 1. Magna Carta (1215): It established the principle that
 everyone is subject to the law, even the king, and
 guarantees the rights of individuals,
 the right to justice and
  the right to a fair trial. (1)
o 2. The Petition of Rights (1628): Petition sent by the English Parliament to King Charles I
complaining of a series of breaches of law.
 The petition sought recognition of four principles:
 No taxation without the consent of the Parliament.
 No imprisonment without cause.
 No quartering of soldiers on subjects, and
 no martial law in peacetime.
o 3. English Civil War (1642-1651) - The war began as a result of a conflict over the power
of the monarchy and the rights of the Parliament. (2)
 King Charles was executed and briefly republic was formed under Oliver
Cromwell.
 Though Charles II (1630-1685) was invited to take the throne in 1660,
Parliament’s victory established the precedent that the monarch could not rule
without the consent of the Parliament.
o 4. The Glorious Revolution (1688-89) - Refers to the events of 1688-89 that saw King
James II of England deposed and succeeded by one of his daughters and her husband.
 James’ overt Roman Catholicism, his suspension of the legal rights of the
dissenters, and the birth of a Catholic heir to the throne raised discontent
among many, particularly non-Catholics.
 Opposition leaders invited William of Orange, a Protestant who was married to
James’ daughter Mary (also Protestant), to, in effect, invade England.
 James’ support dwindled, and he fled to France.
 William and Mary were then crowned joint rulers.
o 5. The Bill of Rights (1689)
 1. Set out limits on the powers of the monarch.
 2. It also set out rights of Parliament, including:
 A) The requirement of regular Parliaments and free elections.
 B) Freedom of Speech in Parliament
 3. It also set out rights of individuals, including:
 A) The prohibition of cruel and unusual punishments.
 B) Re-established the rights of Protestants to have arms for their
defense within law.
 4. Constitutional Requirement of Crown to seek consent of Parliament.
o 6. The Act of Settlement (1701)
 There was concern when Queen Mary died without leaving any children, which
confirmed the condition under Bill of Rights that only Protestant and no Catholic
person could sit on the throne.
 This Act legislated that at Mary’s death the crown would pass to a protestant
relation – this was Sophia, the electress of Hanover in Germany.
 Her son George I succeeded to the throne in 1714.
 His descendants, including current Queen have ruled Britain ever since.
o 7. Septennial Act (1716)
 It increased the maximum length of Parliament from 3-7 years (1716-1911)
 o 8. Acts of Indemnity (1727-28)
 To free the dissenters from penalties.
 Similar Acts of Indemnity were passed after WWI/WWII.
o 9. Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949
 Asserted the supremacy of the House of Commons by limiting the legislation-
blocking powers of the House of Lords (the Suspensory veto of HoL)
 Gave HoC power to approve Acts without approval of the HoL.
 Parliament Act of 1949 – Further limited the power of the HoL by reducing the
time that they could delay bills, from 2 years to 1 year.
VI. Developments affecting Parliamentary Sovereignty
o Direct Limitations
 1. Devolution of power to assemblies of constituent units
 Scottish Parliament.
 Welsh Assembly.
 2. Human Rights Act (1998)
 It confirmed UK’s commitment to the European Convention on Human
Rights.
 The Act makes it unlawful for any public body to act in a way which is
incompatible with the Convention.
 3. Creation of UK Supreme Court
 Created in 2009 ending the HoL function as the UK’s final court of
appeal.
o Practical Limitations
 1. Political Sovereignty
 Parliament cannot act against the wishes of the people.
 “it really does rest with you. You determine the membership and
thereby the policy of the House of Commons.” (Labour Party Pamphlet,
1945)
 2. Rule of Law
 3. Delegated legislation
 4. Role of Press
 5. International Pressure/ Treatises