Rule of law

RULE OF LAW IS VERY IMPORTANT FEATURES OF BRITISH CONSTITUTION BECAUSE IT SAYS THAT
EVERYBODY IS EQUAL BEFORE LAW ,NO ONE IS ABOVE LAW AND EQUAL PROTECTION OF LAW.
IT BASICALLY MEANS THAT PEOPLE ARE UNDER THE RULE OF LAW AND RULE OF LAW IS SUPREME .
EVEN THE POWERS OF GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE UNDER THE RULE OF LAW AS WRITTEN IN
CONSTITUTION.
RULE OF HAS BEEN CRITICIZED BECAUSE OF A NOTION SAYING KING IS ABOVE LAW .
THERE IS UNDERSTANDING OF THAT KING CAN DO NO WRONG.
THE TERM RULE OF LAW IS DERIVED FROM THE FRENCH PHRASE (LA PRINCIPE DE LEGALITE ) WHICH
MEANS THE PRINCIPAL OF LEGALITY . IT REFERS TO A GOVERNMENT BASED ON PRINCIPLES OF LAW
AND NOT OF MEN . IN OTHERS WORD HE CONCEPT OF LA PRINCIPE DE LEGALITE IS OPPOSED TO
ARBITRARY POWERS.
IN UK SIR EDWARD COKE IS SAID TO BE THE ORIGINATOR OF THIS CONCEPT WHEN HE SAID THAT THE
KING MUST BE UNDER THE GOD AND LAW AND THUS VINDICATED THE SUPREMACY OF LAW OVER
THE PRETENSIONS OF THE EXECUTIVES .
THE RULE OF LAW PROVIDES THAT DECISION SHOULD BE MADE BY THE APPLICATION OF KNOWN
PRINCIPLES OR LAW WITHOUT INTERVENTION.
 Aristotle and plato
 During the Greek and roman period discussion the role of law in society took place and philosophers
like plato did have significant ideas of the role of law.
 Though many attribute plato with the idea of a government being subservient to law , it was Aristotle in
his work(the politics) who contrasted the idea of role of law and reasons with role of man and passion.
 Plato wrote: where law is subject to some other authority and has none of its own the collapse of state in
my view is not so far off ;but if law is the master of the government and government is its slave then the
situation is full of promise and men enjoy all the blessings that the gods shower on state .
 Aristotle wrote: law should govern and those in power should be servants of law.
 Rule of law basically means that every individual has to be abide by law rather of their status.
 State and king also has be abide by the law of the land .
 Charles and Albert venn dicey
 Charles was accused of treason against England by using his power to
pursue his personal interest rather than the good of the country .
 Because of these reason he was executed on 30 January 1649.
 Albert venn dicey says that even enjoyment of rights and liberties of law is
based on rule of law.
 His idea of rule of law contemplated the absence of wide powers in the
hands of governmental officials. According to him where ever there is
discretion there is room for arbitrariness.
 British parliament (uk legislature)
 parliament of united kingdom is bicameral legislature with two house .
 Upper house is called house of lords based on hereditary principals and lower house is called as house of
commons .
 House of lords is more permanent house . It never gets dissolved .
  Their work is similar: making laws (legislation), checking the work of the government (scrutiny), and
debating current issues.
  The House of Commons is also responsible for granting money to the government through approving
Bills that raise taxes. Generally, the decisions made in one House have to be approved by the other.
 In this way the two-chamber system acts as a check and balance for both Houses.
 The commons and lords
The commons
 The Commons is publicly elected. The party with the largest number of members in the
Commons forms the government.
 Members of the Commons (MPs) debate the big political issues of the day and proposals
for new laws. It is one of the key places where government ministers, like the Prime
Minister and the Chancellor, and the principal figures of the main political parties, work.
 The Commons alone is responsible for making decisions on financial Bills, such as
proposed new taxes. The Lords can consider these Bills but cannot block or amend them.
The Lords
 The House of Lords is the second chamber of the UK Parliament. It is independent
from, and complements the work of, the elected House of Commons. The Lords shares
the task of making and shaping laws and checking and challenging the work of the
government.
 Sovereignty of Uk parliament
 Sovereignty of British parliament is considered is considered to be a very important feature of the British
political system . The king in parliament is the legal sovereign.
 Writers like dicey were of the view it implied the king in parliament can make or unmade law on any
subject.
 Sovereignty of Parliament means that there is no authority in the country, which can question the legality
of the laws, passed by the Parliament. There is no, system of judicial review. 
 Sovereignty of British Parliament is the main feature of British Parliamentary System. It means British
Parliament has authority to make any law(i.e. there is no subject where it not allowed to legislate) and
these laws cannot be challenged in any court of law.
 Its a common saying that British Parliament can do anything except declaring a man a woman and vice
versa 
 Rules made by the parliament cannot be over ruled by some other institution.
 The parliaments importance is also due to the fact that the head of the government :prime minister is a
member of legislature and so are almost all members of the cabinet. The parliament holds the purse strings
which basically means money required for any activity most likely need the sanction of the parliament.
 The head of government is the first among equals and it within the parliament government may be
questioned.
 The parliament as direct representative of the people may voice the concerns of the people. They may
highlight issues and through their debates politically educate as well help in formulation of public opinion .
 When one discusses the sovereignty of the parliament we are discussing the powers of the house of
commons
 Parliament has to be abide by( public opinion) and morale values
 British parliament cannot violate( international laws)
 (Certain other laws )such as judge made laws and the delegated legislation cannot be overlooked by
parliament.
 Parliament cannot pass law against the interest of trade unions , chambers of commerce etc. (pressure
groups)
 speaker
 The Speaker of the House of Commons is the chief officer and highest authority of
the House of Commons, the lower house and primary chamber of the Parliament of
the United Kingdom. The current speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, was elected Speaker
on 4 November 2019, following the retirement of John Bercow.
 The speaker presides over the House's debates, determining which members may
speak and which amendments are selected for consideration. The speaker is also
responsible for maintaining order during debate, and may punish members who break
the rules of the House.
 The speaker does not take part in debate or vote (except to break ties; and even then,
the convention is that the speaker casts the tie-breaking vote according to 
Speaker Denison's rule which results either in further debate or a vote for the status
quo)