Q 1: DISCUSS THE SALIENT FEATURES OF BRITISH CONSTITUTION (1999).

1. Introduction: “The English Constitution has made a great circuit of the globe and has become a common possession of civilized man”. (G. B Adams) A Constitution means certain principles on which the Government of the State is organized and which determines the relations between the people and the Government the Constitution of U.K is unique in nature and has provided inspiration for a number of other constitutions in the world. Following are the salient features of the UK constitution:I. Unwritten:

The British Constitution is unwritten in nature but it does not imply that all of its parts are unwritten. It means that it has not been reduced to writing in a single document. Some of the components are found in written from. Such as the Reform Act 1832 and the Parliament Act of 1911 etc.II. Evolution Growth:

British Constitution is a result of an evolutionary growth. Constitution efforts as well as needs of time shaped its spontaneous growth.III. Flexible Constitution:

British Constitution is a flexible Constitution and parliament can amend it like alterations in the statutory laws by a simple majority.IV. Unitary:

British have unitary constitution. All powers of the state are concentrated in the hands of a single government for the whole country. There are no units or states in British.V. Bicameralism:

The Parliament consists of two chambers House of Lords and House of Commons. The House of commons is a popular chamber whose member directly elected by the people while the House of Lords is basically a hereditary chamber and its member are nominated by the Queen.VI. Supremacy of the Parliament:

In U.K, Parliament has complete Supremacy or sovereignty. No law enacted by the parliament can be challenged in the court on the plea that is against the constitution.According To De Loeme: “British Parliament can do everything except to make a man into a woman”.VII. Constitution Monarchy:

From Constitution point of view, the crown is the repository of the entire Government of authority in British.VIII. Contrast in Theory and Practice:

There is sharp contrast between theory and practice in U.K. As ogg points out that “theoretically, British Government is absolute monarchy, its government from signifies constitution monarchy while in practice, the Government structure is closer to republican from.IX. Collective Responsibility:

Ministers must stand together and they cannot oppose the government policy every minister is also individually responsible to the House of Commons and the crown.X. Limited Separation of Power:

In British, there is limited Separation of power. There is concentration of political

powers in the parliament while the cabinet which exercises executive power is just a committee of the parliament. Nevertheless many safeguards have been provided especially under Act of Settlement of 1701 to secure the independence of judiciary from under influence on the part of other two branches on the Government.XI. Independence of Judiciary:

Necessary safeguards have been provided against all sorts of interference in judicial process. Judges are paid liberal salaries and ensured security of service.XII. Rule of Law:

U.K Constitution provides rule of law. The principle of rule of law may be defined as that none of the person in above or below the law. All the persons are equal in the eyes of law. F any person violates the law, he should face the trial of the case in the Government and no person is given imprisonment until his offence is proved in the court.XIII. Fundamental Rights:

Fundamental rights of the citizens have not been incorporated in the form of a list in the English Constitution. Constitution law is not the creator but a product of fundamental rights, which have been recognized from time to time by the Courts.XIV. Conventions.

Conventions play a vital role in the British political system. A government is formed and removed on the basis of convention. As Prof. Smith says that the conventions are main living source behind the Constitution.XV. Two Party System:

Two party system is flourished in British right from the beginning of the parliamentary period. Before the emergence of the present labor party in the second decay of the present century, the fight was between the conservatives and the Liberal party, but now the liberal party has lost its political significance.XVI: Universal Adult Suffrage:

Every individual of the age of 18 has the right to vote.XVII. Mixed Constitution: The British Constitution is a mixture of the monarchical, aristocratic and democratic principal.XVIII. Conservativeness:

The British Constitution is a symbol of Conservativeness. The trend of the people of U.K is absolutely n favor of old institutions and this concept is existence of conservatism.XIX. Establishment of Local Government Institutions:

The existence of local Government in U.K. Constitution is another comprehensive feature of the Constitution. Local Government institutions are symbols of the civil liberties and freedom of the people.XX. Unreality:

Another characteristic of the English Constitution is its unreality. It has righty been pointed out that nothing in it is what seems or seems what it.3. Conclusion:

To conclude, I can say, that U.K. Constitution in neither absolutely unwritten nor absolutely written. It is a combination of both and has made a circuit for the globe and has become the common possession of civilized man.

SOURCES

Introduction.

“The British constitution is the child of wisdom and chance.”There can be no state without a constitution. The constitution consists of fundamental rules which determine and distribute functions and powers among the various organs of the government as well as determine the relations of governing authorities with the people. Most of the modern constitutions are written, the British constitution is the only constitution which is unwritten.

Lord Bryce wrote:

“British constitution works by understanding which no writer can formulate. “

French writer De Tocqueville once remarked:

“England has no constitution,” Because he did not found it in a written form. But the British constitution is the chief model for all the countries. It has shown a unique ability to adopt without violence. 

Sources:

The sources of the British constitution can be divided into two parts:

The laws of the constitution

The conventions of the constitution

A) The laws of the constitution:

The laws of the constitution are based on the written documents. These include Historic documents, acts of the parliament, judicial decisions and common laws.

1. The Historic constitutional documents

The historic constitutional documents form a very important source of the British constitution. The importance of these documents can be judged from the fact that the transition process from absolute monarchy to constitutional government in Britain was triggered by these elements e.g.: 

Magna carta (1215)

The petition of rights (1628)

The bill of rights (1689) etc.

2. The acts of the parliament:

The laws made by the parliament from time to time have also contributed and furthered the transition to constitutional government in Britain e.g. 

The act of Habeas corpus (1679) The act of settlement ( 1701) Reform acts of ( 1832,1867,1884,1918,1928) Acts of parliament ( 1911, 1949) Indian independence act of 1947 etc.

3. Judicial decisions:

These are also important sources of the British constitution. Judicial decisions explain and interpret the rules and statutes passed by the parliament. Here it is to be noted that these rules cannot be challenged by any court in Britain.

4. Common law:

Common laws are also a very important source of British constitution. Especially these relating to the liberty of the subjects i.e. many basic rights of the people e.g. jury trial, freedom of speech and assembly are based on common law as practiced by various courts in the country.

B) The conventions of the constitution:

The conventions are not recognized or enforced by any court. These are highly respected by the British electorate and leadership. The conventions of the British constitution are actually of unwritten character. They form an important part of the constitution. They are important because they have enabled the British political system to adopt itself to the changing needs of the time. Some of these conventions are:

1. The British monarch cannot veto the bills passed by the parliament.

2. The sovereign invites the leader of the majority party in the House of Commons to form the cabinet.

3. The Prime Minister and Finance Minister both are taken from the House of commons

4. The money bills originate in the House of Commons.

5. The cabinet remains in power as long as it enjoys the confidence of the majority party in the House of Commons, otherwise it has to resign.

6. All the civil servants are tried in the same court like any other citizen ( Rule of Law)

Conclusion:

Professor Munro writes:

“The British constitution is not to be found in a definite and precise document. It is a complex amalgam of institutions. It is a complex compendium of charters, statutes, decisions, precedents, usages and traditions. Some of them are living only in the understanding of the people.”

Thus the study of the sources of the British constitution reveals the fact that if on one hand it consists of laws which are written, it also has an unwritten part in the shape of conventions. Two factors that have definitely contributed to the ability of the British constitution to adopt itself to the changing needs of the time are;

its evolutionary nature.

The conventions of the constitution.

Common Law:Common law may be defined as those rules which are product of slow process of long

historical growth being based upon customs and traditions. These principles are not set down in any statute or ordinance. The Courts recognize these principles. The prerogatives of the crown, the right of trial by jury the right of freedom of speech rest almost entirely on common law. Historically important court judgments include those in the Case of Proclamations, the Ship money case and Entick v. Carrington, all of which imposed limits on the power of the executive. A constitutional precedent applicable to British colonies is Campbell v.Hall, which effectively extended those same constitutional limitations to any territory which has been granted a representative assembly. Attorney General vs. Jonathan Cape Ltd. is an example though of where the convention has failed to apply in modern government. M v Home Office [1993] this established the law that the Home Secretary cannot ignore rule of law.

Convention:According to Prof. Dicey Convention are those customs or understanding as to the mode in which various members of sovereign legislative body should exercise their discretionary authority. The substantial portion of U .H K. Constitution is based on convention. These are not codified in any book of law. The Courts do not enforce conventions but however, these rules are recognized by the constitution. Rules of the constitutional behavior which is considered to

be binding by and upon those who operate the constitution but which are neither enforced by the Law Courts nor by the presiding officers in the House of Parliament. Major conventions in UK- 1 – The Crown must give Royal Assent to the bills.2 – Prime Minister will be form House of Commons. The prime minister must be the leader of the political party winning a general election.3 – The prime minister must be a member of House of Commons.4 – Ministers must be appointed in advice of the PM.5 – Every minister must be accountable for their own conduct and also fir the failure and success if their department. (Individual ministerial responsibility)6 – Ministers are collectively responsible for the decisions of the government. (Collective ministerial responsibility)7 – Decisions of the Judiciary must not be criticized by MP’s and Ministers in public. 8 – Judges must not be involved in political activities.9 – Parliament must be summoned to meet at least once a year.Royal Prerogative:The monarchy has a significant constitutional presence in these and other areas, but very limited power, because the prerogative is nowadays in the hands of the prime minister and otherministers or other government officials. Certain powers pre-dating the establishment of the present parliamentary system are still formally retained by the Queen. In practice almost all ofthese powers are exercised only on the decision of Ministers of the Crown (the Cabinet). These powers, known as the royal prerogative, include the following:

The appointment and dismissal of government ministers The summoning, opening, prorogation, and dissolution of Parliament The assenting to legislation The power to declare war, and to deploy the armed forces The power to conduct relations with foreign states, including the recognition of states or

governments, and the making of treaties The issuing of passports To sum up, we can state that much of the UK constitution is now written down, in a

whole swathe of statute law. However, a significant element is unwritten and indeed not law, being the Conventions of the constitution, which oil the wheels and plug the gaps. Vitally important matters like the existence of the Prime Minister and the real powers of the Queen are governed by convention.