Role of Conventions in British Constitution - Coursework Example

Role of conventions in British constitution Introduction The constitution of the United Kingdom is rather complex and very different from most othergovernments, having limitations and rules that are not formally addressed in court, rather observed primarily by the Sovereign. Unlike most other countries, the United Kingdom does not have a defined set of written rules for its constitution and is therefore known as an unwritten constitution, mainly defined by many conventions derived from ancient times. Many works written by writers from an earlier period, nineteenth or twentieth century are often cited in executive law and can be, to an extent even considered as a form of the U.K constitution and are formally known as works of authority. Since the conventions are the basis for the legal structure of the U.K, they have been inherently obeyed to maintain the stability of the conventional structure, which does not have many complications involved in it despite the lack of a rigid written law. In this paper, the role of conventions in the British constitution will be discussed, giving particular importance to the necessity of depending on these conventions and the reasons for continual adherence to these conventions in an effort to provide an analysis describing the its role in forming the structure of its constitution. Framework of the British constitution Over the years in the past, many writers have attempted to summarize the codes and rules that govern the nation and have written a number of books on the same. Some of these major works, which addressed the codes in detail, providing a written form of the importantly followed regulations were given much authority and eventually rose to the status of constitutional documents. Most of these works were written perhaps in the nineteenth century, which was an era of great writers that contributed to the documentation of rules. The writings that greatly contributed to the cause included Walter Bagehot’s The English Constitution (1867) and Thomas Erskine May’s A Practical Treatise On The Law, Privileges, Proceedings And Usage Of Parliament (1844). (icons.org.uk.). The last one became extremely popular, is being used till date in addressing many procedural disputes and is constantly updated. Other written documents include Magna Carta, The Habeas Corpus and Bill Of Rights. Apart from these documents, there are no rigid rules that form the framework of the constitution. The state usually works by making and enforcing laws which have been the result of centuries old conventions although these conventions have never really been formally written. Adherence to conventions Conventions form the backbone of the British constitution, leaving options of flexibility available. It may be believed that deviation from certain conventions could cause complications or issues that might not be entirely as successful as the convention that preceded it, causing damage to the governmental machinery. Since the British society is conservative in its nature, they tend to adhere to the conventions without rising suggestions of ringing about changes in the way the constitution works. For instance, by convention, the government must resign if it does not hold the confidence of the House of Commons. Deviation from this practice would complicate the entire structure of the government. Some objectives of the constitution may be completely similar to certain conventions. Conventions have played a major role in the development of a primary constitutional law which would deal with all aspects brought in with the nuclear age. Usually, conventions can be changed since they do not have legal status, but reformation of any convention has one major problem, which addresses the efficiency of the new form that will be introduced. There is no guarantee that the new reform would be as efficient as the one followed before. These aspects give conventions a very strong place in the constitution of the United Kingdom. Resistance to change Although the way that the constitutional authority deals with the application of conventions has changed to a considerable extent with a number of controversies as a part of it, it is still believed that changes made in the way the government works or any infringement on the spirit to continue the present law would inevitably be resisted by people, especially since there is no particular rule or regulation to violate apart from the basic structure of the government. Bringing changes would only mean altering the basic machinery of the government, which would be a risk too big to take. A 19th century American judge, Justice Bradley, delivered his opinion by saying, “England has no written constitution, it is true; but it has an unwritten one, resting in the acknowledged, and frequently declared, privileges of Parliament and the people, to violate which in any material respect would produce a revolution in an hour.” (icons.org.uk.). Examples of conventions and legal status There are several conventions that play a major role in the British constitution, which when altered may cause several problems. Some of the conventions are mentioned here to make evident the benefits of having it the way it is. It is accepted that a departmental minister will resign if he/she loses the confidence of the House of Commons. (historylearningsite.co.uk). Another convention agrees with that the queen will accept the legislation passed by the government. Recently, it has been agreed that the queen has the right to give consent to the legislation passed by the parliament. However, earlier it was of the form that the monarchy had no control over the legislature. This convention holds great significance as it would be impractical to give a non elected person the authority of rejecting a bill passed by a democratically elected government. This convention helps in maintaining the stability of the government. Another convention that protects the members of the House of Commons is that if a member of the government makes a mistake, the entire parliament will defend the member by providing support to the cause and will stand against the criticism posted by the media. Sometimes, conventions are given legal status. For example, after the English Civil War when the Parliament had disputes with the king over issues related to finance, it was decide upon that money bills/acts would be governed by the House of Commons. This decision was made legal in 1911 with the Parliament Act. According to the statement, parliamentary finance bills/acts must originate from the House of Commons. Conclusion A convention is a widely accepted method of going about things. Despite not being written down in law, they are old, established practices and are certainly the way they have always been done. What needs to be noted is that, these practices have been followed over the years without being legally documented or set in stone. The very fact that these conventions have existed over the years in the governance, ensuring smooth functioning of the nation is an assurance to the people. This may be presented as an argument by those who support the continual adherence to conventions. It is in support of the unwritten, uncodified constitution. The question is that, if the ways of governmental working were set in stone and had been for years, could government evolve and develop and mould to society’s change if the way government works was rigidly stated in a written constitution. (historylearningsite.co.uk) Reference historylearningsite.co.uk. Conventions of a Constitution. 11 March 2010. http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/conventions_of_a_constitution.htm icons.org.uk. Magna Carta. 11 March 2010 http://www.icons.org.uk/theicons/collection/magna-carta/features/the-british- constitution-finished Read More