Sources of the UK Constitution
Political Studies: Edexcel A Level, topic 8.1.3
Sources of the UK Constitution
There are 5 main sources of the constitution. These are statute law, common law, conventions, authoritative works, and treaties (including EU Law).
Statute law
- Statute law is all legislation created by parliament.
- Not all laws are considered constitutional – only those that deal with the nature of politics and government or the rights of citizens.
- Statute law is the most important source of the constitution due to the principle of parliamentary sovereignty. All other sources can be overridden by statute law.
Examples of statute law
- For example, the 2005 Constitutional Reform Act created a separate Supreme Court.
- The 1918 Representation of the People Act, which allowed all men and some women to vote.
Common law
- Common Law is made up of customs and judicial precedent (when judicial decisions clarify the meaning of statute or make rulings in the absence of statute).
- A lot of constitutional principles, such as the Royal Prerogative are a part of common law.
Conventions
- Conventions are customs and practices that are accepted as the way of doing things.
- An example is the convention that the Prime Minister is the leader of the largest party in parliament.
- Conventions can be removed or made permanent by statute law.
- The 2011 Fixed Term Parliaments Act put into statute law the convention that the Government should resign if it is defeated in a vote of no confidence.
Authoritative works
- Authoritative works, such as Walter Bagehot’s ‘The English Constitution’ are books or written guides to the working of the UK constitution.
- Although they are widely respected, they are not legally binding.
Treaties
- Treaties are agreements signed with other countries.
- The most important historical treaties affecting the UK constitution are the treaty that brought Britain into the EEC in 1972 and the Maastricht Treaty (1992), which established the European Union.
- The UK government negotiated a new treaty that allowed the UK to leave the EU (Brexit).
Test yourself on Sources of the UK Constitution
All legislation created by parliament
Which source of the UK constitution is being described?