Gavin Howe
The UK is often said to have an 'unwritten' constitution, but this is not strictly true. While the UK does not have a single, unified constitution like many other countries, its constitution is largely written and can be found in various documents, including leading statutes, conventions, judicial decisions, and treaties. These documents outline the principles, rules, and laws that establish and underpin the UK's political system, defining the powers and relationships of different political institutions and their relationship with citizens. The UK's constitution is characterised by stability, capacity for change, a bicameral legislature, and the concept of responsible government.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Nature of the constitution | Unwritten/uncodified |
| Core principles | Rule of law, separation of government into executive, legislative and judicial branches, accountability of ministers to parliament, independence of the judiciary |
| Location of laws | Leading statutes, conventions, judicial decisions, treaties, Bills and Legislation page on the Parliament website, Legislation.gov.uk, TSO Shop, Parliamentary Archives, libraries |
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What You'll Learn
The UK's distinct legal systems
The UK is a constitutional monarchy with a distinct lack of a written constitution. Instead, the UK's constitution is spread across various sources, including statutes passed by Parliament, common law, and other less formal documents. This is due to the UK's unique political and legal evolution since 1066, which has seen the union of previously independent countries with their own legal systems.
The UK has three distinct legal systems, each with its own history and origins: English law (in the joint jurisdiction of England and Wales), Scots law, and Northern Irish law. The differences between these systems reflect the historical origins of the UK and the fact that Scotland and Ireland (and later Northern Ireland) retained their legal systems and traditions under the Acts of Union in 1707 and 1800. While there is substantial overlap between these three systems, they remain distinct.
English law, which applies in England and Wales, operates as a common law system, combining the passing of legislation with the creation of precedents through case law. The laws are established by the passing of legislation by Parliament, which consists of the Monarch, the House of Commons, and the House of Lords. The House of Commons is directly elected by the people, and the Prime Minister traditionally comes from this House. The Court System and case law are controlled by the judiciary, which is completely separate from Parliament.
Scots law has remained distinct from English law, even after Scotland became part of the UK over 300 years ago. Scots law has been influenced by European law under the Treaty of Rome since the UK's accession to the European Communities in 1973. The establishment of the Scottish Parliament and Government in 1999 has also created a significant source of Scots law.
Northern Irish law is a common law system administered by the courts of Northern Ireland, with ultimate appeal to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom in both civil and criminal matters. Northern Irish law is similar to English law, as the rules of common law were imported into the Kingdom of Ireland during English rule.
Since 2007, there have been calls for a fourth distinct legal system for Wales, which would be purely Welsh law as a result of Welsh devolution. The Commission on Justice in Wales, set up in 2017, recommended the full devolution of the Welsh justice system, and there have been multiple calls from academics and politicians for a Welsh criminal justice system.
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How laws are made in the UK
The UK's constitution differs from many other countries in that its core aspects are not contained in a single legal source. Unlike the United States, for example, there is no clear distinction between constitutional law and regular law in the UK, and no concept of a 'higher law'. The UK constitution is one of the oldest in the world, dating back over one thousand years, and is characterised by the stability of its governing institutions, its capacity to absorb change, a bicameral legislature, and the concept of responsible government.
The UK constitution is comprised of various sources, including law and other less formal documents without legal force. The term 'constitution' refers to the principles, rules, and laws that establish and underpin a political system, creating and defining the powers of different political institutions and their relationships with each other and their citizens. The British constitution is the source of the modern concepts of the rule of law, parliamentary sovereignty, and judicial independence.
The UK's modern democratic constitution is manifested through statutes and case law, which guarantee the right to vote in free and fair elections. The legitimacy of law in a democratic society depends on constant deliberative discussion and public debate, rather than the imposition of decisions. The UK constitution also includes the principles of international law, which are used as a tool for interpreting domestic law.
New legislation is first published on the Parliament website, where proposals for new laws and changes to existing laws are presented for debate. The progress of a new bill can be tracked on this site, and the texts of Acts of Parliament passed since 1988 can be found on Legislation.gov.uk, a database containing all Acts still in force, managed by The National Archives on behalf of HM Government. Printed editions of new Acts of Parliament are also available from the TSO Shop, and the Parliamentary Archives hold copies of original Acts dating back to 1497.
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The role of the House of Commons
The UK's constitution is different from many other countries in that its core aspects are not contained in a single legal source. The UK did not experience a revolution or moment of political rupture in the late eighteenth or nineteenth century, when written constitutions were at their most popular. Unlike in the United States, where the constitution is the ‘supreme law’, the UK system has no clear concept of a ‘higher law’. This means there is no distinction between constitutional law and regular law, and no special procedures for changing the constitution.
The UK public elects 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) to represent their interests and concerns in the House of Commons. The House of Commons is the publicly elected chamber of Parliament. Members of the Commons debate the big political issues of the day and proposals for new laws. The party with the largest number of members in the Commons forms the government. The House of Commons 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 House of Commons debates and passes laws, and enables the government to raise taxes. The House of Commons also has a role in checking the work of the government. Much of the work of the House of Commons takes place in committees, made up of around 10 to 50 MPs. These committees examine issues in detail, from government policy and proposed new laws, to wider topics like the economy.
The House of Commons is one of the two Houses of Parliament, the other being the House of Lords. The two Houses share the task of making and shaping laws and checking and challenging the work of the government. The work of one House generally has to be approved by the other. In this way, the two-chamber system acts as a check and balance for both Houses.
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The role of the House of Lords
The UK constitution is distinct from those of many other countries in that its core aspects are not contained in a single legal source. Instead, it comprises various sources, including both law and other less formal documents without legal force. The UK constitution is the source of the modern concepts of the rule of law, parliamentary sovereignty, and judicial independence.
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 House of Lords is often referred to as the 'Upper House' or 'Second Chamber'. The House of Lords is the only upper house of any bicameral parliament in the world to be larger than its lower house. It is the second-largest legislative chamber in the world, behind the National People's Congress of China.
The House of Lords shares the task of making and shaping laws and checking and challenging the work of the government. Members spend more than half their time in the House considering bills (draft laws). All bills must be considered by both Houses of Parliament before they can become law. During several stages, members examine each bill line-by-line before it becomes an Act of Parliament (actual law). Many of these bills affect everyday life, covering areas such as welfare, health, and education. Members use their extensive individual experience to investigate public policy, and much of this work is done in select committees—small groups appointed to consider specific policy areas.
The House of Lords also has a Church of England role, in that Church Measures must be tabled within the House by the Lords Spiritual. The United Kingdom is one of only two countries in the world to award religious figures a permanent seat in the legislature, the other being Iran.
Historically, the House of Lords held several judicial functions. Notably, until 2009, the House of Lords served as the court of last resort for most instances of UK law. Since 1 October 2009, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom has held this role.
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The UK constitution
The UK's constitution is characterised by its stability, capacity for change, a bicameral legislature, and the concept of responsible government. It is one of the oldest constitutional systems in the world, dating back over one thousand years. The leading institutions in the United Kingdom's constitution are Parliament, the judiciary, the executive, and regional and local governments, including the devolved legislatures and executives of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Parliament is the supreme law-making body in the UK and represents the people of the United Kingdom. Parliamentary sovereignty is often seen as a central element of the British constitution, meaning that an Act of Parliament is the highest form of law. However, this is contested, and some argue that parliamentary sovereignty allows Parliament to overrule fundamental rights. The UK constitution can be altered relatively easily by the government of the day, and a 'constitutional statute' can be repealed or amended by a simple majority vote in Parliament, like any other legislation.
The sources of the UK constitution include both law and other less formal documents without legal force. These laws provide for devolution settlements, the right to vote and hold elections, the upholding of human rights, the prohibition of discrimination, the existence of the Supreme Court, and more. However, there is no clear formal means of distinguishing these constitutional statutes from more regular laws that deal with policy areas such as education and transport.
Conventions are understandings about how the constitution functions, but they can be challenging to define precisely and lack legal force. Nonetheless, they are the source of some of the most important features of the UK system of government, such as the convention that the Prime Minister should be a member of the House of Commons and able to command the confidence of that institution.
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Frequently asked questions
The UK does not have a 'written' or 'codified' constitution. The sources of the UK constitution are various, including both law and other less formal documents without legal force. The UK's constitution is different from many other countries in that its core aspects are not contained in a single legal source.
New legislation is first officially published on the Parliament website, where it is listed under Bills and Legislation.
A bill is a draft law; it becomes an Act if it is approved by a majority in the House of Commons and House of Lords, and formally agreed to by the reigning monarch (known as Royal Assent). All bills must pass through both Houses of Parliament.
The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is the highest court in the UK for all criminal and civil cases in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and for all civil cases in Scots law.
The United Kingdom has three distinct legal systems: English law (in the joint jurisdiction of England and Wales), Scots law, and Northern Ireland law. There have been calls for a fourth type, purely Welsh law, as a result of Welsh devolution.
