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A constitution is a system of laws, which contains a broad set of rules, customs and conventions by which a state is governed. ... ’
The British constitution is made up of a collection of legal and non-legal sources in the form of statutory provisions, case law and conventions and it is unique in its nature when compared with most other States, in that it is largely ‘unwritten’. It is not codified into one single document and is often seen as a very flexible constitution when contrasted with the written constitutions in America and Australia. Our Constitution does not contain a positive declaration of our rights as individuals in the form of a Bill of Rights but the rules with regard to such matters have traditionally derived from constitutionalism. Constitutionalism is related to the concept of the rule of law and plays a large role in upholding the doctrine of a responsible and accountable government and the separation of powers. ... ’ An illustration of parliamentary supremacy and the unrestricted scope of the subject matter it can legislate on, was given by Sir Ivor Jennings’ most often quoted example with relation to the banning of smoking on the streets of Paris.
In addition to the rule of law, the British constitution is largely made up of conventions, which play a central role in the constitution and form the most crucial class of non-legal rules.
‘The short explanation of constitutional conventions is that they provide the flesh which clothes the dry bones of the law; they make the legal constitution work; they keep in touch with the growth of ideas.’ Although conventions are non-legal rules of constitutional behaviour, which are not written down or enforced by the courts, they are considered to be binding upon those who operate the constitution and if breached, will give rise to criticism in the form of an accusation of ‘unconstitutional conduct.
Approximate Word count = 1423
Approximate Pages = 5.7
(250 words per page double spaced)
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