It is said that the UK constitution is uncodified, which means it does not reside in a single document as the US Constitution. The UK constitution has a special status with a unique arrangement: it consists of various sources, which are laws, conventions, and historical records.
The constitution is a collection of many features that were created by political developments, which happened over centuries, rather than a staged drafting session of a document. The issue of the UK having an uncodified constitution is a subject of debate among academics and political observers. To be able to understand its various features and its structure first requires appreciation of how the UK is governed today.
What Does Uncodified Mean?
An uncodified constitution refers to a constitutional framework that is not consolidated into one formal document. Instead, the constitution will be dispersed across several places, both unwritten and written. For the UK, these sources of constitution come from acts of Parliament, common law, and constitutional conventions.
To be clear, this does not mean that the constitution is entirely unwritten. A lot of the constitution is codified in statutes or treaties. The term uncodified means there is not one united constitutional text that holds full authoritativeness; rather, the term describes the nature of the constitution.
Why is the United Kingdom Constitution Called Uncodified?
The United Kingdom constitution is termed uncodified due to its historic development. Most states have implemented a constitution upon independence as a consequence of a structural shift in the authority of the political system. However, the constitutional order of the UK did not materialize as an emergent political entity but instead was a process of assimilation and maturation that took place over many years, with important points of engagement such as the Magna Carta (1215), the Bill of Rights (1689), and the Acts of Union (1707, 1800), which we have historically added to over time. The UK’s constitutional process has never been collected into a form or codified into one document. The constitutional rules exist in several places, which makes the style of constitutional organization unique among modern democracies.
UK Constitution structure
The UK Constitution is made from the following sources, which can be broadly classified into five main categories:
1. Statute Law
Statute laws take the form of acts of Parliament that are of constitutional importance. Statute law describes the powers of state institutions, rights of citizens, or regulates the political system. For example, the UK statute law integrates the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law through the Human Rights Act (1998), while the Parliament Acts (1911 and 1949) limit the power of the House of Lords. Statute law is the supreme constitutional authority by parliamentary sovereignty and can be amended by normal legislative procedure.
2. Common Law
Common law is specific legal principles and rules that evolved by judges by court ruling through time because most of the basic constitutional doctrines (like the right to a fair trial and against unlawful detention) originate in that common law. Common law allows for flexibility, since judges will apply and interpret the principles to contemporary conditions. Although common law can be changed by statute law, it remains a key source in the UK constitution, and it often fills the void in areas that have not been legislated.
3. Constitutional Conventions
This unwritten document deals with political practice, which is performed as a matter of duty, not legality. Conventions are practices that are followed because of tradition and political expectation, which are not legally enforceable.
For example, the prime minister is to be a member of [the House of] Commons, and the monarch must appoint the person who she thinks can command a majority in the House of Commons. Conventions cause our system to work and to work to its maximum degree without relying on formalities of law.
4. Works of Authority
Works of authority are acknowledged texts produced by constitutional scholars that describe and interpret the principles behind the constitution. The most notable example is A.V. Dicey’s Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution, which states the principles of parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law.
Although there is no legal authority to these writings, politicians, lawyers, and judges use these as helpful guidance for the clarification of constitutional practice when in doubt about the constitutional framework of their actions.
5. International Treaties
When international treaties are ratified and made into domestic law, they can be part of the UK’s constitutional structure. For example, the European Communities Act 1972 brought EU law into the UK legal framework, and the Human Rights Act 1998 domesticated the European Convention on Human Rights. Trade, human rights, and environmental policy are some areas through which treaties can tie internal governance with international standards and obligations.
Features of the UK Constitution
1. Uncodified
The most distinguishing feature is that the UK constitution does not exist in a single written or codified document. It is made from many sources, both written and unwritten. This contrasts with the constitutions of the US or France, which are clearly codified. As a result, while this flexibility can be very beneficial, it can also provide considerable cause for concern for the understanding of the constitution by the public.
2. Parliamentary Sovereignty
Parliamentary sovereignty is the principle of the UK Constitution. It means that Parliament can make or unmake any law and that it is the supreme decision maker with no one and nothing above it. This principle indicates that elected representatives are ultimately able to legislate and choose (or not) any law. However, the idea of sovereignty raises concerns of an unchecked exercise of sovereignty upon such power.
3. Rule of Law
The rule of law requires that all people are bound by law, including government officials, and that the law is applied equally and fairly for everyone and that citizens’ rights are respected. This principle creates an instructive framework for applying statute law and common law and is a specific measure against arbitrary government.
4. Flexibility
The UK Constitution is a flexible constitution because it can be amended or changed through the regular legislative procedures and ordinary legislative processes, decisions that come from judicial interpretations or rulings, and also through changing convention practices.
This allows the political and legislative system to quickly adapt and respond to rapid changes to social, economic, and political systems. However, it is a problem when these rapid changes result in constitutionally significant changes that happen quickly and with no extensive public agency or open consultation process.
5. Evolutionary Development
The UK Constitution has not been created at a single point in time but has evolved over many centuries. Several key historical milestones came to the UK Constitution: Magna Carta (1215), the Bill of Rights (1689) in various amended forms, and the Acts of Union (1707 to 1790). The Constitution is evolutionary and well entrenched in tradition while being sufficiently flexible to respond to the changing world.
6. Fusion of Powers
The UK Parliament represents a fusion of executive and legislative authority, not a jurisdiction of separation of powers. The prime minister and cabinet are all members of Parliament, and their power is derived from maintaining the confidence of the House of Commons – this gives an important distinction that enables the executive (Government) and legislature (lawmakers) to work collaboratively.