1.1 - Development of the UK constitution

Magna Carta and limited power

A constitution distributes authority and sets the terms on which people are governed.

These rules need not have been designed together. A document can acquire constitutional importance because later generations use it to justify limits on government, even when its original purpose was narrower.

Magna Carta (1215) emerged from conflict between King John and his barons. It attempted to restrain the king's treatment of his subjects, including through protections concerning justice and lawful judgement. Its original beneficiaries and medieval setting were very different from a modern democracy: it did not give everyone a vote or establish an elected government. The 1215 settlement also failed quickly and was followed by revised charters. Its lasting importance lies in the developing idea that royal authority could be subject to law. Parliament's Magna Carta account explains this limited original purpose.

The rule of law means that government, other public bodies and individuals must obey the law and can be held accountable for breaking it. Magna Carta is part of that principle's historical development; it is not a complete statement of the modern principle. A useful explanation therefore separates an early restriction on arbitrary rule from the much later development of equal citizenship and independent legal remedies.

For example, an official claiming that public importance alone permits an unlawful seizure is asserting that government stands above legal limits. The constitutional objection concerns legal authority, even if the official's policy aim is popular. This is why constitutional history matters to present disputes about power.

The Bill of Rights and Parliament

The Bill of Rights made Parliament's relationship with the Crown a central constitutional question.

Following the removal of James II in the Glorious Revolution, William and Mary accepted the Crown on the terms of the Bill of Rights (1689). The statute restricted royal attempts to suspend laws or raise taxation without parliamentary authority. It also protected parliamentary debate and affirmed principles concerning elections and regular parliaments. Parliament's account of the settlement describes its restrictions on the Crown; the parliamentary collection explains the protection of parliamentary proceedings.

The causal link matters. A monarch who depends on Parliament for taxation has less ability to govern independently of it. Protecting debate also makes it harder to punish MPs for challenging the executive in Parliament. These measures supported constitutional monarchy, in which the monarch operates within constitutional rules rather than exercising unrestricted personal authority.

This contributed to the later doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty: Parliament can make, change or repeal law, and a previous Parliament cannot generally prevent its successors changing its legislation. Parliament here means the Crown in Parliament, including the Commons and Lords. It does not mean that a prime minister personally possesses unlimited power.

The Bill did not suddenly create the modern democratic constitution. Voting remained restricted, the Crown retained influence and later developments altered the balance further. Nor should the historic title be confused with a modern bill of rights guaranteeing a comprehensive range of human rights to everyone. Its major importance was the settlement of authority between Crown and Parliament.

The settlement and judicial independence

The Act of Settlement demonstrated Parliament's ability to determine succession while strengthening an institutional safeguard against arbitrary rule.

The Act of Settlement (1701) secured a Protestant succession to the throne through Sophia of Hanover and her heirs. The important constitutional point is that succession was regulated by an Act, rather than left entirely to hereditary claim or royal preference. Statute law is law enacted by Parliament; constitutional statutes therefore provide written evidence of changes in the distribution of authority. Parliament's account of the Act explains the succession problem and its legislative solution.

The Act also provided for judges to hold office on good behaviour, with removal through an address by both Houses. This helped protect judicial tenure from a monarch's personal displeasure. The parliamentary collection identifies this protection.

Judicial independence means that judges should decide cases according to law without improper pressure from political authorities or parties to the case. Secure tenure matters because a judge who fears dismissal for an unwelcome ruling has a reason to favour the ruler. It supports the rule of law by making legal accountability more credible.