Constitution of the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has an uncodified constitution, consisting of both written and unwritten sources. There is no technical difference between ordinary statutes and law considered "constitutional law". Therefore the Parliament of the United Kingdom can perform "constitutional reform" simply by passing Acts of Parliament and thus has the power to change or abolish any written or unwritten element of the constitution. The constitution is based on the concept of all sovereignty ultimately belonging to Parliament (Parliamentary sovereignty), so the concept of entrenchment cannot exist. The lack of a central written constitutional document explaining the fundamental principles of the state and relationship between its institutions and between the people leads some constitutionalists to regard the United Kingdom as having "no (formal) constitution". The phrase "unwritten constitution" is sometimes used, despite that fact that the UK constitution incorporates many written sources, statutory law being considered the most important source of the constitution. But the case remains that the constitution relies far more on unwritten constitutional conventions than virtually every other liberal democratic constitution.

Key statutes and conventions

Selected key statutes

• Magna Carta (1215)
• Habeas Corpus Act 1679
• Bill of Rights 1689 - for England and Wales
• Claim of Right 1689 - for Scotland
• Act of Settlement 1701
• Act of Union 1707 - union of the Kingdom of England & the Kingdom of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain
• Act of Union 1800 - union of Great Britain & Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
• Reform Act 1832
• Reform Act 1867
• Reform Act 1884
• Parliament Acts (of 1911 and 1949)
• Representation of the People Act 1918
• Irish Free State (Agreement) Act 1922, Irish Free State Constitution Act 1922, and Irish Free State (Consequential Provisions) Act 1922 recognised the Irish Free State as no longer part of the United Kingdom
• Representation of the People Act 1928
• Statute of Westminster 1931
• Representation of the People Act 1949
• Representation of the People Act 1969
• European Communities Act 1972
• Human Rights Act 1998
• Scotland Act 1998
• Government of Wales Act 1998
• Northern Ireland Act 1998
• House of Lords Act 1999
• Constitutional Reform Act 2005

Some important conventions

• Relating to monarchy
• The Sovereign shall grant the Royal Assent to all Bills passed by Parliament (the Royal Assent was last refused by Queen Anne in 1708).
• The monarch will not dissolve Parliament without the advice of the Prime Minister.
• The monarch will ask the leader of the dominant party in the House of Commons to form a government, and if there is no dominant party, the leader most likely to be able to form a government.
• The monarch will ask a member of the House of Commons (rather than the House of Lords or someone outside parliament) to form a government. It remains possible, however, for a caretaker Prime Minister to be drawn from the House of Lords.
• All ministers are to be drawn from the House of Commons or the Lords.
• The House of Lords will accept any legislation that was in the Government's manifesto (the 'Salisbury Convention').
• Individual Ministerial Responsibility
• Collective Ministerial Responsibility