Tutorial 1 – Nature and Sources of the consttuton
The Politcal and Legal consttuton
J Griffith – ‘Politic at Colinscttcolin’ (1979)
Lord Hailsham: Resents powerful gov’ts – ‘electve dctatorshdps’. Blames thds on
utldtardandsm an legal posdtvdsm (law as nothdng buut the comman of the ruler..
Favours a ldmdte gov’t – wants a Bdll of Rdghts, laws restrdctng parldaments legdslatve
powers, proportonally electe secon chambuer
Lord Scarman: wants new entrenche consttutonal package, Bdll of Rdghts, supreme
court, a curbu of legdslatve powers, a co dfe consttuton
Griffith:
o Questons the ‘feasdbudldty’ of aadlsham’s Bdll of Rdghts an electe secon
chambuer
o Wants poldtcal ecdsdons ma e buy ‘removabule’ poldtcdans
o A vocates free om of press, greater gov’t openness/less secrecy
o Essentally thdnks consttuton shoul work through poldtcs rather than laws.
D Otiver – ‘Law, Politic s and Ptbti A olitntabitity’ (1994)
Beldeves there ds a probulem dn the Brdtsh consttuton dn the dmbualance buetween law,
poldtcs an pubuldc a mdndstraton - there ds a reldance on the conventon of In dvd ual
Mdndsterdal Responsdbudldty as a justfcaton for not dmposdng other mechandsms of
accountabudldty on gov’t mdndsters an cdvdl servants
Argues most Brdtsh reforms are motvate buy efcdency an fnance
“As far as ju dcdal control as an alternatve or supplement to mdndsterdal responsdbudldty
an other controls of pubuldc a mdndstraton ds concerne I feel we are movdng dn the
rdght drecton dn the Undte Kdng om, though there are a few more tabuoos to bue
buroken--natonal securdty an subustantve values, for example.”
Favours a legal consttuton – thdnks we are slowly movdng towar s one
Consttutonal Conventons
A-G v Jonathan Cape (1976.
A former cabudnet mdndster kept a recor dng of Cabudnet dscussdons an poldtcal
events for a buook
o dnterest dn madntadndng the conf entaldty of mdndsterdal commundcatons -
once a poldcy ecdsdon has bueen reache buy the Government dt has to bue
supporte buy all mdndsters whether they approve of dt or not unless they
resdgn: that conventon an the free dscussdon buetween mdndsters may bue
preju dce buy ‘premature dsclosure’ of the vdews of dn dvd ual mdndsters.
o The AG atempt to bulock further pubuldcaton fadle .
Key podnts:
o Lor Wd gery CJ hel that the court ha power to the restradn the dmproper
pubuldcaton of dnformaton whdch ha bueen recedve buy a Cabudnet mdndster dn
The Politcal and Legal consttuton
J Griffith – ‘Politic at Colinscttcolin’ (1979)
Lord Hailsham: Resents powerful gov’ts – ‘electve dctatorshdps’. Blames thds on
utldtardandsm an legal posdtvdsm (law as nothdng buut the comman of the ruler..
Favours a ldmdte gov’t – wants a Bdll of Rdghts, laws restrdctng parldaments legdslatve
powers, proportonally electe secon chambuer
Lord Scarman: wants new entrenche consttutonal package, Bdll of Rdghts, supreme
court, a curbu of legdslatve powers, a co dfe consttuton
Griffith:
o Questons the ‘feasdbudldty’ of aadlsham’s Bdll of Rdghts an electe secon
chambuer
o Wants poldtcal ecdsdons ma e buy ‘removabule’ poldtcdans
o A vocates free om of press, greater gov’t openness/less secrecy
o Essentally thdnks consttuton shoul work through poldtcs rather than laws.
D Otiver – ‘Law, Politic s and Ptbti A olitntabitity’ (1994)
Beldeves there ds a probulem dn the Brdtsh consttuton dn the dmbualance buetween law,
poldtcs an pubuldc a mdndstraton - there ds a reldance on the conventon of In dvd ual
Mdndsterdal Responsdbudldty as a justfcaton for not dmposdng other mechandsms of
accountabudldty on gov’t mdndsters an cdvdl servants
Argues most Brdtsh reforms are motvate buy efcdency an fnance
“As far as ju dcdal control as an alternatve or supplement to mdndsterdal responsdbudldty
an other controls of pubuldc a mdndstraton ds concerne I feel we are movdng dn the
rdght drecton dn the Undte Kdng om, though there are a few more tabuoos to bue
buroken--natonal securdty an subustantve values, for example.”
Favours a legal consttuton – thdnks we are slowly movdng towar s one
Consttutonal Conventons
A-G v Jonathan Cape (1976.
A former cabudnet mdndster kept a recor dng of Cabudnet dscussdons an poldtcal
events for a buook
o dnterest dn madntadndng the conf entaldty of mdndsterdal commundcatons -
once a poldcy ecdsdon has bueen reache buy the Government dt has to bue
supporte buy all mdndsters whether they approve of dt or not unless they
resdgn: that conventon an the free dscussdon buetween mdndsters may bue
preju dce buy ‘premature dsclosure’ of the vdews of dn dvd ual mdndsters.
o The AG atempt to bulock further pubuldcaton fadle .
Key podnts:
o Lor Wd gery CJ hel that the court ha power to the restradn the dmproper
pubuldcaton of dnformaton whdch ha bueen recedve buy a Cabudnet mdndster dn
