Un-Codified Constitutions

The UK has an un-codified, unitary and flexible constitution. It is codified because our rules and laws are in diffuse and varied sources as oppose to one single authoritative document. It is unitary because a central government controls policy for the whole country on the constituencies and constituent’s behalf and it is flexible because the constitution can be easily changed/altered by passing or abolishing laws. Un-codified constitutions are un-authoritative, not entrenched so easy to change and it is not judiciable because there is no written document in which judges can rule. In the UK, we do not have a written document to outline our constitution; instead we have a set of core principles to follow in many different sources that have
It says that law should rule all and applies to ALL, irrelevant of your status. It means that even government is subject to checks and constraints and still not above the law. It ensures that public officials use their power reasonably and do not exceed the limits – administrative law enforces this. Also, the rule of law establishes a common ground between government and the people which could make electorates feel better represented as our ministers have the same rights as we do. Thus, minimising the problem of things like partisan dealignment, to name one. However, parliament is sovereign and so can do what it wishes to our constitution hence, is above the law. Parliamentary privilege is another problem, this is how MP’s and peers have complete freedom on what they say in parliament (libel and slander are no longer problems). The queen, being head of state, is also not properly subject to the law. So the rule of law does not apply to EVERYONE. The rule of law is still being upheld. But, it is not applicable to all, but the minority can be seen to have a right to be
But, it still retains its status as a constitutionally significant body. The monarchy’s powers were transferred to ministers accountable to parliament. This means that we have a constitutional monarchy. Effectively the monarchy ‘does not reign but rules’. Even though the monarchy have not political powers, they are still important as they promote popular allegiance and patriotism. They can also be used in situation such as coalition governments to make the penultimate decision on who runs our country and various other decisions that implement the country. Walter Bagehot says that they have the right to be informed and consulted, to warn and to encourage. But the disadvantages would be that the monarchy knows they are an authority and may not take any public preference on a decision as they are not answerable to anyone. Especially when the monarchy has not the right to pass comment on our democratic system. As of late, controversy has occurred at the hand of Prince Charles and his opinions on matters deemed irrelevant to him. It is safe to say that the UK does still uphold the principle of having a constitutional