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CONSTITUTION
A constitution^ is, broadly, a^ set^ of^ rules^ that^
seek to^ establish^ the
duties, powers^ and^
functions of the^ various^ institutions^ of *govern-
ment, regulate^
the relationships between^ them, and^
define the rela-
tionship between^ the^
*state and the^ individual.^ Constitutions^
thus
lay down^
certain meta-rules for^ the^ political system;^
in effect, these
are rules^ thhatgovern thegovernment.,ust^ as^
government estabiishes
ortdered rule^ in^ society^
at large, a^ constitution^ brings^ stab1l1ty,
predictabiiity
and Fordcr^ to^ the^ actions of government.^
The most
common way of^ classifying^
constitutions is^ to^ distinguish between
codified and^ uncodifjed,^
or written^ and^ unwritten,^
constitutions.
197 STRUCTURES
Godified constitutions draw together
key constitutional provisiorns
within a^ single,
legal (^) documcnt, (^) popularly known (^) as a
constitution or "thc wIitten
constitution'. These documents are author-
itative in^ the (^) sense-that (^) they (^) constitute 'higher law-^ indeed,^ n
highest law^ of the land. This, in
turn, (^) entrenches the (^) provisions o the (^) constitution, in (^) that
they can^ only be amended or abolished usin
a (^) process more complicated than that (^) employed for (^) statute (^) *law Finally, the^ logic (^) of (^) the codifiçation dictates that, as the sets (^) out the (^) duties, constitution powers and^ functions (^) of (^) government institutions in (^) terms (^) ol "higher' (^) law, it^ must be (^) justiciable, meaning that^ all political (^) bodies must be subject to^ the^ authority of^ the (^) courts, and in particular a^ supreme or (^) constitutional court. Uncodtied (^) constitutions are (^) now (^) found in
only two^ *liberal^ democ-
racies (Isracl and the
UK) and^ a^ handful of (^) non-democratic states. In (^) the absençe of a^ 'written' (^) constitution, (^) uncodified
draw constitutions
upon a^ variety of sources (in the UK, these include
statute law, common^ law, (^) conventions, works (^) of
authority and^ EU^ law).
Laws of^ constitutional
significance (^) are thus not^ entrenched: (^) they may be^ changed (^) through the ordinary (^) legislative (^) process. Most importantly, this^ means (^) that *sovereignty, or^ unchangeable (^) legal *authority, is^ vested^ in^ the *parliament. The^ parliament has the
right. to^ make or^ unmake any law
whatsoevcr, no^ body, (^) including the (^) courts, (^) having the ability to^ override or (^) set (^) aside (^) its laws. Alter-
native ways of
classifying constitutions (^) deal (^) with (^) the ease (^) with
which the constitution can be
changed (^) (whether it (^) is (^) rigid or flex- ible), the^ degree to (^) which (^) the
constitution is obscrved in
tice (^) (whcther it.is prac: effective, (^) nominal or a the (^) basis (^) of façade^ constitution), or
its contents
(whether it^ is^ monarchical (^) or federal or^ republican, unitary, or^ parliamentary or presidential). Significance Although the^ evolution (^) of the (^) British constitution (^) is (^) sometimes traced back^ to the (^) Bill of (^) Rights of (^) 1689, or (^) evcn (^) the of (^) 1215, it^ is Magna^ Carta mofe (^) helpful to^ think (^) of (^) constitutions
as late
century (^) creations. (^) The eightcenth- 'áge of^ constitutions' (^) was enactment ol^ the first initiated^ by^ the
'written'
in constitutions:^ the^ US^ Constitution (^1787) and the (^) French Declaration (^) of (^) the Citizen in^ 1789. Rights^ of^ Man^ and the Constitutions (^) play (^) a Or number^ of^ vital^ roles^ in^ the kings of^ modern political (^) systems. The (^) most basic (^) of these is
STRUCTURES
constitutional supremacy ultimately resides with non-elected Judges rather than democratically accountable politicians, as constitutional documents are incvitably biased, they may either (^) promote ideological hegemony or^ precipitate more^ con- flicts than they resolve; estabiishing a^ codified^ constitution (^) requires that^ all^ major parties agree about (^) impórtant features^ ofthe political^ systen,^ which may not be the case.
