Constitutional and Administrative Law
In the UK, the constitution claims to be democratic in that it aims to
ensure that the government's authority is derived from the consent of
the people. At the very heart of a democracy lies the concept that the
electorate is able to see their views represented and their wishes
fulfilled by their elected government. As the British constitution
evolved, so to did the need to weave genuine democratic ideals into
the fabric of our constitution. The integration of these democratic
concepts into an evolving constitution has been a gradual process and
can be seen as recently as the Reform Act (1867). The changing
landscape of British life, namely the period of great
industrialisation of the 19th Century, led to an ever-increasing urban
population with no political voice. The act sought to redress this by
increasing the size of the electorate by 90% and it is certainly fair
to say that it was the biggest catalyst for modern day politics and
government with the creation of mass-membership political parties
hoping to facilitate the needs of a majority. Dicey argued that the
will of the electorate is, ultimately, supreme over the government of
the day. While this may have been true at the time the observations
were made, it is necessary to consider whether the same still applies
today and it is the aim of this essay to determine the validity of
Dicey's statement.
To accurately assess what supremacy, if any, the electorate has one
must consider the relationship between the citizen and the
constitution. A constitution, in this context, can be defined as the
rules and practices which determine the func...
... middle of paper ...
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[1] [1921] 1 Ch 440
[2] [1983] 1 AC 768
[3] Dicey AV, The Law of the Constitution, (1885)
[4] [1765] 19 St. Tr 1029
[5] [1978] 2 E.H.R.R 25
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