Before you read
Discuss these questions.
1 Are constitutions usually invented by people or are they based upon some existing
enactments?
2 Do you know any statutes which are considered to be the sources of the British
Constitution?
3 Can you dwell upon the peculiarities of the British Constitution?
The Nature of the Constitution
In England there is no one document or fundamental body of law that can be described as a constitution. The absence of any such document or of any distinction between public and private law has led to the suggestion that there is no constitution in England. Certainly the English constitution has no existence apart from the ordinary law; it is indeed part of that very law. The Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, the Habeas Corpus Act, the Bill of Rights, and the Act of Settlement are the leading enactments; but they are in no sense a constitutional code; and, without a host of judicial decisions, other statutes of much less importance, and a mass of custom and convention, these statutes would be unworkable.
The sources of English constitutional law are statutes, judicial precedent, textbooks, law books, the writings of historians and political theorists, the biographies and autobiographies of statesmen, the columns of every serious newspaper, the minutiae of every type of government record and publication. This is what is meant by saying the English Constitution is unwritten: it is not formally enacted; its rules have to be sought out in a dozen fields, not in any one code.
Similarly, it is flexible, and here the contrast is with a rigid constitution. There are no special safeguards for constitutional rules; constitutional law can be changed, amended, or abolished just like any rule of private law; there is no field in which Parliament is forbidden to legislate; there are no fundamental or unalterable ideologies and no procedures to prescribe delay or extra processes for constitutional change.
Vocabulary
Act of Settlement (1701.; , )
apart (from) adv , , ,
Bill of Rights (1689.;
;
, ; )
code n , ; constitutional code
delay n , ,
distinction n , , ,
existence n ,
extra adj , ; ,
forbid (forbade, forbad; forbidden) v , , , ,
Habeas Corpus Act ( ; 1679.)
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historian n
host n
judicial adj ; judicial precedent ; judicial decision
law n , , ; abolish law ; amend law ; body of law ; constitutional law , , , ; private law , ; , ; public law , (, )
law-book n ,
legislate v ,
minutiae n.pl. . ,
Magna C(h)arta (, 1215. ; ; ; )
mass of custom and convention //
Petition of Right ( I 1628.; ; ; 17.; )
prescribe v
record n ,
safeguard n
seek out (sought) v ,
similarly adv ,
statesman n / ,
suggestion n , , ,
theorist n
unalterable adj , , ,
unworkable adj
writing n (), ,
Reading tasks
A Answer these questions.
1 What is the structure of the British Constitution?
2 Why is the British Constitution considered to be flexible?
3 What are the sources of English constitutional law?
4 What is the difference between written and unwritten constitutions?
5 In your opinion, how can mass media participate in developing the British Constitution?
B Mark these statements T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the text.
1 The English Constitution has nothing to do with the ordinary law.
2 The Magna Carta is not a constitutional code.
3 The sources of English Constitution are unknown.
4 The English Constitution is formally enacted.
5 There is a sharp difference between the English Constitution and a rigid constitution.
6 The English constitutional law can never be changed.
Language focus
A Put the verb into the form of the past participle.
The British Constitution is the law of Great Britain which provides for the form and powers of government. It is 1) ______ (root) in historic traditions and principles of liberty which go back to the Magna Carta of 1215. Unlike most other constitutions, the English Constitution is not a systematic 2) ______ (write) statement of law. The laws of the Constitution comprise three kinds of rules: statute rules, case law and custom (especially Parliamentary custom). It is often 3) ______ (call) a customary or unwritten constitution.
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As an example, English law makes no provision for such an important feature of the British government as the Cabinet of Ministers which is now an essential part of the executive branch of the government. The cabinet originated in the 15th century as an advisory body to the king. It has 4) ______ (develop) in connection with the rise of representative government to its present status in the executive branch. Unlike constitutions that make clear provision for their amendment and are often difficult to change, the English Constitution may be 5) ______ (change) easily. It may be 6) ______ (alter), and in the past it has been 7) ______ (alter), through the slow addition to custom, by an act of Parliament, or by judicial interpretation.
Historians emphasize the flexibility of the English Constitution. Its early development may be 8) ______ (trace) back to the Norman Conquest almost 1000 years ago! Throughout this period it remained adaptable and serving the needs of society.
B Combine the two parts of the sentence using the following connectors:
once, since, unless, whether.
1 There exists a suggestion that there is no constitution in England _______ there is no one fundamental body of law.
2 The leading enactments would be unworkable _______ they were added by a mass of judicial decisions and statutes of much less importance.
3 _______ the English Constitution is unwritten you cant find it in one code.
4 The students inquired _______ textbooks and law could be the sources of the English Constitution.
Vocabulary tasks
A Match the following English expressions containing the term law with the Russian equivalents.
1 public law a
2 private law b /
3 ordinary law c
4 constitutional law d ,
5 fundamental law e ,
6 judicial law f ,
7 unwritten law g ,
8 special law h
B Choose the correct alternative to complete the sentences.
1 The sources of English constitutional law are:
a Roman law and Napoleon Code
b statutes, judicial precedents, etc.
c the Ten Commandments.
2 The rules of the British Constitution have to be sought out
a in one code
b in a dozen of newspapers and magazines
c in many different fields.
3 The British constitutional law
a cant be changed
b can be amended
c cant be described.
4 In England there is no distinction between
a the Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights
b a constitutional code and the Act of Settlement
c private and public law.
5 The British Constitution is
a flexible
b written
c rigid.
C Match the terms with their definitions.
1 enactment a previous case taken as example for subsequent cases
2 code b a written law of a legislative body
3 precedent c making (a bill) a law
4 statute d systematic collection of statutes, body of laws so arranged as to
avoid inconsistency and overlapping; set of rules on any subject
Over to you
Discuss these points:
1 If you were able to introduce changes into the British Constitution what would you suggest?
2 Do you think it is possible to substitute the presentday British Constitution by a written one?
Unit 7 US Constitution
Before you read
Discuss these questions.
1 Who were the drafters of the US Constitution?
2 How many states were there in the country when the Constitution was written?
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3 What method did the drafters of the Constitution provide since they saw that the future might bring a need for changes?
