Following last month’s piece looking at the prospect of human rights reform in the next few years, our piece this week turns to the related subject of mooted reforms to the structural constitution, including the relationship between the three branches of government and the royal prerogative. It succinctly breaks down the positions the Labour Party has and should take on each of the main proposals, now that it falls to us to be the champion of the rule of law.
Constitutional Reform – the Issues
Introduction
As is widely known, the Conservative Party have plans to make major reforms to the UK constitution. This was made clear in its 2019 manifesto, which promised to look at:
“the broader aspects of our Constitution; the relationship between the Government, Parliament and the courts; the functioning of the Royal prerogative; the role of the House of Lords; and access to justice for ordinary people.”[1]
There was a further promise to “update” the Human Rights Act and administrative law to “ensure that there is a proper balance between the rights of individuals, our vital national security and effective government.” A key part of this agenda was to limit the scope for judicial review:
“We will ensure that judicial review is available to protect the rights of individuals against an overbearing state, while ensuring that it is not abused to conduct politics by another means or to create needless delays.”
Finally, the Conservatives pledged to establish a Constitution, Democracy and Rights Commission in the first year of the new Parliament to examine these issues in depth and provide proposals to restore trust in our institutions and in how our democracy operates.
Since the election, in a paper published by Policy Exchange (the think tank recently described by former Supreme Court Justice Lord Sumption as the intellectual engine powering the government), Professor Richard Ekins has stated that:
“The rise of judicial power in the UK in recent years is a striking change in our constitutional arrangements – in how we are governed – a change that threatens good government, parliamentary democracy and the rule of law. The expansion of judicial power is a function both of Parliament’s decision to confer new powers on courts – most notably by enacting the Human Rights Act 1998 – and of the changing ways in which many judges, lawyers and scholars now understand the idea of judicial power. Parliament is responsible for maintaining the balance of the Constitution and should restate limits on judicial power, restoring the political constitution and the common law tradition.”
The Conservative Party’s plans in relation to the UK constitution have been disrupted by the Covid-19 crisis but it is inevitable that they will rise to the top of the agenda within the lifetime of this Parliament. The intention of this paper therefore is to respond to the developing trends in constitutional thinking at the top of government.
The remainder of this paper is divided into four sections. First, a section entitled “Givens”, which lists those features of the Constitution which are unlikely to be challenged by any of the main parties in the foreseeable future. The second, entitled “Myths”, describes the key arguments underpinning Conservative Party policy but which, in our view, are completely unfounded and serve to distract from sensible debate. The third section, entitled “Oppose”, refers to proposals in the Conservative Party manifesto or otherwise which should be strongly resisted. The fourth and final section entitled “Support” lists some alternative ideas which should be supported or at least be subjected to fuller scrutiny.
Givens
Based on the position of all major UK-wide political parties in recent years, the following features of the UK constitution are very unlikely to change in the foreseeable future and should therefore be treated as the foundation for any serious discussion of the way forward. These are that:
- the UK will remain as a constitutional monarchy;
- the UK should remain a union of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland;
- Parliament should remain sovereign;
- government ministers must be members of one or other of the Houses of Parliament;
- the role of the judiciary is to interpret and, where appropriate, to develop the law and to assess, by reference to the law, the legality of the conduct of those who come before it, and in this role, they must have complete independence.
Myths
The first myth is that judges have become too political and that the scope of judicial review needs to be cut back. We strongly disagree. There is little evidence for this proposition, and we consider that on the contrary this is an example of the politicians rather than the judges seeking to expand the boundaries of their empire. In particular, it is the express and valuable role of the judges to adjudicate upon the legality of executive action, something which is a key element in our democracy. This is especially true in cases such as the two judicial reviews initiated by Gina Miller, in which the judges highlighted the legal constraints limiting the powers of the executive in relation to the role of Parliament. In this area the most controversial issue in recent times has been the extent to which the judges can constrain the role of Parliament itself (something very different from constraining the executive in relation to Parliament). Thus, in the Privacy International case, the majority of the Supreme Court held (on the construction of the relevant ouster clause) that Parliament in that particular case did not intend to exclude judicial review. Once again, however, this seems to be a necessary protection of the rule of law in a functioning democracy.
It is worth noting that, although Lord Sumption has, since his retirement, been very critical of some aspects of judicial review, he himself has acknowledged that any remedy for this situation lies in the hands of the judges themselves and has accepted that the judges are likely to deal with it.
The second myth concerns human rights and the role of the Human Rights Act. In our view, those who denigrate the human rights regime are again doing so for political reasons. In considering whether the Human Rights Act has allowed an expansion of judicial power, it is vital to remember that, in our system of parliamentary democracy, the judges have no power to overturn an Act of Parliament, even if it is held to be incompatible with the Human Rights Convention. The powers of the courts are limited to the requirement to read and give effect to legislation in a way which is compatible with Convention rights and/or if necessary to grant a declaration of incompatibility, and it is then for Parliament to amend, or repeal, the legislation to achieve compliance with the Human Rights Convention – a step which Parliament has invariably taken in those few cases in which the issue has arisen.
The third and final myth is more controversial. We do not agree with those who claim that the executive has become too powerful, and that particularly where the government of the day has a substantial majority, we have a system that can be characterised as an elective dictatorship. No doubt a clearer picture in relation to this issue will emerge in the coming years under the Johnson government, but it seems to us that a period of hung Parliaments has demonstrated that, unless government is capable of achieving the changes which the electorate has voted for, then the democratic system itself tends to lose the confidence of the electorate.
It is however worth adding that the idea that Parliament itself has become too powerful – an idea which became current as a result of the failure of MPs to vote decisively for legislation necessary to enable Brexit to be implemented – is also entirely mythical. The problem was simply, and precisely, that there was a hung parliament and that the Fixed-Term Parliament Act[2] delayed, but ultimately did not preclude, a dissolution leading to a general election.
Oppose
This list is quite easy to enumerate.
- The departure of the United Kingdom from the European Convention on Human Rights;
- The abolition or downgrading by any means of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom;
- The reinstatement of the role of the Lord Chancellor as a judicial and legislative figure as well as a member of the executive;
- The ability of Parliament to delegate its role to the population at large by means of a referendum, save in very limited circumstances where a referendum is called to approve or disapprove of a legislative proposal which has already been enacted subject to the outcome of a referendum;
- We would also oppose the idea of a “royal veto” of legislation passed by Parliament in order to constrain executive overreach.
Support
Again, here is our list.
- As noted above, the UK should remain a union of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the importance of the devolved nations working together having been high-lighted by the Covid-19 crisis.
- However, as Keir Starmer pointed out during the Labour leadership campaign, if we are to save the Union, we need to move towards a more federal system for the United Kingdom, possibly as envisaged in the Act of Union Bill published by the Constitution Reform Group. This would reform the role of the second Chamber into one in which the various nations of the United Kingdom were specifically represented.
- Consideration should also be given to the idea of citizens’ assemblies as a means of involving people more directly in the political process, from which, as the Brexit debate showed, many feel they have become marginalised.
- Another concept which deserves much greater scrutiny is that of local devolution. As many now recognise, increased public and private investment alone is not sufficient. It needs to be accompanied by a significant increase in local decision making over how new investment should be allocated and how its benefits should be distributed.
- Any serious examination of the Constitution requires a review of the voting system. The Jenkins Commission, initiated by Tony Blair, came forward with various recommendations which were never implemented. It is time to revisit this issue.
- There can now be little doubt that the Ministry of Justice/Lord Chancellor’s department should become a “protected department” in order to provide a stronger defence of the judiciary against political interference.
- We support the creation of a statutory “right to justice”, as set out in the Bach Commission Report, and the provision of a fair, accessible and affordable legal aid system to ensure that the right can be exercised.
Conclusions
We have not so far expressed either support or opposition for the proposed Constitution, Democracy and Rights Commission. The reason for this is quite simple – it depends entirely how it is to be set up, who is to be appointed to be on it, and what approach it will take to the issues. If the Commission is packed with those at one end of the constitutional spectrum e.g those who dispute the “givens” above and/or believe in the “myths” above, then that is a type of Commission which should undoubtedly be opposed. If, on the other hand, the Commission is drawn from people with a wide range of differing views and backgrounds – and if its aims are constructive rather than destructive – then it is possible that such a body could play an important part in reinvigorating the kind of constitutional debate which we ourselves believe would be beneficial.
Despite the focus on constitutional issues in its 2019 manifesto, we think it quite possible that the pressure of events – be it tackling Covid-19, addressing the need for a post-Brexit trade deal, responding to the growing pressure for greater economic justice between different regions and communities – will deflect the government from pursuing an active or well thought out policy on these issues. Constitutional reform therefore presents a policy area in which the opposition has the opportunity to develop a strong and attractive set of ideas – on matters such as the preservation of the union, local devolution, and even the voting system – and thereby to gain serious political ground.
In any event, it already seems clear that, as in the past, it will fall to Labour to be the champion of the rule of law and of legally enforceable human rights protection in an era of economic stringency in which the voices of populism will continue to offer a false prospectus to the disadvantaged.
David Drew, Stephen Hockman and Ali Sadek
[1] See page 48
[2] This legislation has become extremely unpopular and the possibility of repealing it, but alongside other necessary changes, will deserve careful study.