Constitutional Reform in Britain and France

242 pages

English

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Constitutional Reform in Britain and France , livre ebook

University of Wales Press - Elizabeth Gibson-Morgan

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

242 pages

English

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

Any attempt at comparing contemporary change in the UK and France is a bold one, since it means discussing two very different countries with strong distinctive constitutional identities. This book places its emphasis on the shared historical, political and cultural background of the UK and France, before focusing on the sweeping transformation of their constitutional frameworks in the past quarter of a century at a national and regional level – with a particular emphasis on Wales and Scotland – which culminated in the June 2016 referendum on Britain’s EU membership. Instead of examining each country separately, however, as is traditional, this study breaks new ground by explaining the pattern of institutional development in Britain and France from a comparative Franco-British perspective. It explores the complexities of recent constitutional change in both countries in an original and comprehensive way, and gives both British and French readers a deeper understanding of the two countries that have some much in common even though Brexit could drive them apart.

Foreword
Introduction
Chapter 1: Constitutional Change: codifying the British constitution, rewriting the French
1-The French constitution as a living organism and the British Constitution in flux
2-Amending the British constitution
3-Revising the constitution of ‘the one and indivisible Republic’
4-Unprecendented constitutional change: towards a constitutional revolution?
Chapter 2: The French presidency and the British monarchy: changed and yet unchanging institutions
1-An unbalanced executive-legislative relationship: a common area of concern
2-The search for the perfect constitution: French hesitations between a presidential regime and a British type of parliamentary regime
3-Blurred lines between the Head of State and the Head of Government
3.1-The nomination of French and British Prime Ministers
3.2- The lack of clear mandate of the French and British Prime Ministers
4-The presidential drift of the French system and the all-powerful British Prime Minister
5- The non-accountability of the French President and the British monarch
5.1-The immunity from suit of the French and British Heads of State
5.2-The French President’s political interference and the lobbying practices of the monarch-in-waiting
Chapter 3: Emancipating and reforming Parliaments in France and the United Kingdom
1-Rationalised parliamentarianism: its decline in France and its emergence in Britain
2-Reactivating conventions and constitutional practice in French and English parliamentary law
3-Reviving bicameralism in the United Kingdom and France
3.1-Undemocratically elected, yet more legitimate, second chambers
3.2-The House of Lords and the French Senate as counter-powers and custodians of freedoms and stability
4-Revisiting the myth of the non-reform of the Senate and the House of Lords
4.1-The abolition of the hereditary principle and the end of a structural conservative majority
4.2-The shorter more democratic mandate of French senators and a better representation of urban constituencies
5-The election process of French senators partly based on PR and the failed attempt at introducing a form of PR in the UK Parliament
5.1-A French Senate-type upper-limit as a potential solution for an ever-growing Lords
5.2-Failed attempts at introducing PR in the French National Assembly and in the Commons
6-Strengthening parliamentary control over the Executive
6.1-French ‘Questions to the Government’ and Prime Minister’s Questions in the UK
6.2-French and British committees as the cornerstone of parliamentary life
Chapter 4: Better protecting human rights and strengthening an independent judiciary
1-Asserting the unity of the English judiciary compared with the French division of courts
2-Strengthening the independence of the judiciary in England and France
2.1- A formal separation between the judiciary and the legislature with the Constitutional Reform Act (2005)
2.2-The development of constitutional justice in France
2.3-The President of the Republic in France, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice as guarantors of the independence of justice
2.4-French judges as symbols of the Republican Law, British judges as Her Majesty’s judges
2.5-The lack of diversity in the Higher Judiciary in the UK and in France
2.6-The importance of local justice in the UK and in France with the Lay Bench
3-Human rights under threat: A French state of emergency and British inroads into civil liberties
Chapter 5: Devolution in the United Kingdom, a decentralisation process in France
1-Piecemeal territorial reforms in France and the UK: common trends and patterns
2-The origin of contemporary devolution in the UK and decentralisation in France
2.1-The 1982 and 1983 decentralisation or Deferre Laws: a minimalist form of devolution
2.2-The Kilbrandon Report (1973) as the catalyst for devolution in the UK
3-The legal framework: no clear division of competences
3.1-The French general competence clause and British transfers of competences to separate devolved governments
3.2-A reserved-powers model for Scotland, a conferred-powers model for Wales
3.3-Abolishing French régions or départements: a permanent dilemma
3.4- Pressing for more decentralisation in France and more devolution in the UK
4-The financial framework: devolved administrations’ and territorial communities’ limited fiscal responsibility
5- The way ahead: a revisited Union and a more diverse Republic
Chapter 6: The European Dimension: France and the UK, Partners in Europe
1-War powers and parliamentary consent in France and the United Kingdom
2-A tradition of human rights in common within the Council of Europe
3-Constitutional issues triggered by a common EU membership
4-The 2005 French referendum on the European Constitution and the 2016 referendum on the UK’s EU membership
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Sujets

International Relations

Political Science

Diplomacy

Informations

Publié par	University of Wales Press
Date de parution	15 septembre 2017
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781786831231
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	3 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,4100€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Constitutional Reform in Britain and France

From Human Rights to Brexit

Elizabeth GibsonMorgan

University of Wales Press 2017

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing it in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright owner. Applications for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the University of Wales Press, 10 Columbus Walk, Brigantine Place, Cardiff CF10 4UP.

www.uwp.co.uk

British Library CIP Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN eISBN

9781786831224 9781786831231

The right of Elizabeth GibsonMorgan to be identiﬁed as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 79 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Typeset by Marie Doherty Printed by CPI Antony Rowe, Melksham

To Kenbach

List of Abbreviations Foreword

Introduction

Contents

Chapter One: Constitutional Change: Codifying the British Constitution, Rewriting the French The French constitution as a living organism and the British constitution in ﬂux Amending the British constitution Revising the constitution of the ‘one and indivisible’ Republic Unprecedented constitutional change: towards a constitutional revolution? Conclusion

Chapter Two: The French Presidency and the British Monarchy: Changed and yet Unchanging Institutions An unbalanced executive–legislative relationship: a common area of concern The search for the perfect constitution: French hesitations between a presidential regime and a British type of parliamentary regime Blurred lines between the Head of State and the Head of Government The nomination of French and British Prime Ministers The lack of a clear mandate for the French and British Prime Ministers The presidential drift of the French system and the allpowerful British Prime Minister The nonaccountability of the French President and the British monarch The immunity from suit of the French and British Heads of State The French President’s political interference and the lobbying practices of the monarchinwaiting Conclusion

xi xiii

14 16 21

24 30

39 42 42 44

49 50

51 55

viii

Contents

Chapter Three: Emancipating and Reforming Parliaments in France and the United Kingdom Rationalised parliamentarianism: its decline in France and its emergence in Britain Reactivating conventions and constitutional practice in French and English parliamentary law Reviving bicameralism in the United Kingdom and France Undemocratically elected yet more legitimate second chambers The House of Lords and the French Senate as counterpowers and custodians of freedoms and stability Revisiting the myth of the nonreform of the Senate and the House of Lords The abolition of the hereditary principle and the end of a structural Conservative majority The shorter, more democratic mandate of French senators and a better representation of urban constituencies The election process of French senators partly based on PR and the failed attempt at introducing a form of PR in the UK Parliament A French Senatetype upper limit as a potential solution for an evergrowing Lords Failed attempts at introducing PR in the French National Assembly and in the Commons Strengthening parliamentary control over the executive French ‘Questions to the Government’ and Prime Minister’s Questions in the UK French and British committees as the cornerstone of parliamentary life Conclusion

61 66 67

84 87

87 89 92

Chapter Four: Better Protecting Human Rights and Strengthening an Independent Judiciary 99 Asserting the unity of the English judiciary compared with the French division of courts 100 Strengthening the independence of the judiciary in England and France 103 A formal separation between the judiciary and the legislature with the Constitutional Reform Act (2005)104 The development of constitutional justice in France106 The President of the Republic in France, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice as guarantors of the independence of justice107

Contents

French judges as symbols of Republican Law, British judges as Her Majesty’s judges The lack of diversity in the higher judiciary in the UK and in France The importance of local justice in the UK and in France with the lay Bench Human rights under threat: a French state of emergency and British inroads into civil liberties Conclusion

109 110

116

117 122

Chapter Five: Devolution in the United Kingdom, a Decentralisation Process in France 131 Piecemeal territorial reforms in France and the UK: common trends and patterns 133 The origin of contemporary devolution in the UK and decentralisation in France 135 The 1982 and 1983 decentralisation or Deferre Laws: a minimalist form of devolution136 The Kilbrandon Report (1973) as the catalyst for devolution in the UK138 The legal framework: no clear division of competences 139 The French general competence clause and British transfers of competences to separate devolved governments140 A reservedpowers model for Scotland, a conferredpowers model for Wales142 Abolishing Frenchrégionsordépartements: a permanent dilemma143 Pressing for more decentralisation in France and more devolution in the UK145 The ﬁnancial framework: devolved administrations’ and territorial communities’ limited ﬁscal responsibility 146 The way ahead: a revisited Union and a more diverse Republic 151 Conclusion 160

Chapter Six: The European Dimension: France and the UK, Partners in Europe 169 War powers and parliamentary consent in France and the United Kingdom 171 A tradition of human rights in common within the Council of Europe 175 Constitutional issues triggered by a common EU membership 179 The 2005 French referendum on the European constitution and the 2016 referendum on the UK’s EU membership 186 Conclusion 194