...a codified constitution now outweigh its disadvantages’. Discuss There are various advantages to having a codified constitution, especially in the modern climate of security fears that could have on the citizens’ civil liberties. However there are also several advantages to an uncodified constitution, for example its flexibility. When considering codification of the constitution, the following must be considered. A codified constitution would protect the rights of the citizen against the state. At the moment there is the Human Rights Act of 1998 which, in theory, does this already. But as Parliament is sovereign, in can essentially find a way around, or even repeal, this act thus making it unfit for purpose. In 2004 nine men, accused of terrorism, were held without charge (a violation of The Human Rights Act), the men took this case to the House of Lords where it was deemed to be unlawful. This was quickly followed by the introduction of the Anti Terror Act in 2005, which then made it legal for suspected (without significant evidence) terrorists to be held for up to 28 days. This act, for all intents and purposes, superseded the Human Rights Act. So what this says is that an uncodified constitution, where Parliament is sovereign, is open to abuse by the Government therefore making the act useless as it does not do what it was designed for and is therefore not fit for purpose. Whereas if there was a Human Rights Act entrenched, as part of a codified constitution where that...
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...means of communication, technology and transportation of the 21st century, for example, are light-years away from those of the 19th century. Public law concepts have not kept pace. In the words of an author of the book reviewed here, reflecting on the concept of ‘the state’ and the problem of sovereignty: in political as in constitutional legal theory, we still need to cut off the King’s head,1 as we are still entrenched in the philosophical and constitutional language of the 19th century.2 But recently, with European integration and globalisation, change has also occurred in the traditional concepts of public law such as “state” or “constitution”. The book edited by Bamforth and Leyland is about this change over the last thirty years or so.3 “Public Law in a Multi-Layered Constitution” is a significant contribution to a better understanding of how public law is transformed, in Great Britain and elsewhere. The title of the book as well as its introduction (pp. 1-26) state that its central theme is the transformation of the British constitution into a “multi-layered constitution.” This is meant to refer to a constitution that “contains multiple, but inter-connected and sometimes overlapping European and national layers”,4 where “power (both legislative and political) has been spread away from the Westminister Parliament, both ‘upwards’ to the European Union and ‘downwards’ to the devolved assemblies.”5 The editors’ claim is that this restructuring of the constitutional architecture...
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...In the United Kingdom, we have a constitution that is uncodified and therefore not entrenched within our politics. Essentially, this makes it far easier to amend than a codified one and thus some groups have begun calling for such a constitution to be introduced. These groups cite the constitution in the USA, which forms the foundation of all political decisions; if a proposed law is found to go against the constitution, it is rejected. Supporters of a codified constitution for the UK say that this will give citizens inalienable rights which cannot easily be manipulated or even overturned by the government. A constitution is based around a general consensus of what people should be able to do or not do. Constitutional agreement forms the foundations of the concept of a rule of law. In the USA, their written constitution means that the relationship between citizens and the law is clearly defined. If a constitutional law is violated, there can be no debate over it. This means that the law has more authority in the land. However, in the UK, there is not one legal standard of our constitution and thus whether or not it was violated can be questioned. This can potentially lead to a moving of the goalposts – if the constitution is not entrenched, it is easy to change. Therefore it is impossible to hold everyone to the same standard even though the rule of law states that everyone is bound by it, because the government can essentially do what it likes in terms of manipulating or...
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...The British constitution has become increasingly codified, discuss. A constitution is a set of rules that defines the manner a country is run. The British constitution is said to be an unwritten constitution, more accurately it is uncodified as much more of the British constitution is written down, however, they are not all written down in a single document like a codified constitution would require as how the US is, however draws from several different sources such as; statutes laws, common law, conventions, EU laws, authoritative documents etc. Statute law, is a written law passed down by parliament for example the human rights act of 1998 which brought the European convention on human rights into British law, conventions is another source of the British constitution, they are unwritten laws considered binding on members of the political community for example the Salisbury convention which made sure that the house of lords does not obstruct proposals contained in the governments most recent manifesto. Has the British constitution become increasingly codified? Its not the case that the British constitution is being written in a single document but in fact that more of the constitution is being written down as there is increasingly more written statutes that have great constitutional impacts as they are passed by parliament making them more rigid therefore harder to change as parliament has ultimate sovereignty, however you could say the EU laws are exempt from this,...
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...recent years there has been much debate within Parliament over the possible codification of the British Constitution and it is always a topic that people often find very hard to agree on. Though some parts of what may be a codified constitution have been introduced, such as The Human Rights Act which established a codified set of rules and the introduction of devolution, Britain is currently uncodified and so this brings up the arguments of whether update the system or not The initial argument for the change is it was remove the transparency of rules and laws, the key constitutional are collected into a single document all clearly stated with great difficulty of alteration. This portrays exactly what the beliefs of Parliament are and restricts law breaking. Not only does this deter people from committing offences but also makes it simple to enforce as every charge wish be on the same wavelength. An argument to contradict this however would be that's not every crime committed is the same so the variation in the punishment given would also have to vary and with the defining of the law there is actually potential for it to become less democratic. Along with this as times are forever changing and technology is being updated, the demand for laws to be amended is crucial as without it people could technically exploit the system ‘legally’. Another bonus of a codified Constitution is the fact that it is authoritative meaning it is a higher-level and so it lines all political institutions...
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...Constitution What is a constitution? • Set of rules seeking to establishing the duties, powers and functions of the various institutions of government • To regulate the relationships between and among the institutions • Define the relationship between the state and the individual, define extent of civil liberty Types of Constitution • Codified and uncodified o Codified – enshrined in law and based on 1 single authoritative document outlining powers of institutions + government, as well as a statement of the rights of citizen’s ▪ Document is authoritative, highest law of the land. Binds all political institutions – leads to 2 tier legal system ▪ Provisions of it are entrenched, difficult to amend or abolish ▪ It is judiciable, all political bodies are subject to authority of the courts, in particular a supreme court. o Uncodified – increasingly rare, UK one of few ▪ Not authoritative, constitutional laws treated same as ordinary laws ▪ Not entrenched, constitution can be changed through the normal process for enacting statute law. ▪ Not judiciable, judges do not have legal standard to declare that actions of other bodies are constitutional/not constitutional. o However: ▪ No constitution is entirely written, written documents do not encompass all aspects of constitutional practice ▪ No constitution...
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...selected Scotland, and the reason why is because they are a country that is part of the United Kingdon, which holds sovereignty over Scotland. The Queen of England is the head of state. Scotland was an sovereign state until 1707 when they came under the control of the United Kingdom. Scotland does however have a limited self-government within the United Kingdom and is also represented in the United Kingdom Parliament. The United Kingdom Parliament has power over Scotland's taxes, social security, defense, broadcasting, and international relations. Where as the Scottish Parliament has legislative pwer of all other areas for Scotland. (Scotland, n.a.) A State is, "the abstract embodiment, or the symbol, of the political institution." (Perry, 2009) I select the United Kingdom and the reason is the United Kingdom, also called the UK, and has sovereignty over England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The Queen of England is the chief of state, and the Prime Minister is the head of government. Although each one of the countries has their own parliamentary government, the Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme rule, and their parliaments cannot challenge the Constitution of the United Kingdom. (Europe: United Kingdom, n.a.) A Nation-State is, "a state ruling over a territory that contains all the people who are culturally...
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...legislative process, whereas Select Committee is part of scrutiny process. In the former committee, the bill is examined by line by line to ensure that its wording and language is clear to allow any amendments on the bill. In the latter committee, there are two departments – governmental and non-governmental. They examine government departments’ expeditures , policies and policies. There are between 16 to 50 members in the PBC who are selected by Committee of Selection whose 7 out 9 members are ships. On the other hand, there are 11 members in the SCs and to eliminate “the conflict of interest, all the members are backbench members who are elected using the Alternative vote system. 2a What are the main functions of Parliament and how well does it perform them? [5] < This question is a 20-mark question > 3a What are the differences between direct and representative democracy? [5] In direct democracy, people are directly involved in decision-making processes, whereas in representative democracy, people elect MPs who will represent and form a government in Parliament. For instance, some qualified members of Athenian society were involved in decision-making and a referendum is a limited form of direct democracy. Also general elections are kind of parliamentary democracy, they are held every five years to election a representative and a government. There is potential danger that decision-making mechanisms can be affected by an organised faction and demagogue in direct democracy...
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...------------------------------------------------- Accession of Turkey to the European Union | Turkey's application to accede to the European Economic Community, a predecessor of the European Union (EU), was made on 14 April 1987. Turkey has been an associate member since 1963.[2] After the ten founding members, Turkey was one of the first countries to become a member of the Council of Europe in 1949, and was also a founding member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1961[3] and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in 1973. The country has also been an associate member of theWestern European Union since 1992, and is a part of the "Western Europe" branch of the Western European and Others Group (WEOG) at theUnited Nations. Turkey signed a Customs Union agreement with the EU in 1995 and was officially recognised as a candidate for full membership on 12 December 1999, at the Helsinki summit of the European Council. Negotiations were started on 3 October 2005, and the process, should it be in Turkey's favour, is likely to take at least a decade to complete.[4] The membership bid has become a major controversy of the ongoing enlargement of the European Union.[5] ------------------------------------------------- History After the Ottoman Empire's collapse following World War I, Turkish revolutionaries led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk emerged victorious in the Turkish War of Independence, establishing the modern Turkish...
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...critical to the success of nations. The United States and the European Union are examples of democratic entities that work on a global level through foreign policy to achieve national initiatives. This is evident through world trade systems, military involvement, common belief systems and the desire for our world to prosper socially, economically, politically and environmentally. Maintaining independent sovereign nations is achievable through collective work in the global sphere. The modern world is a complex combination of beliefs, cultures, societies and government combined to create global sources of power. Achieving balance within those multi-faceted sources of power is an ongoing struggle. While individual nations focus on their own needs, it is within the best interest of the global society to pursue goals that shape our collective world into a balanced representative entity. The global balance of power is not only defined by the pursuit of national goals, but transnational goals, as well. When one or more nationalities formally join to create a political union, this action constitutes a modern nation-state. According to Bergman and Renwick (2008), “The nation demanded personal dedication and allegiance from its citizens. Therefore, the perfect state was a nation-state, a state ruling over a territory containing all the people of a nation” (p.442). This nation-state will create a system of law and government to structure their society. They will formulate an official language...
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...associated member of the European Community since 1964, following the signing of the Ankara Agreement in 1963. They have been trying to become full members since and officially applied for admittance on April 14, 1987. Because the EC was in the midst of forming a politically and economically tight European Union, the EU did not consider Turkey’s application until 1993. They were not a candidate country until 1999. The EU had outlined 35 chapters for the country to comply with before their admittance is decided on a vote. Europe and Turkey extensively trade between each other. Turkey and the EU already have free trade between each other. Turkey’s exports and imports are mostly with Europe. In 2007, 56.4% of Turkish exports were to the EU, and 40.8% of their imports were from the EU. (Euro Comm)Once admitted as a full member of the European Union, the trade market will only grow. As a member of the European Union, Turkey’s economy will continue to grow. As of now, Turkey is able to export and import goods to and from Europe, but does not export many services. As of 2006, 63.5% of Turkey’s GDP came from services rather than agriculture and industry. (Euro Comm) When the EU admits turkey as a member, Turks will be able to freely cross the borders and provide service across Europe. With the influx of service workers into Europe, turkey and the Europeans will benefit. European countries will be able to receive services at low costs, and the Turkish economy will not be flooded with service...
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...For the past 10 years, Turkey has grown its real GDP at about 6% annually. This came after a huge debt crisis in 2001-02, wherein Turkey had to borrow $16 billion more from the IMF and comport with its difficult conditionality. Today, Turkey is a middle-income country in search of an effective development strategy. It tends to run high inflation with a devalued currency, despite massive capital inflows and a huge current account deficit. At home, the government has carefully managed between Islamicization, democracy and secularism. And abroad, it deals with a difficult neighborhood – Syria, Iran, Iraq, Israel (not to mention Russia, Europe and the USA). Prime Minister Erdogan is trying to rewrite the Constitution before 2014, when the next election occurs. 1. What have been the strengths and weaknesses of Turkey’s growth model? 2. What is causing the current account deficit? What can Turkey do about it? 3. What do you make of Islamicization in Turkey? Has it gone too far? Will it? 4. What do you make of the government’s foreign policy – “zero problems with its neighbors”? Country Background: • Land Mass; 97% in Asia 3% in Europe • 8400 Km Coast Line. (Mediterranean & Black Sea) Rivers: Tigris & Euphrates • Population 75 mm growing at 1.2% annually. 99% Moslem of which 30% Kurdish roots • 26% of population under 15 Years. • Economic activity dominated by Services 64%, then Industry 27 % then Agriculture 9% • Informal economy (unregistered) is a substantial...
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...| Outsourcing your Privacy | | | 4/20/2014 | Business Law Final | | Perhaps BPO is more of a threat than the NSA, when it comes to Privacy! | Outsourcing your Privacy Business Law Final Webster’s dictionary defines privacy as freedom from unauthorized intrusion. The meaning of what privacy is to an extent is driven by the society and its moral norms. Reasonable expectations of privacy in public places must change as our social environment changes. As moral and social norms change in a society the expectation from an individual towards society changes and thereby the individual’s privacy values. For example, slavery was an accepted practice in the late 19th century; today it’s not in practice. In the current information technology age, when an individual submits his personal information for purchasing merchandise online, it is within his expectation that his personal information be protected by the website. In future with the increasing use of technology in the day to day activities, new issues of privacy will arise making today’s notions of privacy out of date. One such issue is the privacy of personal information in business process outsourcing. Business process outsourcing (BPO) is the process of contracting a specific business task to a third-party service provider. There are two categories of BPO. Back office outsourcing constitutes the outsourcing of internal business functions such as purchasing or billing. Front office outsourcing constitutes the outsourcing...
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...of every court case was decided by a vote of the Assembly. With this system, all citizens were actively and constantly involved in the running of all political life. Since the French Revolution, representative democracy has spread throughout most of the world. These governments consist of complex structures, in which the legislature is carried out by a parliament. With the influence of media and the overall advancement of technology, such as the Internet, the voting behaviour of citizens in contemporary democracies has caused many transnational bodies, such as the EU, to question the sovereignty of each country and its chosen representatives. As a result, one could ask what structures of direct democracies can exist in such a time where the conditions have changed drastically since old Athens? Furthermore, do they constitute meaningful alternatives to representative democracy? For this investigation, a line needs to be drawn between the different types of instruments used by direct democracies. In the first part, I will focus on instruments of direct democracies that influence the executive branch. In the second part, I will focus on instruments of direct democracies that influence the legislative branch, mostly carried out by referendums. Within this study, I will also distinguish between decision promoting, decision controlling and imposed referendums by a government. Notably, people have an enhanced influence on the decision making process when they get the opportunity to...
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...As exemplified by The European Union (EU), regional economic integration is replete with political, economic, and cultural danger. Discuss through the use of valid, real-life examples A regional economic integration, is when a certain number of nations, agree to reduce or eliminate economic barriers (and in certain levels of integration non-economic barriers as well), in order to create an adequate atmosphere between them for the flow of goods, services and factors of production. There are 5 levels of economic integration and the bigger the level is, the bigger the danger is. The EU is the biggest economic integration in the world because they have created an economic and monetary Union. After World War II, Europe was devastated in economic, political, moral and cultural terms. That’s why a certain number of countries decided to sign an agreement of “non-war” between them. Further on, the European Economic Community was created and more countries were joining it. This was the beginning of the biggest political and economic integration in the world, signed in 1957 (known as treaty of Rome). Then border barriers were removed and in 1993, the European Union was formally established. The objective of the European Union is to create an economic and political union between the members, to create a single market with common policies and a common government, which lead them to a regional economic integration. This integration has shown some profits and some dangers too. We’re going...
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