Legislatures of the United Kingdom

Last updated November 09, 2024

The legislatures of the United Kingdom are derived from a number of different sources. The Parliament of the United Kingdom ^[1] is the supreme legislative body for the United Kingdom and the British overseas territories with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each having their own devolved legislatures. Each of the three major jurisdictions of the United Kingdom (England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) has its own laws and legal system.

United Kingdom legislature

The Parliament of the United Kingdom can enact primary legislation for the whole of the United Kingdom. In addition, the General Synod of the Church of England and the Privy Council can do so in certain limited cases.

Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the UK Parliament, the British Parliament, the Westminster Parliament or "Westminster", is the supreme legislative body for the United Kingdom and for English Law. It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories. Its head is the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, currently King Charles III. Its seat is the Palace of Westminster in Westminster, London.

The United Kingdom Legislation may take the form of Acts, passed directly by Parliament, or Statutory Instruments, made under the authority of an Act of Parliament by either a government minister or by the King-in-Council. The latter are generally subject either to parliamentary approval (affirmative procedure) or parliamentary disallowance (negative procedure). The majority of Acts considered in the UK are defined as public general acts, or 'Acts of Parliament' as they will have progressed and gained approval as a Bill through both House of Commons and House of Lords, and have gained Royal Assent from the Monarch.

Local and Personal Acts of Parliament are presented to Parliament as a result of sponsored petitions. These are processed through committees to enable relevant or affected parties to challenge or change the proposed Act. Prerogative instruments, made by the Sovereign under the royal prerogative are another source of UK-wide legislation.^[2] The UK Parliament is responsible for all matters relating to defence and all foreign affairs and relations with international organisations, particularly the United Nations, the Commonwealth and the European Union.

With there being no devolved legislature in England the UK Parliament is the supreme body for its governance, legislation, public bodies and local government.

House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is an elected chamber consisting of 650 members, known as Members of Parliament (MPs). They are elected using the first past the post system, in single-member constituencies. From the 2024 general election 543 will be elected from England, 57 from Scotland, 32 from Wales and 18 from Northern Ireland.

The House of Commons is now considered to be the supreme chamber of Parliament.

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is an unelected chamber with all members to the House of Lords being appointed. As of August 2018, there are 793 members known as "Peers". The House of Lords no longer has the same powers as the House of Commons under the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, especially when it comes to blocking general legislation and the passing of financial legislation.

Devolved legislatures

Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament is the national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood",^[3] is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs). Of these 73 MSPs are elected using First past the post in single member constituencies and a further 56 MSPs are elected using the D'Hondt method, a form of party-list proportional representation in eight additional member regions with each region electing 7 MSPs.

The Scottish Parliament was convened by the Scotland Act 1998, which sets out its powers as a devolved legislature. The Act delineates the legislative competence of the Parliament –the areas in which it can make laws –by explicitly specifying powers that are "reserved" to the Parliament of the United Kingdom: all matters that are not explicitly reserved are automatically the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament.^[4] The British Parliament retains the ability to amend the terms of reference of the Scottish Parliament, and can extend or reduce the areas in which it can make laws.^[5] The first meeting of the new Parliament took place on 12 May 1999.^[6]

The Scottish Statutory Instruments made by the Scottish Government are another source of legislation. As with Statutory Instruments made by the British government, these are generally subject to either approval or disallowance by the Scottish Parliament

Senedd

The Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh : Senedd Cymru) has the power to make legislation in Wales. The parliament was created by the Government of Wales Act 1998, which followed a referendum in 1997. It is a democratically elected body with 60 members known as Members of the Senedd (MSs). Of these 40 MSs are elected using First past the post in single member constituencies and a further 20 MSs are elected using the D'Hondt method, a form of party-list proportional representation in five additional member regions with each region electing 4 MSs.^[7]

The Senedd had no powers to initiate primary legislation until limited law-making powers were gained through the Government of Wales Act 2006. Its primary law-making powers were enhanced following a Yes vote in the referendum on 3 March 2011, making it possible for it to legislate in the 20 areas that are devolved without having to consult the UK Parliament, nor the Secretary of State for Wales.^[7] The Senedd may delegate authority to enact legislation through Welsh Statutory Instruments. Under the Wales Act 2017 the Senedd came into line with Scotland and Northern Ireland and moved to a reserved powers model.

Northern Ireland Assembly

The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland which is a democratically elected body comprising 90^[8] members known as Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs). The 90 MLAs are elected using the single transferable vote across the 18 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies with each constituency electing 5 MLAs. It was established in 1998 as part of the Good Friday Agreement which was approved by the public in referendums which were held in both Northern Ireland and in the Republic of Ireland.

It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive. It sits at Parliament Buildings at Stormont in Belfast. Legislation of the Assembly empowers the Northern Ireland Executive to issue Statutory Rules in a variety of areas.

The Assembly was dissolved on 26 January 2017 owing to a breakdown of trust which brought down both the Assembly and Executive. In January 2020, Arlene Foster resumed her post as First Minister.

European Union (1973–2020)

The United Kingdom became a member state of the European Union (EU) when it joined what was originally known as the European Communities on 1 January 1973. By virtue of the European Communities Act 1972, EU law applied in the UK, in effect becoming another source of UK legislation. The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020, though EU law were still applicable in the UK until the end of the implementation period on 31 December 2020.

The European Parliament

The European Parliament (EP) is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union. Together with the Council of the European Union (the council) and the European Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU. The Parliament is composed of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), who represent the second-largest democratic electorate in the world (after the Parliament of India) and the largest trans-national democratic electorate in the world (375 million eligible voters in 2009).^[9]

The United Kingdom between 1979 and 2020 used to elect members to the European Parliament, of these a number were elected using the D'Hondt method, a form of party-list proportional representation in 11 former regional constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales while in Northern Ireland 3 MEPs were elected using the single transferable vote in a single national constituency. With the exit of the United Kingdom from the EU all legislation that provided for the holding of elections to the European Parliament as well as the position of Member of the European Parliament (MEP) within the UK was repealed by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

The historical legislatures

Parliament of England (13th century to 1707)
Parliament of Scotland (13th century to 1707)
Parliament of Ireland (13th century to 1800)
Parliament of Great Britain (1707–1800)
Parliament of Northern Ireland (1921–1972)

Related Research Articles

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy which, by legislation and convention, operates as a unitary parliamentary democracy. A hereditary monarch, currently King Charles III, serves as head of state while the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, currently Sir Keir Starmer since 2024, serves as the elected head of government.

The Scottish Parliament is the unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyrood. The Parliament is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), elected for five-year terms under the regionalised form of additional member system (MMP): 73 MSPs represent individual geographical constituencies elected by the plurality (first-past-the-post) system, while a further 56 are returned as list members from eight additional member regions. Each region elects seven party-list MSPs. Each region elects 15 to 17 MSPs in total. The most recent general election to the Parliament was held on 6 May 2021, with the Scottish National Party winning a plurality.

The United Kingdom has three distinctly different legal systems, each of which derives from a particular geographical area for a variety of historical reasons: English law, Scots law, Northern Ireland law, and, since 2007, calls for a fourth type, that of purely Welsh law as a result of Welsh devolution, with further calls for a Welsh justice system.

The administrative geography of the United Kingdom is complex, multi-layered and non-uniform. The United Kingdom, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe, consists of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. For local government in the United Kingdom, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales each have their own system of administrative and geographic demarcation. Consequently, there is "no common stratum of administrative unit encompassing the United Kingdom".

The Senedd, officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and Senedd Cymru in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees to certain taxes, and scrutinises the Welsh Government. It is a bilingual institution, with both Welsh and English being the official languages of its business. From its creation in May 1999 until May 2020, the Senedd was officially known as the National Assembly for Wales and was often simply called the Welsh Assembly.

The Scotland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which legislated for the establishment of the devolved Scottish Parliament with tax varying powers and the Scottish Government. It was one of the most significant constitutional pieces of legislation to be passed by the UK Parliament between the passing of the European Communities Act in 1972 and the European Union (Withdrawal) Act in 2018 and is the most significant piece of legislation to affect Scotland since the Acts of Union in 1707 which ratified the Treaty of Union and led to the disbandment of the Parliament of Scotland.

A legislative consent motion is a motion passed by either the Scottish Parliament, Senedd, or Northern Ireland Assembly, in which it consents that the Parliament of the United Kingdom may pass legislation on a devolved issue over which the devolved government has regular legislative authority.

England and Wales is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is English law.

Politics of England forms the major part of the wider politics of the United Kingdom, with England being more populous than all the other countries of the United Kingdom put together. As England is also by far the largest in terms of area and GDP, its relationship to the UK is somewhat different from that of Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. The English capital London is also the capital of the UK, and English is the dominant language of the UK. Dicey and Morris (p26) list the separate states in the British Islands. "England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, and Sark.... is a separate country in the sense of the conflict of laws, though not one of them is a State known to public international law." But this may be varied by statute.

In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons.

Politics in Wales forms a distinctive polity in the wider politics of the United Kingdom, with Wales as one of the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom (UK).

In the United Kingdom, devolved matters are the areas of public policy where the Parliament of the United Kingdom has devolved its legislative power to the national legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas where the UK Parliament retains exclusive power to legislate.

The Senedd constituencies and electoral regions are the electoral districts used to elect members of the Senedd to the Senedd, and have been used in some form since the first election of the then National Assembly for Wales in 1999. New boundaries were introduced for the 2007 elections and currently consist of forty constituencies and five regions. The five electoral regions are: Mid and West Wales, North Wales, South Wales Central, South Wales East, and South Wales West, with the forty constituencies listed below. Voting last took place in all districts in the 2021 Senedd election, and is not used for local government.

There are four types of elections in Wales: elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elections to the devolved Senedd, local elections to community councils and the 22 principal areas, and the police and crime commissioner elections. In addition there are by-elections for each aforementioned election. Elections are held on Election Day, which is conventionally a Thursday. Three of these four types of elections are held after fixed periods; the exception is UK general elections, the timing of which is at the discretion of the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Senedd elections may be postponed to avoid elections to the UK parliament and Senedd coinciding with each other.

Welsh law is an autonomous part of the English law system composed of legislation made by the Senedd. Wales is part of the legal jurisdiction of England and Wales, one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. However, due to devolution, the law in Wales is increasingly distinct from the law in England, since the Senedd, the devolved parliament of Wales, can legislate on non-reserved matters.

In many countries, a statutory instrument is a form of delegated legislation.

An Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London.

In the United Kingdom, devolution is the Parliament of the United Kingdom's statutory granting of a greater level of self-government to the Scottish Parliament, the Senedd, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the London Assembly and to their associated executive bodies: the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government, the Northern Ireland Executive and in England, the Greater London Authority and combined authorities.

Federalism in the United Kingdom aims at constitutional reform to achieve a federal UK or a British federation, where there is a division of legislative powers between two or more levels of government, so that sovereignty is decentralised between a federal government and autonomous governments in a federal system.

The United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed in December 2020. Its purpose is to prevent internal trade barriers within the UK, and to restrict the legislative powers of the devolved administrations in economic policy. It is one of several pieces of legislation concerning trade that were passed following the European Union membership referendum, as after Brexit the UK is no longer directly subject to EU law.

References

↑ Section 2 of The Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 (17 Geo. V c. 4)
↑ Lowe, David; Potter, Charlie (19 April 2018). Understanding Legislation: A Practical Guide to Statutory Interpretation. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78225-432-4.
↑ "Scottish Parliament Word Bank". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 3 December 2005. Retrieved 14 November 2006.
↑ "Scotland Act 1998: Scottish Parliament Reserved Issues". Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI). Archived from the original on 19 May 2007. Retrieved 14 November 2006.
↑ Murkens, Jones & Keating (2002) pp11
↑ "Scottish Parliament Official Report – 12 May 1999". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 26 February 2008. Retrieved 5 November 2006.
1 2 "Wales says Yes in referendum vote". BBC News. 4 March 2011.
↑ After the March 2017 elections, previously 108.
↑ Brand, Constant; Wielaard, Robert (8 June 2009). "Conservatives Post Gains in European Elections". The Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved 17 August 2010.

External links

UK legislation by The National Archives/His Majesty's Stationery Office

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[1] Section 2 of The Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 (17 Geo. V c. 4)

[2] Lowe, David; Potter, Charlie (19 April 2018). Understanding Legislation: A Practical Guide to Statutory Interpretation. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78225-432-4.

[HolyroodName-3] "Scottish Parliament Word Bank". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 3 December 2005. Retrieved 14 November 2006.

[SpecifiedReservations-4] "Scotland Act 1998: Scottish Parliament Reserved Issues". Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI). Archived from the original on 19 May 2007. Retrieved 14 November 2006.

[5] Murkens, Jones & Keating (2002) pp11

[FirstMeeting-6] "Scottish Parliament Official Report – 12 May 1999". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 26 February 2008. Retrieved 5 November 2006.

[auto-7] 1 2 "Wales says Yes in referendum vote". BBC News. 4 March 2011.

[8] After the March 2017 elections, previously 108.

[9] Brand, Constant; Wielaard, Robert (8 June 2009). "Conservatives Post Gains in European Elections". The Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved 17 August 2010.

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