214 General Principles of Constitutional and Administrative Law

prime minister to appoint sufficient peers to secure a majority in the

House of Lords. In 1909–11 there was a major constitutional crisis

the result of which, following two general elections, was that the Lords

agreed to the passing of the Parliament Act 1911.

The Parliament Act 1911 placed the relationship between Lords and

Commons on a legal basis in which the Commons has the last word.

The one vital power left to the Lords is that of preventing a govern-

ment from remaining permanently in office since the Parliament Acts

do not apply to a bill to prolong the life of Parliament. Subject to this

the role of the House of Lords is the limited one of suggesting revisions

to legislation and providing an opportunity for debate and investiga-

tion in committee of matters of public concern. Further reforms were

made by the Life Peerages Act 1958 which reinvigorated the House by

allowing appointed life peers to sit. This made the House of Lords

a respected, but still ultimately powerless, debating chamber. The pres-

ent government proposes to reform the House of Lords. It has com-

menced the process in a modest way by the House of Lords Act 1999,

which reduced the number of hereditary peers able to sit in the House

from many hundred to ninety-two. Its further proposals envisage a

predominantly appointed House with a small elected element (see

Chapter 11).

10.2 The Meeting of Parliament

The foundations of the modern law were established by the 1688

Revolution. The main principles are as follows. They are a mixture of

law and convention.

1. ‘Parliament ought to be held frequently’ (Bill of Rights 1688 Art. 13)

and must meet at least once every three years (Meeting of Parlia-

ment Act 1694). In fact Parliament meets annually (convention

backed by administrative necessity, for example authorising tax

and public spending).

2. Parliament must automatically end at the expiry of five years from

the date of its writ of summons (see below) (Septennial Act 1715;

Parliament Act 1911).

3. Within the five years Parliament may be dissolved by the monarch

(law) on the advice of the prime minister (convention). However, it

is possible that in certain extreme cases the monarch can exercise

personal choice whether or not to dissolve Parliament (see p. 295).

A Parliament usually lasts for about four years, dissolution being

timed for the political advantage of the prime minister. This is one

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Parliament

of the main sources of prime ministerial power. It is sometimes

suggested that Parliament should sit for a fixed term, thus remov-

ing a prime minister’s power to call an election to suit his own

party. This could, however, paralyse a weak government (see Royal

Commission on the Constitution, Cmnd. 5460, 1969–73). A prime

minister whose government is defeated on a vote of confidence in

the House of Commons must ask for a dissolution.

4. Dissolution triggers a general election which must be held within

18 working days of the dissolution. The same proclamation dis-

solves Parliament and summons a new one. If the monarch dies after

the proclamation but before the meeting of the new Parliament the

meeting is postponed for 14 days (Representation of the People Act

1985 s. 70). In practice Parliament is either prorogued or adjourned

(below) a few days before being formally dissolved so as to permit a

breathing space during which it technically remains in being.

5. A ‘Parliament’ is divided into ‘sessions’. These are working periods

usually running from November until July (about 170 sitting days).

Public bills that are not completed by the end of a session lapse.

Sessions are ‘prorogued’ by the monarch under the royal preroga-

tive. Each session is opened by the monarch, with an Address from

the Throne which outlines the government’s legislative proposals.

The event provides an opportunity for a general debate on govern-

ment policy which takes place immediately afterwards. Within each

Session each House can be adjourned at any time by resolution of

the House.

6. There is machinery for recalling each House while it stands pro-

rogued (e.g. Meeting of Parliament Act 1870; Emergency Powers

Act 1920). An adjourned Parliament can be summoned quickly by

the Speaker and the Lord Chancellor (who presides over the House

of Lords) at the request of the prime minister. The Speaker can also

suspend individual sittings. However, it does not seem to be pos-

sible for ordinary MPs to recall Parliament in order to debate any

crisis that may arise while Parliament is not sitting. Government

has many powers under the royal prerogative, notably to deploy the

armed forces and even to declare war, which it can exercise without

reference to Parliament.

10.3 The Functions of Parliament

As we have seen, Parliament combined with the Queen is the supreme

law-making body. The separate Houses of Parliament each have dis-

tinctive functions.

216 General Principles of Constitutional and Administrative Law

10.3.1 The House of Commons

Today, Parliament is largely a reactive body responding to initiatives

from the government, and sometimes from outside bodies. The House

of Commons has several functions which in our loose system, unpro-

tected as it is by the separation of powers, may conflict. Indeed the

House of Commons is widely regarded as dysfunctional. The main

functions of the House of Commons are as follows:

(i) It legitimises the government by financing and supporting it

through its majority and providing a training and recruiting

ground for government ministers

(ii) It enacts legislation although this normally takes the form of

approving or amending legislation made by the government.

(iii) It holds the government to account through debates, questions

and committee investigations.

(iv) It provides a forum for ventilating matters of public concern.

These can be generated by outside bodies representing particular

interests or by the grievances of individuals. While every MP has

a duty to represent his or her constituents it is unclear how far

MPs are entitled to act as advocates for other interests.

The procedures by which these functions are implemented will be

discussed in Chapter 12.

. Our system is a parliamentary system as opposed to the presidential

system pioneered by the USA. By this is meant that the government

is not directly elected but chosen by Parliament. By convention the

prime minister is the person who commands the support of the major-

ity in the Commons. The prime minister then advises the Queen

on the appointment of the other government ministers and the

Queen must accept the PM’s advice. By convention most ministers

must be members of the House of Commons thus ensuring that they

are fully accountable. There are, however, statutory limits upon the

number of ministers who can sit in the Commons (above, p. 112), a

principle that reflects the separation of powers. Therefore some

ministers notably the Lord Chancellor, sit in the Lords. Some states

such as France combine the parliamentary and presidential systems

by having a directly elected president who appoints a prime minister

and government, the members of which can, but need not be, mem-

bers of the legislature. The legislature can remove the government.

It is not essential to the parliamentary system that ministers are

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Parliament

also MPs provided that Parliament can choose and dismiss the

government.

. The size and complexity of modern government means that par-

liamentary control over government cannot be exercised directly.

Parliamentary approval of the executive’s budget and accounts is

largely a formality. Detailed scrutiny and control over government

spending takes place mainly within the government itself through the

medium of the Treasury. However, a substantial parliamentary

safeguard is provided by the National Audit Office, headed by the

Comptroller and Auditor General. This is an aspect of a modern

tendency to create specialised supervisory bodies while preserving

constitutional propriety by making them formally responsible to

Parliament.

. Legislation is usually presented to Parliament ready drafted by the

executive. Although any group of members can propose a law, in

practice, because the Leader of the House who is responsible for the

timetable is a member of the government the parliamentary process