“The United Kingdom needs a new Magna Carta”
Name: Alexander Haslam
Email: [email protected]
Age: 18
Educational Establishment: The Ilfracombe Academy
Category: A-Level
Word Count: 999
Magna Carta is a constitutional document of the feudal era1. It was a practical solution to a
political crisis which primarily served the interests of the highest ranks of feudal society2. It
has enjoyed a legacy spanning eight-hundred years, but now serves little use in the modern
world as many of its clauses have been repealed3. As many countries move into the
democratic era, it is less likely that Magna Carta will be used in the fight against despotism
as it was in events such as the Arab Spring4. Thus one is led to ask the whether the United
Kingdom does need a ‘new Magna Carta’ in the form of a written constitution - yet one finds
that there are many advantages to having the unwritten constitution that the United
Kingdom has.
One such advantage is that an unwritten constitution can easily evolve and adapt to a
change in laws at any time; a point emphasised by Magna Carta. William Sharp McKechnie
finds ‘The most prominent feature of the Charter is its solicitude to define the exact extent
of feudal services and dues’5, highlighting the disadvantage of having laws entrenched in a
constitutional document. The flexibility of an unwritten constitution ‘enables practical
problems to be resolved as they arise and individual reforms made’6. Therefore the United
Kingdom is able to benefit because of its unwritten constitution; changes can be made
without having to go through the lengthy procedure that countries such as the United States
use – a process which requires two third of both houses of congress, and three quarters of
the states to ascend to the amendment of their constitution7. The major implication being
the risk of law in the United Kingdom becoming outdated as it would take a significant
amount of time to change, which shows why a ‘new Magna Carta’ is not necessary.
Moreover, time is a major issue when it comes to drafting a written constitution. Most
written constitutions in the world ‘were the product of revolution or independence’8 which
allowed for an agreement between politicians to form. The United Kingdom has neither of
these conditions and it is unlikely that there would be an agreement on what should be in
the constitution because of the differences of political parties. They could agree on wanting
a written constitution but it is unlikely that they would be able to agree on the precise
contents. Such issues as the European Union would never be agreed upon by the likes of the
Conservatives, Liberal Democrats or UKIP – each respectively wanting ‘greater European
Union efficiency’, to ‘hold a referendum’ and to ‘leave the European Union’9. An example
can once again be drawn from Magna Carta as there were two parties represented, the King
1
http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/britains-unwritten-constitution
http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-an-introduction
3
https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/graham-allen/new-magna-carta-constitution-fit-for-21stcentury
4
http://magnacarta800th.com/magna-carta-today/
5
Magna Carta: A Commentary on the Great Charter of King John, with an Historical Introduction [1215],
William Sharp McKechnie
6
A new Magna Carta? Second Report of Session 2014-15 produced by the House of Commons Political and
Constitutional Committee, Page 24
7
http://www.lawteacher.net/free-law-essays/constitutional-law/against-codifying-the-uks-constitutionalarrangements-constitutional-law-essay.php
8
A new Magna Carta? Second Report of Session 2014-15 produced by the House of Commons Political and
Constitutional Committee, Page 24
9
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-29642613
2
Word Count: 999
and the barons, who were using Magna Carta as ‘essentially a peace treaty’10, enabling them
to reach an agreement. If the parties ever were to reach an agreement on the contents and
then complete the constitution it would lead to reforms elsewhere, such as in the House of
Lords, slowing the production of the constitution down and creating ‘a diversion of scarce
time and resources… from the most relevant social and economic problems facing the
country’11. This would then lead to the aforementioned issue of outdated laws – a problem
which the United Kingdom does not need and can easily avoid.
An element of the time it would take would be to do with the votes of citizens in the United
Kingdom; a group that is against major change - evident through the events of the
referendum held in May 2011 for an alternative voting system. 42% of the country voted,
with a 67.9% vote cast against the cause and the ‘No’ vote was in the majority of every
region that voted12. This showed that the public of the United Kingdom was not in favour of
major change, which is further supported by the outrage against devolution13 as well as the
backlash facing the idea of ‘scrapping’ the Human Rights Act14. A written constitution may
end up containing such an item, and much like Magna Carta, it would become a ‘socially
divided and divisive document’15. In that sense, the United Kingdom is certainly not in need
of a ‘new Magna Carta’.
Conclusively, one finds that a ‘new Magna Carta’ would provide far too many problems for
the country to deal with in its current state. Unlike the Americans, there is no current fight
for British independence. The conditions of 1215, in which Magna Carta has been said to
contain ‘a revolutionary programme’16, are also not present. Thus a written constitution
could not be completed quickly, if at all, endangering the British legal system greatly and
creating a risk that does not need to be taken. Instead, one finds solace in the unwritten
constitution and the way it is controlled by both Parliament and the British people as stated
by Justice Bradley in the Slaughter-House cases: ‘England has no written constitution, it is
true; but it has an unwritten one, resting in the acknowledged, and frequently declared,
privileges of Parliament and the people, to violate which in any material respect would
produce a revolution in an hour’17. Therefore, the United Kingdom does not need a ‘new
Magna Carta’.
10
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/magna-carta-sealed
A new Magna Carta? Second Report of Session 2014-15 produced by the House of Commons Political and
Constitutional Committee, Page 27
12
Alternative Vote Referendum 2011 produced by the House of Commons
13
http://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2015/01/27/appeasement-rarely-works-too-much-devolution-underminesthe-uk/
14
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/attempting-scrap-human-rights-act-9298752
15
BBC History Magazine February 2015, Page 27
16
Magna Carta by J.C. Holt, Page 285
17
http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/documents/1851-1875/slaughter-house-cases/mr-justice-bradley-dissenting.php
11
Word Count: 999