A written constitution is a formal document defining the
nature of the constitutional settlement, the rules that govern the political
system and the rights of citizens and governments in a codified form.
The UK's constitution is not written in a single document,
but derives from a number of sources that are part written and part unwritten,
including accumulated conventions, works of authority, Acts of Parliament, the
common law, and EU law.
Historically, the UK has not had a definable statement of
individual rights and freedoms either - the 1689 Bill of Rights sets out the
powers of parliament - but rather relies on the idea of remaining freedom and
the concept of parliamentary sovereignty.
Therefore, individuals' rights remain dependent on unplanned
legislative protection or upon judicial protection under common law.
This contrasts to many European and Commonwealth countries
and the United States, which have a clearly defined constitutional settlement.
The closest thing the UK has to a bill of rights today is
the Human Rights Act 1998, which incorporates the European Convention of Human
Rights 1950 (ECHR) into domestic law.
We need a constitution because we need a government to
protect our natural rights to life, liberty, and property. The constitution is
the fundamental law within which the government must operate.
We need protection from bad people such as murderers,
oppressors, dictators, corrupt people, thieves, robbers, burglars, fraudsters,
etc. and this is why we must have a government. We need a constitution. The
constitution provides a set of written rules that is authorized, and approved
by the people. The constitution sets out the rules under which the government
is to operate. It is important to remember that the government must protect our
natural rights to life, liberty, and property in accordance only with the
written constitution. In this view, the constitution creates the government;
provides powers to the created government; and limits these government powers.
