The Constitution
The New Constitution is a blog designed to analyse current affairs and suggest solutions. In doing so, it will provide the text of a new constitution for the United Kingdom. This document is constantly being added to as the blog grows in size. Come back soon for more!
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We, the people of the United Kingdom, resolve to restore the political system in this fair island, and consider the necessity to replace the mismanaged, undemocratic mess of a constitution with this, a new Constitution for the United Kingdom of Great Britain.
Parliament
1. There will be no Monarch or system of Peers in the United Kingdom.
2. A single House of Parliament will be known as The House of Commons will be the absolute legislative authority.
3. The House of Commons will comprise of 1000 Members, elected in a single constituency by proportional representation. A seat is given to political parties / individuals for every o.1% of the national vote they achieve.
4. Every citizen over the age of 16 years has the right to vote, except those currently serving prison terms of more than twelve months.
Political Parties
5. Political parties will be funded through their own membership. Individuals may donate up to £49,999 per annum. No company, trade union, pressure group, or other organisation may fund a political party.
Regions
6. A referendum is to be held in Northern Ireland. Votes will be cast either in favour of joining the Republic, of remaining part of the UK, or of gaining independence. If it chooses to leave the UK, we will consider it a close friend, but nothing more.
Crime and Punishment
7. Every citizen is equal in the eyes of the law.
8. Capital punishment is never to be employed by the state.
Foreign Policy
9. We have no eternal allies and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and these interests it is our duty to follow.
10. There will be no membership of the European Union or any organisation taking sovereignty from the United Kingdom. There will be no membership of trading blocs.
11. Weapons of mass destruction are not welcome in a democracy: there will be no possession or use of such weapons by or for the United Kingdom.
The economy
12. All food packaging must have clearly visible icons showing their content of fat, sugar, saturates, salt and calories as a percentage of GDA and coloured according to a traffic light system. This is pretty simple to achieve.
Millsy said
Re number 3.
How are you going to squeeze 1000 constituencies into the UK? More to the point, how can you have constituencies and an arbritrary votes = seats handout? And would the Commons be a federal parliament for the whole of the UK?
steppenwolff said
I must say that paragraph 6 is an odd thing to have in a constitution since that fact is already enshrined in law. As for 11, does that mean the UK will turn into Ireland or Switzerland with no effective standing army? I assume also that 9 means we will have to leave NATO and be a non-participant in the UN?
Number 3 will surely involve the building of a new parliament as the current one can barely hold the number of MPs we have now. What benefits do you see of a unicameral system?
By the way – there is no mention of head of state or how that position will be filled or, indeed, the judiciary.
thenewconstitution said
The removal of weapons of mass destruction do not leave us without an army, and I can assure you that Switzerland has one of the most skilled (and ethical) armies in the world.
We are not bound legally to any UN edicts: only if sanctions were imposed would we have to comply, and even then we would only be subject to sanctions as long as we were members of the UN. Then again, as sanctions can only be imposed by the Security Council, upon which we have both a permanent seat and a veto, it is unlikely that such events will ever occur. NATO is neither a political organisation nor a trading bloc.
Let’s not forget that with the abolition of the House of Lords would come a bit of extra space in Westminster. I’ll do you a deal: I’ll scrap ID cards and build a new parliament building at a fraction of the cost!
As for the head of state, we would still have a prime minister: in reality, not much difficult to what we have at the moment.
dizzy said
“only if sanctions were imposed would we have to comply”
This contradict point 10
thenewconstitution said
Not so. The UN have never dictated law to us, and they cannot do so. Our sovereignty is in no way affected, because their worse sanctions are either trade embargoes – which other nations are free to impose regardless of the UN’s existence – or the use of military action – which other nations can start if the wish, regardless of the UN’s existence. Therefore we have sacrificed no political sovereignty to the UN, and can never do so.
steppenwolff said
The UN Security Council is where international law and the right to go to war is made. Why do you think Thatcher spent so much time getting permission before going to the Falklands?
Two Blogs Linford said
Okay, here’s my verdict.
1-3 are nonsense, and will lead to an elective dictatorship far worse than anything we have today. The Monarch and the House of Lords are essential brakes on executive power. On point 2, the House of Commons should be made smaller, not bigger. There are already far too many MPs doing nothing but getting pissed in the bar and shagging their researchers.
4 might make some sense as levels of political awareness increase. I am not sure we are there yet.
5 sort of agree in principle but there might need to be a period of transitional state funding
6 this would be the most pointless referendum in history, even more so than the one on NE regional government. Northern Ireland is part of the UK, because a majority of its people wish it to be so. I don’t see this changing any time soon.
7-8 agree.
9 couldn’t agree more, and I’m glad I’m not the only person who remembers Lord Palmerston.
10 agree in principle, but it could only be accomplished if all the other members agreed to dissolve the union. Self-imposed isolation while the others carry on with the party is not an option.
11 agree strongly. Some will argue the same point as in 10. applies but I think the time has come when someone has to take a moral lead on this.
12 is this really the most pressing economic issue facing the country?
thenewconstitution said
“12 is this really the most pressing economic issue facing the country?”
No.
shitforbrains said
The biggest problem this Country has, is Politicians. They are the cause of 90% of the trouble in our daily lives. Their ambition is to cause as much unnecessary aggravation and annoyance as possible. These day’s, Parliament should be cut back to Less than 200 Members.That works out at two MPs for each English County. And each MP should be paid by their constituencey. NO more freeloading. £283.000, with all gathered in, works out at £5000 a week. Far too much for the nonsense that “most” MPs spout. You could do worse than the Proposal I suggested.
To begin, what would be your first step? How do you propose to “Make” these “wanabe” World Leaders abandon the life they now have? The Wicked Witch, Cherry Blair, insists that all her “Freebees”, are her “Human Rights”. How do you answer a woman like that?
You know and I know, that to make any sort of start, you first have to generate a massive support. And the most support you are ever likely to get is some thirty million Taxpayers including many smaller businesses, and employers. The Establishment will never back you. why, just this last Christmas people waffled on about the size of City Bonuses. Where do you think most of the money came from? That’s right suckers, most of it was Taxpayers Money. Now pick the bones out of that. How do you think that bunch of “wasters” at Westminster and Whitehall keep the Private Sector “on side”? You haven’t got it yet have you. They use your Bl***y Tax Money to pay them off. You, are paying a regiment, no a Division, of Consultants, Advisers and IT “experts”, to run most Government Departments. You, suckers, have Paid Them £70 Billion, so far and there is more to come.
My Proposal is quite simple and I can assure you, it is Legally correct in every way.
I can show you how to take the money away from Westminster, I would not venture to suggest what you do next, except to say, Make sure a bunch of creeps like today’s Politicians, should never be let anywhere near your Money ever again. So it comes to this. If you want to make a change, I will provide you with the first move, the Begining. Then it is up to you. What do you say? Regards,shitforbrains.
(That ID, was a mistake and I’m stuck with it. I made three or more mistakes Registering and put that down in exasperation.)