Where does political power reside in the UK and how is it controlled?
The nature of the uncodified British constitution, where sovereignty resides, the institutions of the constitution, and how the relationships between them control political power.
A focused answer for AQA GCSE Citizenship Studies on the nature of the uncodified British constitution, where sovereignty resides, the institutions of the constitution, and how the relationships between them control political power.
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What this dot point is asking
AQA wants you to know the nature of the British constitution, where political power (sovereignty) lies, and the main institutions that share and check that power. This Politics and participation topic (Paper 1 Section B) is tested through "Describe" and "Explain" questions on the uncodified constitution and the sovereignty of Parliament, and through extended questions on how power is controlled. The examiner rewards precise definitions: that the constitution is uncodified rather than absent, that sovereignty rests with Parliament, and that the institutions check one another. The key idea is that the UK has a constitution, but it is found in many sources rather than in one written document.
What a constitution is and why the UK's is uncodified
Most countries have a single written (codified) constitution, but the UK does not. This does not mean the UK has no constitution; it means its rules are spread across several sources: statute law (Acts of Parliament, such as the Human Rights Act 1998), common law (decisions made by judges over time), and conventions (long-standing customs that are followed even though they are not written law, such as the monarch always granting Royal Assent). A frequent exam point is that this makes the constitution flexible: it can be changed by passing an ordinary Act of Parliament, rather than needing the special procedures a written constitution usually requires. The trade-off, often used in evaluation questions, is that flexibility can also mean fewer firm limits on what a government with a Commons majority can do.
The institutions of the constitution
Each institution has a distinct part to play, and power is divided between them rather than held by one. Parliament makes the laws and holds the government to account. The government, drawn from Parliament, runs the country day to day. The judiciary interprets and applies the law independently of government. The monarch is head of state with a largely ceremonial role. Citizens give the system its democratic legitimacy by electing the House of Commons. Because these roles are separate, no single institution can do as it pleases: this division and the way the institutions interact is how the uncodified constitution controls political power. AQA expects you to name the institutions and explain how they check one another.
Where sovereignty resides
Sovereignty is the answer to the question "who has the final say?" In the UK the formal answer is Parliament, and within Parliament the elected House of Commons carries the greatest weight. This is why the courts apply the laws Parliament passes rather than striking them down, and why a new Act can change even long-standing arrangements. In practice, sovereignty is shaped by other factors: devolution has given law-making powers to the Scottish Parliament, the Senedd in Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly, and the UK's relationships with international bodies have affected how some laws operate. But the core principle AQA wants is clear: legal sovereignty rests with Parliament, which is why control over the government ultimately runs through the elected Commons.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of AQA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
AQA 20192 marksDescribe what is meant by an uncodified constitution.Show worked answer →
A short Paper 1 "Describe" question (AO1). Two marks: one for the core idea, one for development.
Core: an uncodified constitution is one that is not written down in a single document.
Development: instead, the rules about how the UK is governed come from many sources, including statute law, common law and conventions, so the constitution can be changed more easily than a written one.
Markers reward the core definition plus a developing detail, such as the sources it draws on or how it can be changed.
AQA 20214 marksExplain what is meant by the sovereignty of Parliament.Show worked answer →
A Paper 1 Section B "Explain" question (AO1 plus AO2). Define and develop.
Sovereignty means supreme legal power. The sovereignty of Parliament means that Parliament is the highest law-making authority in the UK: it can make or unmake any law, and no other body can overrule an Act of Parliament.
This matters because it places the elected House of Commons at the centre of the constitution, and it means courts apply the law Parliament makes rather than striking it down. Devolution and membership of international bodies can affect how this works in practice.
Markers reward an accurate definition of sovereignty plus a developed point about Parliament being the supreme law-maker.
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