Constitutional and adminstrative law - (Conventions) Essay

Constitutional and adminstrative law - (Conventions) - Essay Example (Carroll, 2007) In UK royal prerogative has been used by the Monarch himself since centuries however, the trends changed and during 19th century, it was decided to get the advice of the Prime Minister or the cabinet in order to exercise this right. However, this has changed gradually and it is now even argued that royal prerogative has no place in the modern Western democracy. The fact that Tony Blair and Coalition government went to war by directly consenting the parliament itself may be considered as a trend shift suggesting that there now exists a convention to seek parliament’s consent for any action. This paper will therefore discuss as to whether there is a convention now which outlines that every government in country would take consent of the parliament for any actions taken. This paper will therefore argue whether a convention exists to restrict royal prerogative to go to war. There is no fixed definition of convention as it has been defined differently by various authors. Hood Philips defines conventions as â€Å"Ê ºRules of political practice, which are regarded as binding, by those to whom they apply, but which are not laws because they are not enforced by the courts and parliament†. (Philips, 2001). This definition may be considered as one of the earliest attempts to define what conventions are and under what conditions and authority they can be enforced. Philips outlines conventions as rules of political practice which are also not laws and therefore not enforced by the courts as well as the parliament. The above definition of convention therefore outlines that are understandings which regulate the conduct of the Crown and Parliament in the absence of any formal rules. Constitutional conventions therefore are considered as the tools through which flexibility can be achieved in constitution without actually going through a process of legislation. As such the ultimate purpose for which