New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham Supports Written Constitution
3 sources across 3 countries · Germany · Hong Kong · Pakistan
Who reported this
- Frankfurter Allgemeine
- South China Morning Post
- Dawn
What the colours mean
- Left
- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
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British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has expressed support for the introduction of a written constitution for the United Kingdom. Speaking two weeks after taking office, the former mayor of Greater Manchester called for a new and clear set of principles regarding how the country should be governed. He argued that the current lack of a constitution disempowers certain areas and leaves people arguing over fundamental issues.
Burnham has focused his early administration on the devolution of power to regional authorities. He stated that these devolution plans point toward a new constitutional settlement. Unlike most countries, the United Kingdom does not have a single authoritative written document. Instead, it relies on a patchwork of statutes, common law judgments, treaties, and historical conventions.
Past efforts to codify the constitution occurred under former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in whose cabinet Burnham served. A parliamentary committee spent five years examining options for codification but concluded in 2015 that no clear consensus existed. While the UK created decentralized parliaments in Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast in the late 1990s, it remains one of the most centralized countries in Europe.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- This source emphasized the Prime Minister's argument that the absence of a written constitution disempowers people and regions.
- Centre-right
- These sources focused on the historical context of the unwritten constitution and the previous failure of a parliamentary committee to reach a consensus on codification.
Sources
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.