Defending the Political Constitution

A political constitution is often seen as an idiosyncratic feature of the UK and compared unfavourably with an entrenched legal constitution upheld by a supreme or constitutional court, such as that of the United States. By comparing both systems, Defending the Political Constitution explores the normative and empirical advantages of a political constitution and its democratic mechanisms.

Political constitutionalism faces increasing pressure, both from the spread of legal constitutionalism through domestic bills of rights and international law, and the growing influence of global technocratic regulatory regimes, such as the IMF and the EU. Many see these forces as threats to parliamentary sovereignty and even as catalysts for a populist backlash. This book challenges that view. It argues for a new vision: one where international law and regulation are brought under democratic control, reinforcing rather than undermining political constitutionalism. By linking domestic democratic principles with intergovernmental cooperation, it offers a compelling model for safeguarding democracy.

Insightful and pioneering, Defending the Political Constitution contends a political constitution proves both more legitimate and more effective than a legal constitution.

Richard Bellamy, Professor of Political Science, University College London

Richard Bellamy is Professor of Political Science at University College, London (UCL), a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS) and the British Academy (FBA), and a Member of the Academia Europaea (MAE). He was educated at Cambridge University and the European University Institute. The author of 11 monographs, his research ranges from historical studies of Italian political thought post 1700, for which he was awarded the Serena Medal in 2012, to the development of a republican account of democracy, citizenship and constitutionalism that combines analytical legal, social and political philosophy with comparative politics. His book Political Constitutionalism: A Republican Defence of the Constitutionality of Democracy (CUP, 2007) won the 2009 Spitz Prize.

1. Part 1. Political Constitutionalism as Democracy2. Rights as Democracy3. The Rule of Law as the Democratic Rule of PersonsChecks and Balances as Democracy: Political Equality and Majority Rule in the Democratic Mixed Constitution4. Part 2. The Rights Challenge-Democracy as Rights5. Domestic Bills of Rights: Political Constitutionalism and the Human Rights ActInternational Human Rights Conventions: Political Constitutionalism and the European Convention on Human Rights6. Part 3. The Judicial Challenge-Democracy through Courts7. Democracy through Courts?Part 4. The Populist Challenge: Democracy as the Will of the People8. Populism and the Democratic Challenge: Does Political Constitutionalism Facilitate or Counter Democratic Backsliding9. Referendums and the Case of Brexit: Towards a Populist Constitutionalism?10. Taking Back Control? The Political Constitution of the EU