Constitutional law worksheet with answers

A unitary state is one in which:

1. AThere is only one political party
2. BThe head of state is also head of government
3. CSovereign power is held at the centre, which may delegate powers to other levels
4. DRegions have powers guaranteed by the constitution, which the centre cannot alter alone

In the UK, the royal prerogative is:

1. AA set of powers of the Crown recognised by common law, not created by statute
2. BA set of powers conferred on the Prime Minister by the Constitutional Reform Act
3. CThe monarch's personal right to veto any Act
4. DThe right of judges to overrule Parliament

A writ of habeas corpus:

1. APermits the government to search private homes
2. BRequires a detained person to be brought before a court so that the legality of the detention can be tested
3. COrders a public body to perform a statutory duty
4. DAllows the police to detain a suspect without charge for up to a week while a court reviews the evidence against them

Under ECHR case law such as Sunday Times v UK, for a restriction to be "prescribed by law", the law must be:

1. AOlder than the Convention
2. BApproved by a referendum
3. CAdequately accessible and foreseeable in its effects
4. DContained in a single written statute passed by parliament

In the Factortame litigation, while the UK was an EU member, the House of Lords:

1. ADeclared the European Communities Act 1972 invalid
2. BDisapplied parts of an Act of Parliament that conflicted with EU law
3. CHeld that EU law could never limit Acts of Parliament
4. DReferred the matter to the European Court of Human Rights

Under the Human Rights Act 1998, a private body with some "functions of a public nature" is:

1. ABound by the Act for its public functions, but not for private acts
2. BBound by the Act only if it receives most of its funding from the state
3. CNever bound by the Act
4. DBound by the Act in everything it does

People buy TV licences early to avoid a fee increase, and the Home Office threatens to revoke them unless they pay the extra. In Congreve v Home Office, the court held:

1. AThe revocation was lawful under the statute
2. BUsing the revocation power this way was unlawful
3. CThe minister could act for any purpose
4. DLicence holders had no legal rights

In Ireland v UK (1978), the European Court of Human Rights held that the "five techniques" used in interrogating detainees in Northern Ireland were:

1. AInhuman and degrading treatment, but not torture
2. BA breach of Article 5 only
3. CTorture under Article 3
4. DLawful because of the emergency