“In this county, our constitution does not embody a full separation of powers. Our parliamentary democracy makes for a considerable fusion of the executive and legislative branches (Lord Irvine). Discuss.”

“While a strict separation of powers has never been a basis for the British constitution these arrangements seem to fly in the face of common assumptions about the role of the two Houses in relation to the Executive.”

(Jowell & Oliver 1994)

Whilst Jowell and Oliver talk about the separation of powers not being a basis for our constitution, I will look at the arguments for and against this concept and give reasons for my findings. To do this I will first need to consider what a constitution is and what is meant by the doctrine of the separation of powers….(short extract)