The hidden wiring emerges: The Cabinet Manual and the working of the British constitution

Article

This paper presents an analysis of the draft Cabinet Manual, a potentially powerful document that codifies and unites the often unwritten conventions and rules that have governed and guided governmental activity for decades.

However, there are those who discern in it the prototypical nuclear core of what might become a written British constitution. By contrast, the authors think it is more a question of the hidden wiring of the constitution beginning to emerge: the process of codification to which the manual is a significant contribution should not be confused with full codification, as it might generally be understood. Nevertheless, while the manual may not be the constitution, it will impact upon it and may be interpreted as if it were that ultimate document.

Related items

  1. “I feel quite unsettled and unsafe”: Young people, belonging, and the broken promise of childhood

    Young people in England feel less secure, supported and connected than a decade ago. Based on nearly 200 conversations, this blog explores why childhood feels more stressful and less joyful.
  2. A photograph from below of the grand Manchester town hall building on a sunny day against a blue sky

    On home ground: The future of devolution

    Andy Burnham has pledged to deliver “the biggest rebalancing of power the country has ever seen”. The key task for the new government is putting this into action.
  3. A photo of police officer and a community support officer walking down a quiet street in Kent

    The legitimacy trap

    Why a more active state needs better statecraft.