There is no longer a need for prerogative powers today. They should Essay

There is no longer a need for prerogative powers today. They should all be in statutory form. - Discuss - Essay Example Thus, there is near consensus amongst the members of Parliament and the general public for discarding this concept. In the Iraq war issue, Prime Minister Tony Blair empowered Parliament to vote in support of the war. This was defective on two counts. First, Parliament should be empowered to declare war, without having to rely on any transfer of power by the Prime Minister. Second, there is no safeguard to prevent a future Prime Minister from waging war, without the consent of Parliament.2 The executive governmental powers constitute some of the prerogative powers. For example, the Crown is empowered, among other things, to conduct foreign relations. It is also empowered to conduct international affairs, declare war and sue for peace. The Crown can deploy the armed forces, appoint ministers and dissolve Parliament. However, the exercise of these powers necessitates the advice of the government. 3 Her Majesty has been provided with certain constitutional powers, which she can exercise as personal prerogative. These include the power of immunity from prosecution in the courts. Another such power is immunity from tax. Furthermore, the Queen enjoys proprietary interests in royal fish. Thus, the Royal Prerogative is an admixture of powers, rights, immunities, duties, and obligations.4 The empowerment of the Crown to conduct foreign relations and international affairs, to deploy the armed forces to a limited extent, to appoint ministers, dissolve Parliament and provide assent to bills, and to declare war or sue for peace, constitute its prerogative or executive powers. However, most of these powers can only be exercised by Her Majesty the Queen, after obtaining the advice of the government. There are a few powers that the Monarch can exercise independently; such as the dissolution of Parliament, creation of peers and providing assent to bills. In addition, the Queen can exercise some constitutional powers, as a part of her personal prerogative. These include immunity from prosecution, tax, and some proprietary interests. Thus, the royal prerogative is comprised of powers, immunities, rights and a miscellany of minor attributes like the prerogative of mercy. The Bill of Rights 1689 reduced the prerogatives of the Crown to a significant extent. The immunity for liability of the Crown in tort and contract was abolished by the Crown Proceedings Act 1947. In the Amphitrite case, the court ruled that the government of the UK was not bound by the assurance given to the ship owners. The courts had determined and controlled the scope and limitations of the executive powers of the government. Such powers had been distinguished from the executive powers derived from the Royal Prerogative.5 This decision brought home the fact that the prerogative powers were not absolute. The powers related to the Royal Prerogative, saw the light of the day, only in the year 2003. Most of these powers were left untouched, because their use would have resulted in a constitut ional crisis. This was evident in an issue in which the monarch refused the Royal Assent to an Act of the Parliament. These powers include the right to declare war on a foreign country and impose a state of emergency, within the nation. In addition, it consists of the right to pardon offenders in serious crimes.6 Moreover, it comprises of the right to deny passports and to exercise Crown ownership in several areas.