A Parliament for the People: The Guardians of the Unwritten Constitution

Abstract

This paper considers the key constitutional role played by Parliament in New Zealand. It briefly examines the New Zealand constitutional arrangements, and finds that the primary responsibility for all constitutional matters falls on Parliament because of the absence of one formally codified, legislatively-supreme and entrenched document. It argues that the allocation of core responsibility for constitutional matters to Parliament is perhaps the most appropriate and effective way for constitutional matters to be dealt with, providing that the rules by which Parliament operates are framed to support this function. Finally, it examines the rules of the New Zealand Parliament and suggests a number of ways in which they could be improved to support Parliament’s role as the “guardians of the constitution” in New Zealand.