“...Leyland has produced a slim guide to the constitution of the United Kingdom that is both highly readable and impressively thorough. It deserves a place on undergraduate reading lists as a precursor to a more theoretical examination, and given a very reasonable price one hopes that many students will feel able to purchase their own copy. They will certainly find it worth their while.” – CJS Knight, The Cambridge Law Journal “...provides an excellent discussion of the legal basis of parliamentary sovereignty…” – Alexandra Kelso, Parliamentary Affairs No one could have imagined when the last edition of this acclaimed book published in 2016, the constitutional earthquakes that were to follow. Brexit, Miller, three prime ministers: little of the United Kingdom's constitution was unaffected. This much needed new edition retains its hallmark clarity and coherence, with sufficient detail for the novice to develop an informed view of how the constitution works. Taking a thematic approach, it discusses questions of history, sources and conventions, the role of the Crown, Parliament and the electoral system, government and the executive, the judiciary, and the distribution of power. In addition, it offers analysis of the evolution of the uncodified UK constitution, its strengths and perceived weaknesses, and of modernising reforms. This significantly updated edition provides a topical and contextual outline of the principles, doctrines and institutions that underpin the United Kingdom constitution. Engaging with the central issues in play as the UK enters a new chapter of its constitutional story, it explores Brexit, devolution, the Fixed Term Parliament Act, parliamentary sovereignty, and House of Lords reform. Combining clarity and authority, the author makes sense of a fascinating but sometimes impenetrable subject.