The next to blow

下一轮打击

Britain’s constitutional time-bomb

英国宪法的定时炸弹

Brexit is already a political crisis. Sooner or later it will become a constitutional crisis, too

英国退欧已经是一场政治危机。这迟早也会成为一场宪法危机

词汇

Brexit/英国退欧

BRITONS PRIDE themselves on their “unwritten” constitution. America, France and Germany need rules to be set down in black and white. In the Mother of Parliaments democracy has blossomed for over 300 years without coups, revolution or civil war, Irish independence aside. Its politics are governed by an evolving set of traditions, conventions and laws under a sovereign Parliament. Thanks to its stability, Britain convinced the world that its style of government was built on solid foundations laid down over centuries of commonsense adaptation.

英国人以他们“不成文”的宪法为荣。美国、法国和德国需要制定白纸黑字的规则。在这种英国议会制民主，已经在没有政变、革命或内战的情况下繁荣了300多年，爱尔兰独立除外。它的政治由一套不断演变的传统、惯例和法律在一个主权议会的管理下进行。由于它的稳定，英国让世界相信，它的政府风格是建立在几个世纪以来常识性适应的坚实基础之上的。

词汇

Mother of Parliaments/ the British Parliament: the model and creator of many other Parliaments 英国议会(其他许多议会的典范和创始者)

 Irish/爱尔兰人

Coup/政变

 

That view is out of date. The remorseless logic of Brexit has shoved a stick of constitutional dynamite beneath the United Kingdom—and, given the difficulty of constitutional reform in a country at loggerheads, there is little that can be done to defuse it. The chances are high that Britons will soon discover that the constitution they counted on to be adaptable and robust can in fact amplify chaos, division and the threat to the union.

那种观点已经过时了。英国退欧的无情逻辑已经在英国王国的地下埋下了一根宪法炸弹——而且，考虑到一个国家在宪法改革方面存在的困难，要化解这一矛盾几乎没有什么办法。英国人很有可能很快就会发现，他们所指望的适应性强、生命力强的宪法，实际上可能会放大混乱、分裂和对欧盟的威胁。

词汇

Remorseless/ 冷酷的；不知过错的；坚持不懈的；不屈不挠的

Loggerhead/笨蛋；铁球棒；红海龟

On June 10th, three days after Theresa May steps down as Conservative leader, the race to succeed her will formally begin (see article). Some of the runners, including the favourite, Boris Johnson, vow that, unless the European Union gives them what they want (which it won’t), they will pull out of the EU on October 31st without a deal. The 124,000 members of the Conservative Party who will choose the next prime minister, an unrepresentative sample, to put it mildly, will thus take it upon themselves to resolve the question that has split the nation down the middle.

6月10日，也就是特蕾莎·梅辞去保守党领袖三天后，接替她的竞选将正式开始。包括最受欢迎的鲍里斯•约翰逊在内的一些竞选者发誓，除非欧盟满足他们的要求(欧盟不会)，否则他们将在10月31日退出欧盟，而不会达成任何协议。将选出下一任首相的12.4万名保守党成员(委婉地说，这是一个不具代表性的样本)将自行解决这个将英国一分为二的问题。

Worse, Britain’s supposedly sovereign Parliament has voted against just such a no-deal Brexit on the ground that it would do the country grave harm. There will doubtless be more parliamentary machinations to stop a no-deal Brexit or force one through. The constitution is unclear on whether the executive or Parliament should prevail. It is unclear how to even choose between them.

更糟糕的是，英国本应拥有主权的议会竟然投票反对这样一项无协议脱欧，理由是这将对英国造成严重损害。毫无疑问，将会有更多的议会阴谋来阻止无协议脱欧或迫使其*****不清楚应该由行政部门还是议会来主导。目前还不清楚如何在两者之间做出选择。

词汇

No-deal Brexit /无协议脱欧

Machination/阴谋诡计；奸计

Prevail/盛行，流行；战胜，获胜

 

Behind this uncertainty lies the fact that Britain’s constitution is a jumble of contradictions scattered across countless laws, conventions and rules. As our Briefing this week describes, these can easily be amended, by a vote in Parliament or merely on the say-so of the controversial Speaker of the House of Commons—who this week vowed to stay in office in order to ensure that Parliament’s voice is heard. There was a time when most British lawmakers were mindful that playing fast and loose with the rules could undermine democracy. Perhaps that is why they used to practise self-restraint. But in recent decades, when liberal democracy seemed unshakable, Britain’s leaders forgot their caution. Instead, in a fit of absent-mindedness, they set about reinventing the constitution wholesale.

这种不确定性的背后是这样一个事实，即英国宪法是由无数法律、惯例和规则之间的矛盾交织而成。正如我们这周的简报所描述的，这些都可以很容易地修改，通过议会的投票，或者仅仅通过众议院有争议的议长——本周他发誓要继续执政，以确保议会的声音被听到。曾经有一段时间，大多数英国议员都意识到，反复无常的规则可能会破坏民主。也许这就是为什么他们习惯于自我约束。但近几十年来，当自由民主似乎不可动摇时，英国领导人忘记了他们的谨慎。相反，在一阵心不在焉中，他们开始大规模地重塑宪法。

词汇

Reinvent/重新使用；彻底改造；重复发明

 

Under Tony Blair and David Cameron, the Westminster Parliament ceded power to assemblies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and to the people directly through referendums. These innovations were often well-meant and, in themselves, desirable. But nobody gave much thought to the consequences for the constitution as a whole.

在托尼•布莱尔(Tony Blair)和戴维•卡梅伦(David Cameron)的领导下，威斯敏斯特议会将权力移交给苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰的议会，并通过公投直接移交给人民。这些创新往往是善意的，本身也是可取的。但没有人过多考虑宪法作为一个整体的后果。

词汇

Cede/放弃；割让

well-meant/没有恶意的

 

The resulting mess has already stamped its mark on Brexit. The referendum endorsed leaving the EU but left the details for later. It provided a mandate for Brexit, but not for any of the very different forms Brexit can take. It is unclear how MPs should reconcile their duty to honour the referendum with the duty of each one of them to act in the best interests of their constituents. Other countries avoid that mistake. Ireland holds referendums, too. But Article 46 of its constitution is clear: the people vote on a change only after a bill has passed through the Dail with the details nailed down. Britain never thought to be so sensible.

由此造成的混乱已经在英国退欧问题上留下了印记。公投支持脱欧，但却将细节置之之后。它为英国退欧提供了授权，但没有为退欧可能采取的任何非常不同的形式提供授权。目前尚不清楚，议员们应如何协调履行公投义务与各自为选民的最大利益行事的义务。其他国家避免了这种错误。爱尔兰也举行公投。但是宪法第46条是明确的:只有在一项法案通过并确定了细节之后，人民才会对一项改革进行投票。英国从未想过会如此明智。

词汇

Reconcile/使一致；使和解；调停，调解

nail down/确定，明确；用钉钉住

Brexit is itself sowing the seeds of further constitutional chaos, by threatening the integrity of the union. In the elections for the European Parliament (see article), the Scottish National Party (SNP) won an increased share of the poll. Scotland voted Remain in the referendum, and the SNP’s leaders can understandably claim that they have just won an enhanced mandate to leave the United Kingdom. Yet, at least one of the Tory leadership candidates is ruling out any further referendums.

英国退欧本身就在通过威胁欧盟的完整性，播下进一步宪政混乱的种子。在欧洲议会选举中，苏格兰民族党(SNP)赢得了更多的选票。苏格兰在公投中选择了留欧，苏格兰民族党(SNP)领导人可以理解地宣称，他们刚刚赢得了脱离英国的授权。然而，至少有一位保守党领袖候选人排除了任何进一步公投的可能。

词汇

Integrity/完整；正直；诚实；廉正

rule out/排除；取消；划去；反对；阻止

 

Breaking up the union would be a constitutional nightmare—if only because no process for secession is laid down. Merely choosing to hold a second Scottish referendum could be fraught. Mr Johnson is loathed north of the border. Plenty of English voters are calling for a second Brexit referendum. Mrs May told the SNP to wait until Brexit had been resolved. Legally, could Prime Minister Johnson hold the line against a determined Scottish campaign? It is unclear.

分裂欧盟将是宪法上的噩梦——仅仅因为没有制定任何脱离欧盟的程序。仅仅是选择举行第二次苏格兰公投就可能充满变数。约翰逊先生在被边境以北上的人所厌恶的。许多英国选民呼吁进行第二次脱欧公投。梅告诉苏格兰民族党要等到英国退欧问题得到解决。从法律上讲，英国首相约翰逊(Johnson)能否坚持反对苏格兰发起一场坚决的运动?目前尚不清楚。

词汇

Loathe/讨厌，厌恶

The very act of leaving the EU would also load the constitution with fresh doubts. The Charter of Fundamental Rights, which enshrines EU citizens’ rights in law, would no longer govern British courts. Some would-be Tory leaders, such as Dominic Raab, want to scrap domestic legislation that embeds those rights. If Parliament passed oppressive new laws, the courts might complain, but they could not stop it. Voters who moan about meddling European judges might start to have second thoughts. Cue calls for a British Bill of Rights and another fit of ill-considered constitutional innovation.

离开欧盟的行为本身也会给宪法增添新的疑虑。将欧盟公民权利载入法律的《基本权利宪章》(Charter of basic Rights)将不再管辖英国法院。一些未来的保守党领袖，如多米尼克•拉布，想要废除赋予这些权利的国内立法。如果议会通过了压迫性的新法律，法院可能会抱怨，但他们无法阻止。那些抱怨干预欧洲法官的选民可能会重新考虑。库伊呼吁通过一项英国人权法案，以及另一项考虑不周的宪法改革。

词汇

Enshrine/铭记，珍藏；把…置于神龛内；把…奉为神圣

Oppressive/压迫的；沉重的；压制性的；难以忍受的

And that leads to a final worry. Britain’s ramshackle, easily amended constitution is vulnerable to the radicalised politics produced by three years spent rowing about Brexit. Jeremy Corbyn and his colleagues on the hard left could not be clearer about their ambitions to revolutionise Britain. It is naive to think they would focus on the economy and public spending, but leave the rules alone. A Labour government under Mr Corbyn—or, for that matter, a Conservative government led by a populist Tory—would be constrained only by its ability to get its way in Parliament. Labour has already called for a constitutional convention.

这就引出了最后一个担忧。英国松散的、很容易修改的宪法，很容易受到围绕英国退欧问题争吵了三年而产生的激进政治的影响。杰里米•科尔宾(Jeremy Corbyn)和他的极左同事对改革英国的雄心壮志再清楚不过了。如果认为他们会专注于经济和公共支出，而不理会规则，那就太天真了。科尔宾先生领导下的工党政府——或者就此而言，由民粹主义保守党领导的保守党政府——只会受到其在议会中为所欲为的能力的限制。工党已经呼吁召开制宪会议。

词汇

Ramshackle/（建筑物、车辆等）摇摇欲坠的，破烂不堪的；（组织或体制）松散的，东拼西凑的

Most Britons seem blithely unaware of the test ahead. Perhaps they believe that their peculiar way of doing things always leads to stability. It is indeed just possible that their constitution’s infinite flexibility will permit a compromise that gets the country through the Brexit badlands. More likely, however, it will feed claims that the other lot are cheats and traitors.

大多数英国人似乎对即将到来的考验毫不知情。也许他们相信他们独特的做事方式总会带来安定。他们的宪法具有无限的灵活性，确实有可能达成妥协，让英国摆脱英国退欧的困境。然而，更有可能的是，这将助长另一群人是骗子和叛徒的说法。

词汇

blithely快活地；无忧无虑地

claim/要求；声称；索赔；断言；值得

traitor/叛徒；卖国贼；背信弃义的人

Brexit has long been a political crisis. Now it looks destined to become a constitutional crisis, too. It is one for which Britain is woefully underprepared.

英国退欧长期以来一直是一场政治危机。现在看来，这也注定会成为一场宪法危机。可悲的是，英国在这方面准备不足。

词汇

Woefully/悲伤地；不幸地；使人痛苦地