"Good chap" theory

The "Good chap" theory "good chap" theory is a fundamental principle in British political culture, identified by the political historian Peter Hennessy. The "good chap" principle is expressed in the idea that ministers and civil servants recognize unwritten rules regarding the limits of their power, act accordingly, and resign when necessary – even when there are no written or enforceable laws concerning the matter. Quotes The nature of its constitution tells you a great deal about a country, its society and the way ruling power is calibrated and constrained within it. A key characteristic of the British constitution is the degree to which the good governance of the United Kingdom (UK) has relied on the self-restraint of those who carry it out. Unlike nearly every other democracy in the world, we lack a ‘written’ or ‘codified’ constitution. The UK has, therefore, no single text setting out the core principles, institutions and procedures of the system, protected from casual alteration by amendment procedures, and enforceable by the judiciary. Instead, in the UK, we have trusted politicians to behave themselves. We have long assumed that those who rise to high office will be ‘good chaps’, knowing what the unwritten rules are and wanting to adhere to them, even if doing so might frustrate the attainment of their policy objectives, party political goals, or personal ambitions – the argument being that ‘good chaps’ (of different sexes) know where the undrawn lines lie and come nowhere near to crossing them: hence ‘the good chap theory of government. Blick Andrew Hennessy Peter Good Chaps No More Safeguarding the Constitution in Stressful Times 2019 5–6 Margaret Thatcher's former press secretary Sir Bernard Ingham's memoirs were deemed fair as they came after she had left power and events had moved on.Sir Christopher Meyer's were not because they dealt with individuals still in post and issues still running. Good chaps would see that, others might not. "The theory of the "good chap", BBC News (17 November, 2005) But the real “trouble” lies in the consequences of “a prime minister (Boris Johnson) who is absolutely tone deaf to all the niceties of this. He hasn’t got a single feel for either proper behaviour, proper procedure, not a single nerve end. He has got no sense of the restraints you need to make this work. If a bit of it annoys him or gets in his way, he tries to cast it aside. "Peter Hennessy: Boris Johnson has killed off the “good chaps” theory of government", Prospect (January 21, 2022) External links