Acknowledged as Part of Our Constitutional Bedrock, Policing by Consent is Seen by Some as a Paradox
| Date | 01 October 1985 |
| Published date | 01 October 1985 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X8505800404 |
| Author | G. Keenoy |
| Subject Matter | ArticleWinning Essay in the 1983 Queen's Gold Medal Essay Competition |
Winning Essay in the 1983 Queen's
Gold Medal Essay Competition
Constable G. KEENOY.
Metropolitan Police. England.
ACKNOWLEDGED AS PART OF
OUR CONSTITUTIONAL BED-
ROCK, POLICING BY
CONSENT
IS SEEN BY
SOME
AS A
PARADOX
The policing of Great Britain is based firmly upon apparent
paradoxes, of which this discussion subject is an example. Also to
be given prominence is that all policemen are constables, whatever
their rank;
that
the service is of civilians in uniform with only
certain powers above those posessed by any citizen, and that the
police officer is responsible to the law and an independent judiciary,
whilst being ruled by politicians.
To say that it is part of our constitutional bed-rock also involves
some risk, since the consistent feature of the British Constitution
since it began to evolve
about
1000 years ago is that by lacking any
written and formalized basis it has been able to cope with and
accommodate change without too much bloody revolution. Though
regarded as very conservative and traditionalist, this part of the
social structure of Britain is in fact notable by its relative flexibility
and ability to accept changes engendered by social and political
progress.
The days of the "Good and Lawful Man"
Total freedom is anarchy, total order is tyranny, and since Britain
and its people are the result of waves of violent invasions from all
sides, it would appear that this country is equipped with an
instinctive distaste for the two extremes. Nevertheless, some form of
ordering mechanism is required and in its early evolutions from the
parish constable to the present day police officer, this mechanism
has been updated to respond to the social requirements of the day.
When commenced, the office of constable was elective and unpaid,
and its holder became the link between the rulers, both local and
national, and the population. As time went on and the organization
of society' became more complex, the office was devalued, though
the notion of "Keeping the Peace" was firmly held and enshrined in
statute in 1327, which said "in every county there shall be a
good
and
lawful
man
to keep the peace". Nevertheless, as an unpaid
October 1985 293
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