The exercise of the Royal prerogative by the Government to deploy armed force overseas is outdated and should not be allowed to continue as the basis for legitimate war-making in our 21st century democracy.’ Discuss

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Answer

Introduction
The royal prerogative constitutes customary chivalric orders that are subject to the
British monarch and its executive, whose powers allow the latter to pass and create
authorities, and laws that are not subject to the House of Commons and Lords. For centuries
British government has utilized the prerogative clauses to send troops to wars; which is in
contrast to the contemporary democratic nature of governments across the globe, thus
measures should be taken to curb or restrict the royal prerogative by the executive regarding
troops’ deployment overseas.
The parliament
Over the last few decades, the British government has sent troops across the world on
various war fronts like Bosnia, Sierra Leon, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The British parliament
had little to no effect or control over the deployment of armed forces around the world; this
was cultivated and characterized by the long-standing royal prerogative that allows the
monarch government to send troops without the scrutiny and approval of the parliament.
Much of the wars that involved the British forces were characterized by scandals,
controversies, and brutality to some extent, like the motion suspended in the year 1991 that
was aimed to adjourn the Falkland’s and the Gulf wars (Mello, 80). Over the last decade,
there has been a growing concern among the British population regarding the frequent
deployments of troops and constant deployment controversies, leading to growing demand on

the need for democratic legitimacy before sending troops to war fronts cross the globe.
According to the former British Prime Minister David Cameron who states that "giving
parliament a greater role in the exercise of these powers would be … and tangible way of
making government more accountable" is a clear indication on the urgency of limiting the
royal prerogative that gives the government powers to send armed forces to war.
The prime minister
The prime minister of Great Britain has the royal prerogative under him or her, which
provides the latter with powers to deploy armed forces under limited scrutiny. The prime
minister under prerogative powers is legalized within the British constitutions which allow
for personal discretion in their exercise of powers with minimal supervision from other arms
of the government especially the parliament. Coherently, the idea of an individual possessing
powers in sending of armed forces overseas can be perceived as absurd; because of the
immense complexities relating to the geopolitical, military-structure and accountability
factors that are involved when deploying troops in the contemporary world. The royal
prerogative operates on the medieval principle of kingship that allowed the king or the queen
to send troops to wars; this principle can be limited in the twenty-first century where rules
and dynamics of wars have changed (Young, 57). The principle of democracy governs most
of the countries in the contemporary world; hence the British parliament should be integrated
with the decision-making process when the state or the monarch is considering deployment of
troops, and not “leave” the decision to a few individuals in the executive. Transferring the
royal prerogative powers to parliament will ensure transparency and control of the military
where they have been deployed, and in the vent of controversies and allegation against the
deployed troops, the legislature can be held accountable where committees and task forces
can be established to carry out investigations against the set allegations. Thus it is essential
for the royal prerogative conferred to parliament which is an instrumental legislative body

and a symbol of democracy and a valuable tool that can be used to or consulted before troops
are deployed in the twenty-first century.