Culture Wars and Constitutional Identity: The Weaponisation of Constitutional Values

Stanford, B ORCID: 0000-0001-8496-0380 (2025) Culture Wars and Constitutional Identity: The Weaponisation of Constitutional Values. In: McGarry, J, (ed.) Constitutional Values, Identities and Rights: Realisation and Protection in Codified and Uncodified Constitutions. Routledge Studies in Law, Rights and Justice . Routledge. ISBN 9781032737485

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Abstract

Constitutional principles and values are fundamental to a state’s constitutional identity and the principles of constitutionalism itself. The Constitution of the United Kingdom, formed and influenced by principles such as parliamentary sovereignty, the rule of law, accountable Government, democracy and human rights, is famed for its unique uncodified and unentrenched form, inherent flexibility and complex legal-political hybrid nature. However, a developing and controversial phenomenon is placing established principles and values of the UK’s constitutional identity in the spotlight. This chapter examines the constitutional impact of what is often referred to as a ‘culture war’ – that is, a clash between core values and beliefs held by society alongside allegations of ‘woke’ politics – currently sweeping through public and political discourse. To guide the analysis, parliamentary discourse between the period 2019-2023 is examined to identify the issues that are most often addressed and associated with the context of a ‘culture war’ and ‘woke’ politics. The chapter argues that the UK’s precarious constitutional identity has exposed its constitutional values to an even greater threat in this developing culture war, and that an evaluation of their status is needed amidst mounting concerns of democratic backsliding.

Item Type:	Book Section
Additional Information:	This is an Accepted Manuscript of a book chapter published by Routledge Constitutional Values, Identities and Rights Realisation and Protection in Codified and Uncodified Constitutions on 3 December 2025, available online: Routledge - Publisher of Professional & Academic Books ISBN 9781032737485 Deposited under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (Deed - Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International - Creative Commons ), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
Subjects:	J Political Science > JA Political science (General) J Political Science > JF Political institutions (General) K Law > K Law (General)
Divisions:	Law and Justice Studies
Publisher:	Routledge
Date of acceptance:	3 January 2025
Date Deposited:	03 Dec 2025 09:54
Last Modified:	03 Dec 2025 09:54
Editors:	McGarry, J
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/25194

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