Thinking About Writing it Down

As Americans, we tend to think of constitutions as things written on yellow paper and kept in bomb-proof vaults for all to see. Well, that's not the case in Britain. The British constitution is a collection of customs and odd laws here and there. But that may change.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw is looking at the possibility of drafting a single, written constitution. The BBC reports:

He said the move would encapsulate in one document a citizen's rights, their responsibilities and an outline of how the different arms of government work.

He told the BBC the process could take 20 years and depend on a referendum.

In a speech in the US later he will say most UK people "struggle to put a finger on where their rights are".