Originally Posted by Xaccers

This is why I think politics should be taught in schools.
I would estimate that the majority of people know pretty much nothing about how our system works.
If people were taught about it, I would have thought they'd be more interested in taking part by voting, or contacting their MP about concerns etc.

A very simplistic and therefore not totally accurate description of what happens is a bill is presented to either of the houses (Commons, full of MPs, and Lords, full of er well, Lords) for debate and a vote on it. If it passess it goes to the other house for a debate and vote, if both houses agree then it goes to the monarch to be signed into law and changes from a bill to an act (as it's an act of parliment).

So in order for say Common law to be replaced by Sharia law, the government would need to decide how the Sharia bill would be worded, would it have to decide how to word it, would it just say all laws would be null and void? What about parking laws etc which aren't covered by the Koran?
So would they amend every act to reflect sharia? That would take decades and probably bankrupt the nation.
The bill they decide on would go to the commons, be debated, and then they'd have to win the vote, then the bill will go before the Lords.
The lords would have to vote on it and agree that it should be passed.
Then it goes before the monarch who has the final say.
Now traditionally the monarch always signs bills into law, however they do not have to, so they could disolve parliment and force a general election.