Other royal prerogatives

Before a bill passed by the legislative Houses can become law, royal assent (the monarch's
approval) is required.[24] In theory, assent can either be granted (making the bill law) or withheld
(vetoing the bill), but since 1708 assent has always been granted. [25]
The sovereign has a similar relationship to the devolved governments of Scotland, Wales,
and Northern Ireland as to the government of the UK. The sovereign appoints the First Minister of
Scotland on the nomination of the Scottish Parliament,[26] and the First Minister of Wales on the
nomination of the Senedd.[27] In Scottish matters, the sovereign acts on the advice of the Scottish
Government. However, as devolution is more limited in Wales, in Welsh matters the monarch acts
on the advice of the prime minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The sovereign can veto any
law passed by the Northern Ireland Assembly, if it is deemed unconstitutional by the Secretary of
State for Northern Ireland.[28]
The sovereign is deemed the "fount of justice"; although the monarch does not personally rule in
judicial cases, judicial functions are performed in his or her name. For instance, prosecutions are
brought on the sovereign's behalf, and courts derive their authority from the Crown. The common
law holds that the sovereign "can do no wrong", and so cannot be prosecuted for criminal offences.
The Crown Proceedings Act 1947 allows civil lawsuits against the Crown in its public capacity (that
is, lawsuits against the government), but not lawsuits against the monarch personally. The sovereign
exercises the "prerogative of mercy", which is used to pardon convicted offenders or reduce
sentences.[14][17]
The sovereign is the "fount of honour", the source of all honours and dignities in the United Kingdom.
The Crown creates all peerages, appoints members of the orders of chivalry, grants knighthoods
and awards other honours.[29] Although peerages and most other honours are granted on the advice
of the prime minister, some honours are within the personal gift of the sovereign and are not granted
on ministerial advice. The sovereign alone appoints members of the Order of the Garter, the Order
of the Thistle, the Royal Victorian Order and the Order of Merit.[30]