parliamentary sovereignty, the rule of law, & seperation of powers

What does sovereignty mean

The principle of absolute & unlimited power

What can an act of parliament override

Any custom

Judicial precedent

Delegated legislation

Previous acts

What are the 3 main points of Dicey’s parliamentary sovereignty theory

Parliament is sovereign

No parliament can bind another

No act can be challenged

What are 3 threats to Dicey’s theory

Membership of the EU

Human Rights Act 1998

Devolution

How is membership of the EU a threat to sovereignty

EU law overrides UK law

How does the HRA threaten sovereignty

It’s a legal requirement that all public authorities must behave in a way that doesn’t infringe on HR

Under section 3 judges have to interpret every act in a way that upholds HR

How does devolution threaten sovereignty

Welsh parliament, Northern Ireland assembly, Scottish Parliament can now make laws, sometimes without the approval of parliament

What are the 3 points of Dicey’s rule of law theory

No sanction without breach

One law should govern everyone

Rights of individuals are secured by decisions of judges

What does no sanction without breach mean

No one should be punished unless they have broken the law, a new law shouldn’t apply to past events & all law should be public

What is meant by one law should govern everyone

The judicial mechanisms controlling society applies to the citizen & the government & public bodies

Some institutions (police) are given more power to enable the state to function

How are our rights secured by the decisions of judges

The highest courts can make a decision in a case which then has to be followed by the lower courts (judicial precedent)

What are two examples of breaching the rule of law

John Hemming - disclosed the name of a famous footballer subject to injunction by using parliamentary privilege

Prisoners vote - conservative MP’s proposed to ignore the ruling made by the ECHR

What are 2 examples of upholding the rule of the

The constitutional reform act 2005 - recognises the rule of law & the importance of the independence of the judicary

Section 1

What does Montesquieu say about separation of powers

The only way to safeguard the liberty of citizens is to keep the 3 arms of state separate, this requires that individuals should not be members of more than one arm of the state

(There are MP’s who sit in the legislature however)