This report was produced online to coincide with the second reading of the European Union Bill (Bill 106, session 2010-11, ISBN 9780215557339) on 7 December 2010. The Committee is critical that it had been given only four weeks to investigate and prepare a report on the Bill's provision affirming the principle of Parliamentary sovereignty. This report sets out in detail the legal relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union and the current debate on the scope of Parliamentary sovereignty, then evaluates the sovereignty clause (clause 18) in the light of evidence received. The evidence suggests that the legislative supremacy of Parliament is not currently under threat from EU law. However, the Committee believes recent UK court decisions have called into question the legal basis of Parliamentary sovereignty and the legislative supremacy of Parliament. It concludes that Clause 18 is a reaffirmation of the role of a sovereign Parliament in a dualist state, nothing more, nothing less. It does not address the competing primacies of EU and national law and much evidence suggests the clause is not needed. The Bill's proposal that approval to certain changes in EU law will require first to be approved by an Act of Parliament and that the change should be approved by a referendum is also considered. This "referendum lock" is viewed as an attempt to bind future Parliaments, but the Committee concludes there is no clear evidence that one Parliament has authority to act in this way.

The status of the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty in the contemporary UK Constitution is much contested. Changes in the architecture of the UK Constitution, diminishing academic reverence for the doctrine, and a more expansive vision of the judicial role, all present challenges to the relevance, coherence and desirability of this constitutional fundamental. At a time when the future of the sovereignty of Parliament may look less than assured, this book develops an account of the continuing significance of the doctrine. It argues that a rejuvenation of the manner and form theory is required to understand the present status of parliamentary sovereignty. Addressing the critical challenges to the doctrine, it contends that this conception of legally unlimited legislative power provides the best explanation of contemporary developments in UK constitutional practice, while also possessing a normative appeal that has previously been unrecognised. This modern shift to the manner and form theory is located in an account of the democratic virtue of parliamentary sovereignty, with the book seeking to demonstrate the potential that exists for Parliament – through legislating about the legislative process – to revitalise the UK's political constitution.

The report explains how Part 1 of the Bill will apply referendum locks and other constitutional safeguards before further competence or power can be transferred from the UK to the EU. It then highlights significant gaps in these safeguards, particularly in relation to amendments to the EU Treaties that are considered by the Government of the day to be insignificant, or to apply only to other Member States, or to allow simply for the accession of a new Member States, in which case a referendum will not be triggered. It looks at the potentially profound implications of the referendum lock for Parliamentary democracy and direct democracy, and its consequences for UK-EU relations. The Committee's overall evaluation and conclusions are summarised in the last chapter.

A considered balance of depth, detail, context, and critique, Public Law Directions offers the most student-friendly guide to the subject; empowering students to evaluate the law, understand its practical application, and approach assessments with confidence.

Adopting a political constitutionalist view of the British constitution, this book critically explores the history of legal and political thought on parliamentary sovereignty in the UK. It argues that EU membership strongly unsettled the historical precedents underpinning UK parliamentary sovereignty. Successive governments adopted practices which, although preserving fundamental legal rules, were at odds with past precedents. The author uses three key EU case studies – the financial transactions tax, freedom of movement of persons, and the working time directive – to illustrate that since 1973 the UK incorporated EU institutions which unsettled those precedents. The book further shows that the parliament’s place since the referendum on Brexit in June 2016 and the scrutinising of the terms of the withdrawal agreement constitute an enhanced, new constitutional resettlement, and a realignment of parliament with the historical precedent of consent and its sovereignty.

This book investigates how political actors - and more particularly members of parliaments - have reacted to Brexit to assess its long-term consequences. Brexit has not only been a major disruption affecting the functioning and internal balance of the European Union (EU), but to a very large extent, it also represents a challenge to the idea of an ‘ever closer union’ and to the democratic principles on which the EU has been built. Relying on empirical explorations of regional and national parliaments across the continent as well as the European Parliament, the chapters in this volume address three intertwined sets of questions regarding the evolution of democratic politics in Europe in the wake of Brexit. Firstly, how do citizens’ representatives assess the UK’s decision to withdraw from the EU and its consequences? Secondly, what is the impact of Brexit as regards the politicisation of the debate on Europe? Has Brexit exacerbated existing political divisions or generated new cleavages? Thirdly, and crucially, have parliaments attempted to and succeeded in influencing Brexit negotiations and their outcome? What positions did parliamentarians promote in these negotiations? What model for the future of the EU did they defend? The book is key reading for all students and researchers interested in Politics and International Relations, Elections, European Studies, and European Union Politics. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Contemporary European Studies.

Public Law Text, Cases, and Materials explores how the law works in practice. The key institutions, legal principles, and conventions that underpin the public law of the UK are brought to life through the inclusion of extracts from key sources, which are explained and critiqued by the authors.

In this collection, leading figures in UK and EU public law address seismic changes the field and reflect upon the implications of these changes, the fundamentals of public law, and the interrelationship between them across six themes: legislation, case law, theory, institutions, process, and constitutions.

On cover and title page: House, committees of the whole House, general committees and select committees

Resort by the state to measures of exclusion and expulsion from the territory of the UK and/or from British citizenship have multiplied over the past decade, following the so-called 'War on Terror', increased globalisation, and the growing politicisation of national policies concerning immigration and citizenship. This book, which focuses on the law and practice governing deportation, removal and exclusion from the UK, the denial of British citizenship, and deprivation of that citizenship, represents the first attempt by practitioners to provide a cohesive assessment of UK law and practice in these areas. The undertaking is a vital one because, whilst these areas of law and practice have long existed as the hard edge of immigration and nationality laws, in recent years the use of some powers in this area has greatly increased and such powers have arguably expanded beyond secondary existence as mere mechanisms of enforcement. The body of law, practice and policy created by this process is one which justifies treatment as a primary concern for public lawyers. The book provides a comprehensive analysis of the law in these areas and its background. This involves a consideration of interlocking international and regional rights instruments, EU law and the domestic regime. It is a clear and comprehensive everyday guide for practitioners and offers an invaluable insight into likely developments in this dynamic area of public law. '...deserves to be on the bookshelves of all those who seek to practise within this carefully defined area of immigration and nationality law.' From the Foreword by Lord Hope of Craighead KT