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1 English legal system (1 questions)
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The doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty holds that Parliament is the supreme legal authority in the United Kingdom and may make or unmake any law. No other body, including the courts, can override or set aside an Act of Parliament.
Key features:
- Unlimited legislative competence – Parliament can legislate on any subject.
- No legal limits – statutes cannot be declared invalid for being unconstitutional.
- Immutability – a later Act can repeal any earlier Act.
Illustrative cases:
- Factortame Ltd v Secretary of State for Transport (1990) – the House of Lords held that, where domestic legislation conflicted with EU law, the courts could disapply the domestic statute, showing a limited but significant interaction with parliamentary sovereignty.
- R (Jackson) v Attorney General (2005) – the Supreme Court affirmed that Parliament remains supreme, but recognised that constitutional principles could be considered when assessing the validity of legislation.
Thus, parliamentary sovereignty underpins the hierarchy of legal authority in England, ensuring that the elected legislature remains the ultimate source of law.