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This dissertation examines the erosion of parliamentary sovereignty in the United Kingdom arising from its membership to the European Union. Important issues with regard to the sovereignty of parliament in Britain will be considered, including how its membership of the EU has affected it in a negative way or benefited the country whether it is economically or socially. Part one will consider the history of Parliament in the UK both before and after Britain’s integration to the EU and both before and after the enactment of the European Communities Act 1972.
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This research is all about the disputes over the supremacy and sovereignty of the EU and the UK Parliament as Institutions. There are arguments as to why the EU is considered supreme and on the other hand how the UK parliament may be considered supreme.
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This undergraduate dissertation aims to explore the legal and political relationship between Britain and the European Union. The unwritten constitution of the United Kingdom has traditionally been built upon the simplicity of two legal concepts: legislative supremacy and the rule of law. The accession into the European Community in 1973 saw a drastic alteration to the role of Britain’s legislature, having to accept shared supremacy with directly effective European treaties and directives. The dissertation addresses four crucial aspects of the relationship and the future possibility of a severance from the EU. Firstly, it will address the evolution of shared supremacy, taking into account a number of key cases that have sparked debate on the issue. Secondly, it will consider the possibility of withdrawal in light of the recent efforts by the Conservative Party to hold a referendum on membership, discussing the various procedural elements involved in such a measure. Thirdly, it will address the classical notion of Parliamentary Supremacy, and whether it still remains unqualified irrespective of EU membership. Finally, it will turn to the various other constitutional statutes or provisions that further dilute Parliamentary Supremacy. Here, I will consider the future possibilities of removing these qualifications where possible.
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This thesis examines the influence of the governments of the Member States of the European Union (EU) on the decisions of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Part One develops an analytical framework inspired by Giddens' structuration theory, which offers both a general understanding of the ECJ decision-making process, and helps assess governments' influence in and on that process. It identifies and exposes the evolving internal (i.e. organisational, procedural, substantive and normative) and external (i.e. legal, political, economical and social) structures which impact on judicial decisions at EU level, and agents that take part in and shape this process (i.e. ECJ judges, Advocate General and staff, EC institutions, national judges, individuals, companies, interest groups, academics, journalists, national MPs, actors of the civil society, etc.), so as to provide an understanding of how varying actors-structures combinations may open or close governmental opportunities for influence in and on the ECJ decision-making process. In Part Two, it engages in an examination of the various means by which national governments participate in that process, by acting either outside the Court, collectively (i.e. control over the Court’s procedures, powers and jurisdictions, over the legal framework, over the political process, etc.) or individually (i.e. criticism of the ECJ, political appointments or non-compliance), or inside the Court, especially by taking part in preliminary reference proceedings. This analysis leads to conclusions on national governments’ capacity to influence Community case law and on the desirability of such influence, within the context of democratic and pluralist decision-making and law-making at EU level.
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