composition and function of formal and informal law

Parliamentary Law making

Types of Law

•         Statute Law of Westminster and the devolved Parliaments

•         Delegated guidelines to government departments

•         Common Law

•         Ratified European Legislation and Treaties

•         International agreements and Bilateral Treaties

•         Case Law of the Courts: Judicial Precedent

•         Codification Statutes (eg Offences against the person act)

•         Orders in Council (privy Council)

Scottish Parliament

•         1997 referendum, 1998 act of parliament

•         First elections 1999.

•         SNP (secessionists) seek to hold referendum in 2014 based on an overall majority in the last elections to it.

•         Scotland has its own legal system from pre union of parliaments, preserved in the 1707 act of Union

Welsh Parliament

•         1997 referendum for secondary legislation powers

•         More recent ‘ie’ vote in favour of devolution to primary law making powers

•         Silk Commission on fiscal autonomy within sterling area

•         Past tax fiddles with alleged oil supplies prevented by new set up.

Northern Ireland Assembly

•         Northern Ireland is a successor state to the Island of Ireland Kingdom, united with Great Britain in 1801. As such Ireland had its own court structure based on county governance since Elizabeth 1st

•         It had a parliament and central courts in Dublin.

•         Northern Ireland was created by the Churchill-collins Irish peace treaty of the 1920s and had sectarian home rule till 1972 when Westminster assumed direct responsibility

•         Anglo Irish Agreement 1986

•         Good Friday Agreement 1999

•         Northern Irish Assembly referendums

•         Off on power sharing

•         Current devolved with Sinn Fein- DUP power sharing executive

•         Cross community referendums on constitutional matters such as leaving UK.

•         1998, referendum, 1999 act and 2000 first elections

GLA

•         Devolved policing and transport policy

•         Works in conjunction with the 32 London Boroughs and the Corporation of London.

•         2000-2004 and 2004-8 Ken Livingstone

•         2008-2012 and 2012- Boris Johnson Mayors

•         GLA has multi borough constituencies and top up region.

•          

Channels and Man

•         Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney Sark successor to William 1sts Duchy of Normandy

•         Isle of Man has a parliament of its own, the Tynwald.

•         Both have common citizenship with UK and liase with the Home office

Other islands

•         Falklands

•         Carribean Islands

•         Gibraltar

•         Under Foreign Office and British Consular assistance

Old Empire Parliaments

•         Statute of Westminster Act 1931

–        Irish Free State (now republic outside commonwealth see later slide)

–        Canada and Newfoundland

–        Australia

–        New Zealand

–        South Africa

The Modern Parliament

•         Commonwealth Secretariat

•         British Council

•         Council of the Isles

Conclusion

•         Is the UK a federal democracy or devolved unitary state?

•         Can EU law allow continuation of the dictum of parliamentary sovereignty?

•         Is there therefore a need for a constitutional convention and renegotiation of the European Union relationship?

Privy Council

•         Institution of UK state

•         Also judicially of some Commonwealth states as their final court of appeal.

•         Advises the crown and parliament

•         Has a secretariat as part of the Royal Palaces

•         ? Role of royals lower down the line of succession.

Council of State

•         As ERII ages and as mentioned in Queens Speech, Prince Charles the heir apparent has formed a council of state to advise him and assist his mother in Royal Duties

•         Will the Duke of Cambridge sit on this body, especially pertinent as hes soon to be a dad.

•         Composition of said council of state is at present unknown to the author (no he hasn’t got a written invite).

The order, member companion and medal of empire

•         Advises the dean of the chapel royal

•         Writes to the great and the good and in many cases is said great and good.

•         Based in St Pauls Cathedral.

•         Funded through the livery companies of the City of London upon the advice of freemen of the city of london through the court of common council.

•         ‘gateway honours’ for others in the system.

Military Honours

•         Awarded through the crown and Mod

•         Some also given to intelligence services for things such as ‘Squidgy gate’

•         Some from the time of the crusades such as knights and baronets and peerages still awarded on the advice of the crown according to criteria set out by the crown appointment commission (no you can’t walk into AandE and ask for one).