Parliamentary sovereignty

Parliamentary sovereignty or the Sovereignty of Parliament, also Parliamentary supremacy, is the concept in the constitutional law of Westminster systems that the Parliament has absolute sovereignty. This means it is supreme to all other governmental instiutions including the monarch acting alone and the courts, and may change or repeal any legislation passed by previous parliaments with a majority. This contrasts for example with the situation in the United States, where the supreme court can rule legislation unconstitutional.

Related Topics:
Westminster system - Parliament - Sovereignty - Monarch - Court - Legislation

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Parliamentary sovereignty is a feature of constitutional law in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Related Topics:
New Zealand - United Kingdom

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The principle of parliamentary sovereignty originated in the United Kingdom in the 17th and 18th centuries during which time parliament asserted the right to name and depose a monarch. In 1648, Henry Herbert, the 2nd Earl of Pembroke, famously commented while a member of the House of Lords, that "Parliament can do anything but make a man a woman and a woman a man." However, given advances in gender change surgery, this doctrine may need to be reexamined.

Related Topics:
United Kingdom - 17th - 18th centuries - Monarch - 1648 - Henry Herbert - 2nd Earl of Pembroke - House of Lords

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Another classic exposition was that of Albert Dicey, in his book Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution (1885):

Related Topics:
Albert Dicey - 1885

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"Parliament... has... the right to make or unmake any law whatever; and further, that no person or body is recognised by the law of England as having a right to override or set aside the legislation of Parliament."

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There are three features of parliamentary sovereignty:

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• Parliament can make law in any area.
• No Parliament can bind its successor (a Parliament cannot pass a law that cannot be changed or reversed by a future Parliament).
• No body except Parliament can change or reverse a law passed by Parliament.
 
Parliamentary sovereignty: Parliamentary Sovereignty in the United Kingdom ►