constitutional and administrative law

160 Pages·2011·1.67 MB·English

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Constitutional and Administrative Law
Visit the Law Express SeriesCompanion Website at
www.pearsoned.co.uk/lawexpress to find valuable student
learning material including:
❚ A Study Plan test to assess how well you know the subject
before you begin your revision
❚ Interactive quizzes to test your knowledge of the main points
from each chapter of the book
❚ Further examination questions and guidelines for answering
them
❚ Interactive flashcards to help you revise the main terms and
cases
❚ Printable versions of the topic maps and checklists
CONS_A01.QXP 1/10/07 14:36 Page ii
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CONS_A01.QXP 1/10/07 14:36 Page iii
Constitutional and
Administrative Law
Chris Taylor
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Pearson Education Limited
Edinburgh Gate
Harlow
Essex CM20 2JE
England
and Associated Companies throughout the world
Visit us on the World Wide Web at:
www.pearsoned.co.uk
First published 2008
© Pearson Education Limited 2008
The right of Chris Taylor to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in
accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without either the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting
restricted copying in the United Kingdom issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron
House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. The use of any
trademark in this text does not vest in the author or publisher any trademark ownership rights
in such trademarks, nor does the use of such trademarks imply any affiliation with or
endorsement of this book by such owners.
Crown Copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the
Queen’s Printer for Scotland
Law Commission Reports are reproduced under the terms of the Click-Use Licence
ISBN: 978-1-4058-2191-9
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Taylor, Christopher W.
Consitutional and administrative law / Chris Taylor.
p. com.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4058-2191-9 (pbk.)
1. Constitutional law--Great Britain. 2. Adminstrative law--Great Britain. I. Title.
KD3989.T39 2008
342.41--dc22 2007036917
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
11 10 09 08 07
Typeset by 3 in 10pt Helvetic Condensed
Printed and bound by Henry Ling Ltd., at the Dorset Press, Dorchester, Dorset
The publisher’s policy is to use paper manufactured from sustainable forests.
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Contents
Acknowledgements vii
Introduction viii
Guided tour x
Table of cases and statutes xii
Chapter 1: The constitution of the UK 1
Chapter 2: Where does the constitution come from? 10
Chapter 3: Basic principles of the constitution 25
Chapter 4: Institutions of state 1 41
Chapter 5: Institutions of state 2 53
Chapter 6: Civil liberties and human rights 66
Chapter 7: Freedom of expression and assembly 77
Chapter 8: Police powers 92
Chapter 9: Judicial review 108
Chapter 10: Tr ibunals, inquiries and ombudsmen 125
And finally, before the exam ... 134
Glossary of terms 137
Index 140
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Supporting resources
Visit www.pearsoned.co.uk/lawexpress to find valuable online
resources
Companion Website for students
❚ A Study Plan test to assess how well you know the subject before
you begin your revision
❚ Interactive quizzes to test your knowledge of the main points from
each chapter of the book
❚ Further examination questions and guidelines for answering them
❚ Interactive flashcards to help you revise the main terms and cases
❚ Printable versions of the topic maps and checklists
Also: The regularly maintained Companion Website provides the
following features:
❚ Search tool to help locate specific items of content
❚ E-mail results and profile tools to send results of quizzes to
instructors
❚ Online help and support to assist with website usage and
troubleshooting
For more information please contact your local Pearson Education
sales representative or visit www.pearsoned.co.uk/lawexpress

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Acknowledgements
Our thanks go to all reviewers who contributed to the development of this text,
including students who participated in research and focus groups which helped to
shape the series format.

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Introduction
Constitutional and administrative law is one of the core subjects required for a
qualifying law degree and so is a compulsory part of undergraduate law
programmes and graduate diploma in law programmes. It is, however, very
different from many of the other core legal subjects because it concentrates
less on legal rules than on the operation of the system itself – in particular,
the operation of the state and the relationship between the state and the
individual.
Constitutional law is often described as being where law meets politics and
there are frequent references to the political process which directly influences
the law which is introduced. Much of the law we work with originates in
Parliament in the form of statute and so we must understand how Parliament
works and how such statutes are produced. Similarly, in order to appreciate
the role played by the common law, we must understand the position of the
courts within the constitution. More importantly, constitutional law considers
how power is exercised by the state and how those in power are held
accountable. This includes the protection of civil liberties and mechanisms for
the individual to challenge the exercise of state power.
It is not uncommon to approach constitutional law for the first time with a
certain amount of uncertainty, especially if politics is not your favourite
subject, but don’t worry. Almost all students find themselves enjoying the
subject more than they expected and your knowledge of how ‘the system’
works will be invaluable in your other legal studies. The most important thing
to remember is that, because we do not have a written constitution, there is no
central set of rules which dictates how the state should operate. Instead, our
constitutional system is a web of principles and customs which often appear
outdated and vague, so this subject can seem disjointed when compared with
other areas of law, but don’t assume that it is just you who doesn’t understand
at first – just remember the basic principles and take a little time to think
aboutwhythe constitution has evolved into the system we have today.
Remember that this is a revision guide, not a core text, so it can never provide
you with the depth of understanding which you will need to excel in
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INTRODUCTION
examinations and it will be no substitute for structured reading around the
various topics. What it can do, however, is to focus your revision on the key
areas and highlight those additional points which examiners are looking for.
The single most common failing in constitutional law examinations is that
students write ‘common sense’ answers, without sufficient reference to the
cases and legal principles. We all know (or think we know) what government
or Parliament are, but that is not enough – as in any other area of legal
writing, you need to produce logical, reasoned arguments supported by
relevant authorities if you are to achieve the highest grades.

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