REGNRSG 105 Lecture Notes - Lecture 34: Parliamentary Sovereignty, Enel, Treaty 2
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EU law chapter 3: Sovereignty and
sources of law
Sovereignty
Costa ENEL: CoJ: all MS have a legal obligation to ensure that the rights within the treaty are
equally available in all the MS and no national rules can restrict EU law rights
The political problem
Problem of sovereignty has both a political and legal dimension
Political dimension: national sovereignty = the power of the people, through their national
government, to govern their own affairs as they see fit
→ The EU endangers national sovereignty, national independence and national identity,
with the positive view that the situation isn’t one of surrendering sovereignty but of
pooling sovereignty in certain areas for the good of all
The legal problem
Parliamentary sovereignty in the UK:
• Means that the courts may not question the validity of parliamentary legislation +
Parliament cannot bind its successors → supremacy of Parliament
• Concept of it = in conflict with the full recognition of EU law in the UK:
− If EU law is to be fully effective, the UK courts must be able to question the validity of
acts of parliament which conflict or wrongly transpose it
− If UK legislation which is inconsistent with EU law has the effect of repealing it, this
would destroy any possibility of EU law applying uniformly across the EU
• European Communities act 1972 s2(1): operation of EU law in relation to UK
legislation is given direct effect + S 2(4): the status of any enactment made or to be made
by parliament is subject to EU law: this is giving legal effect to the primacy of EU law
over UK legislation
• BUT parliament hasn’t ceded sovereignty completely: it’s constrained as far as priority is
given to EU law → if parliament deliberately repeals the European Community Act, the
EU law will no longer be applicable or bind the UK, and the parliament will regain full
sovereignty
The role of the CoJ:
• CoJ in developing supremacy has given effect to the intention of the treaty makers in art
4(3) TEU, but there’s no real mentioning of supremacy in that article: the only
acknowledgement of supremacy made in the treaty of Lisbon can be found in the
Declaration concerning primacy para 17
Document Summary
Eu law chapter 3: sovereignty and sources of law. Costa enel: coj: all ms have a legal obligation to ensure that the rights within the treaty are equally available in all the ms and no national rules can restrict eu law rights. Problem of sovereignty has both a political and legal dimension. Political dimension: national sovereignty = the power of the people, through their national government, to govern their own affairs as they see fit. The eu endangers national sovereignty, national independence and national identity, with the positive view that the situation isn"t one of surrendering sovereignty but of pooling sovereignty in certain areas for the good of all. Parliamentary sovereignty in the uk: means that the courts may not question the validity of parliamentary legislation + Parliament cannot bind its successors supremacy of parliament: concept of it = in conflict with the full recognition of eu law in the uk:
