ABSTRACT
Textbooks on constitutional law often deal with parliamentary sovereignty and European Union (EU) law in separate chapters. However, exam questions on sovereignty will now often have explicit EU dimensions, and will, in any event, almost invariably require explanation of the impact of EU law on the traditional doctrine. Therefore, this chapter deals with the traditional view of parliamentary sovereignty and the impact of EU law together. The impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) on sovereignty is also a very topical subject and we include a question specifically devoted to that complex issue, as well as including consideration of its significance in some of the other essays, where relevant. Thus, four main issues are covered in this chapter: the nature of parliamentary sovereignty and possible legal limitations on it; the impact of EU law on the traditional doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty; the means by which EU law can take effect in the UK (direct and indirect effect); and the impact of the HRA on sovereignty. Questions on sovereignty and on the applicability of EU law in the UK may be of the problem or essay type, although essays are probably more common. Both are included here.
