ABSTRACT

Yet, there are some written Conventions which are more contentious. While they may be enshrined in the Constitutions, they are difficult, if not impossible to enforce. Certainly, if we consider the doctrine of the reception of English law in relation to our discussion of Convention, there is authority for the view that certain parliamentary Conventions were not meant to be enforceable in Commonwealth Caribbean jurisdictions. These Conventions, such as parliamentary privilege, were meant to apply exclusively to the Houses of Parliament in England. They were born out of a particular social circumstance which was not suited to the colonies and should not have been received as part of the common law. This view commended itself, for example, to the Guyanese courts in Jagan v Gajraj,3 which held that the privileges, immunities and powers of the British Parliament are not automatically received by a colonial legislature. As such, the Speaker of the Assembly had no power to commit for breach of privilege.4