- Here's David Allen Green on what's required to make an Article 50 notice
Article 50: where are we now?Law and politics are separate things, and they do not often overlap. It is rare that politics is driven, or even shaped, by legal process or any legal issue. But it does happen sometimes, and it is happening in the United Kingdom at the moment.- David argues that Article 50 notification can be performed under Royal Prerogative
- And here's a paper by some Barber, Hickman & King, at the UK Constitutional Law Association on why Royal Prerogative is not enough, in fact, an Act of Parliament would be required. They argue that the whole of our political history has been Parliament vs. Crown; the remaining royal prerogative cannot be used to overturn statute law. They argue that an Article 50 notification would usurp the European Communities and European Parliament Acts and thus must be supported by an amending Act of Parliament.
Nick Barber, Tom Hickman and Jeff King: Pulling the Article 50 'Trigger': Parliament's Indispensable RoleIn this post we argue that as a matter of domestic constitutional law, the Prime Minister is unable to issue a declaration under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty - triggering our withdrawal from the European Union - without having been first authorised to do so by an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament.- The devolution statutes entrench the Assemblies and so any enabling legislation would need to amend those laws too.
- This is explored by Prof Mark Elliot who states that while in order to decide within UK constitutional arrangements, the assemblies must be consulted, they have no veto.
Brexit | Can Scotland block Brexit?On The Sunday Politics Scotland today, the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, raised the prospect of Scotland placing an obstacle in the path of Brexit, saying: "If the Scottish parliament is judging this on the basis of what's right for Scotland, then the option of saying we're not going to vote for something that's against...- Mind you Professor Elliot agrees with Allen Green that Royal Prerogative is sufficient authority and I find the Barber, Hickman, King argument compelling.
- Jo Murkens argues that it would be legally possible to legislate to overcome the devolution statutes, which would need to be done to leave the EU; the political cost would be astronomic, jeopardising the Union with Scotland and the peace process in Northern Ireland.
Jo Murkens: Brexit: The Devolution DimensionThe results of the third nation-wide referendum in the United Kingdom are still sinking in at home and around the world. Just below 52% voted to leave the European Union, just over 48% voted to remain. The widespread conclusion is that the UK must leave the EU.- @flickr CC Esther S. 2007 BY-NC-SA
