Contents - Faculty of Law - University of Cambridge

PAPER 2. CONSTITUTIONAL LAWA. The allocation of powers1. Sources and foundations of the constitution:(a) nature and sources of constitutional law;(b) constitutional conventions;(c) the separation of powers;(d) the rule of law;(e) principal organs of government, including the judiciary, the executive (including the Crown) and the royalprerogative;(f) nature and sources of EU law.2. Legislative authority in the United Kingdom:(a) Parliament: its composition and functions, including the role of the House of Lords;(b) parliamentary sovereignty;(c) the principal institutions of the EU;(d) the status of EU law within national law;(e) devolution;(f) delegated legislation;(g) introductory matters concerning the Human Rights Act 1998 with particular reference to its implicationsfor the enactment and interpretation of legislation (and including horizontal effect).B. The control of powers1. Political accountability of the executive:(a) relationship between the executive and Parliament, including ministerial responsibility (collective andindividual);(b) mechanisms for parliamentary accountability, including parliamentary questions, select committees, andthe Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration;(c) political accountability in local government in England, especially Labour’s reform programme.2. Accountability to the judiciary:(a) the nature, scope and constitutional legitimacy of judicial review of administrative action;(b) justiciability, including review of prerogative powers;(c) standing;(d) grounds for review;(e) procedural issues and remedies.3. The use of civil liberties and human rights standards in the control of power:(a) protecting civil liberties in the UK;(b) obligations imposed by the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998 ininternational and municipal law;(c) freedom of expression and national security: official secrecy, freedom of information and breach ofconfidence;(d) freedom of assembly: protest and public order.READING36