THIS PAPER IS NOT TO BE REMOVED FROM THE EXAMINATION HALL

DIPLOMA IN LAW/CertHE COMMON LAW LA1020 ZB

LLB
BSc DEGREES WITH LAW

Public law

Thursday 16 May 2019: 10.00 – 13.15

DO NOT TURN OVER UNTIL TOLD TO BEGIN

Candidates will have THREE HOURS AND FIFTEEN MINUTES in which to

answer the questions. Candidates must answer all parts of a question unless
otherwise stated.

Candidates must answer FOUR of the following EIGHT questions.

Permitted materials
Candidates are permitted to bring into the examination room the following
specified document: one copy of Core Statutes on Public law & Civil Liberties
2018-19 (Palgrave Macmillan).

© University of London 2019

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1. ‘The British constitution, contrary to popular description, is not
“unwritten” – a good part of it is written – but it is uncodified.’ (House of
Lords Constitution Committee, 2002).

Discuss.

2. Discuss whether the principle of the sovereignty of the United Kingdom

Parliament is absolute, or whether it may be subject to limitation in
exceptional circumstances.

3. Discuss the extent to which the British constitution has embraced a rigid
doctrine of separation of powers.

4. Discuss the various ways that Parliament scrutinises the government,

and critically assess the effectiveness of Parliament’s role in the
legislative process.

5. Discuss whether UK courts always resolve a clash between national law

and EU law in favour of the latter.

6. Discuss the claim that the devolved structure of each part of the UK is
immensely complicated, but that the overall constitutional arrangement
of the UK is clear and straightforward.

7. Discuss the extent to which the Human Rights Act 1998 strikes the right
balance between the courts and Parliament.

8. Discuss whether the principles of procedural fairness ensure that public

bodies retain substantial flexibility in decision-making to the detriment of
applicants.

END OF PAPER

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