Brexit and the British Bill of Rights

Abstract

On 27 October 2016 Edinburgh Law School, the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, the Global Justice Academy, the Human Rights Centre, and the Edinburgh Europa Institute came together at Edinburgh Law School to discuss two inter-connected developments of profound significance for the constitutional order of the United Kingdom: Brexit and a British Bill of Rights. Although the discussion ranged widely, human rights protection, and the prospect of regression in existing rights protection, was the primary focus.

This research paper reflects the discussions at the workshop on the nature of these developments, and the possible implications of each development for the United Kingdom across a range of dimensions: the devolution settlements, the peace settlement in Northern Ireland based on the Good Friday Agreement, parliamentary supremacy, the UK’s relationship with the European Union, and the UK’s international obligations beyond the EU’s legal order.

It is grouped around four key themes:

• Concrete reduction in rights protection;
• Consent;
• Constitutional complexity; and
• Community.

Keywords: ECHR, EU, Brexit, Human Rights, United Kingdom, Devolution, Consent

JEL Classification: K10, K33