HL Deb 19 April 2004 vol 660 c2WA
Lord Lester of Herne Hill

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Goldsmith on 31 March (WA 160), whether they consider that, as a matter of British constitutional law, the legislative powers of Parliament are unlimited in the sense that Parliament can change the structure or essential features of the constitution, such as the independent judiciary or the people's right to periodic, free and secret elections of the legislature. [HL2327]

Lord Goldsmith

As previously stated in the Written Answer I gave on 31 March, the Government consider that it is a fundamental principle of our constitution that the competence of Parliament to legislate on any matter is unlimited. It would not be helpful to speculate on wholly hypothetical instances of legislation.

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