ACCA LW Eng Syllabus A. Essential Elements Of The Legal System - Evaluate delegated legislation - Notes 3 / 7
Delegated (Secondary Legislation)
If you remember enabling acts can be passed which enable the following to make laws themselves (instead of just Parliament)
| Orders In Council | Rare items created by the Privy Council |
|---|---|
| Statutory Instruments (SI's) | Created by Government Ministers and Departments - basically regulations |
| Byelaws | Created by Local Government eg Planning laws |
| Professional regulations | eg ACCA and CIMA making their rules |
Advantages of Delegated Legislation
Saves Parliament time
More experts can be used
Quicker to make laws
Disadvantages of Delegated Legislation
Unelected law makers
Lack of scrutiny eg no 5 phases like in House of Commons etc
Too much law created - red tape
Due to these disadvantages Parliament and courts do have some control over delegated legislation as follows:
Parliament
Most new pieces of delegated legislation must be laid before parliament for 40 days, allowing MPs to have their say
The Joint Select Committee reviews all SI's
Parliament may revoke an enabling act
Courts
The courts may declare any piece of delegated legislation 'ultra vires' (beyond capacity) and void if the laws go further than they should