There are few cases that rival Factortame in being concurrently substantively clear and decisive, and perplexing as to its full impact. The scope of the change to the UK constitution that has been instigated by it and other European Court of Justice decisions has been conceptualised as ranging from a ‘legal evolution’ to ‘revolution’. Although some theories are more convincing than others, each faces its own weaknesses. However, notwithstanding the conclusion of this particular speculative debate, the processes of European integration has undoubtedly quickened the pace at which UK Parliament and courts as part of a globalised world have had to squarely confront these constitutional changes, especially the departure from Parliament’s
These developments suggest that the “new view” is the most plausible representation of Parliamentary sovereignty today because referendum locks and the possibility for individuals to present a case in national courts on law derived from sources other than Parliament present limitations on Parliamentary sovereignty but not in the substantive sense discussed above. Proponents of the “new view” view that ultimate sovereignty remains with Parliament but it may have to conform to certain manner and form limitations. The appealing factor of this model is that it also accommodates for the limitations that Human Rights Act proposes on Parliamentary legal authority as well. Yet it is problematic in that the EU has explicitly stated in s2 of the ECA that on at least an EU level, Union law is regarded as supreme and this theory fails to encompass this dimension of the relationship between domestic and EU law. Most importantly, it accentuates how the increasingly multi-layered nature of the constitution must be taken into account in the broader debate. The holding of a point of absolute power faces pressure from outside as well as inside the nation. When the broader question of whether we should be edging away from political and towards a more legal