The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (2005 c. 4) is an Act of Parliament passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 2005. It provides for a Supreme Court of the United Kingdom to take over the existing role of the Law Lords and some powers of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and remove the functions of Speaker of the House of Lords and Head of the Judiciary of England and Wales from the office of Lord Chancellor. This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament during that bodys existence prior to the Act of Union of 1707. ... This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament during that bodys existence prior to the Act of Union of 1707. ... This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament during that bodys existence prior to the Act of Union of 1707. ... This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament during that bodys existence prior to the Act of Union of 1707. ... This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the Scottish Parliament. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Ireland for the years up to its dissolution in 1800. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the years 1707-1719. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the years 1720-1739. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the years 1740-1759. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the years 1760-1779. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the years 1780-1800. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1801-1819. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1820-1839. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1840-1859. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1860-1879. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1880-1899. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1900-1919. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1920-1939. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1940-1959. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1960-1979. ... This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1980-1999. ... This is an list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 2000 to the present. ... This is a list of Acts of the Scottish Parliament. ... This is a list of Acts passed by the Parliament of Northern Ireland. ... This is a list of Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly passed by that body during its existence between 2000 and 2002 when it was suspended. ... The is a list of Orders in Council for Northern Ireland which are primary legislation for the province when the it is being directly ruled from London and also for those powers not devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly. ... Statutory Instruments (SIs) are parts of United Kingdom law separate from Acts of Parliament which do not require full Parliamentary approval before becoming law. ... The is a list of Church of England Measures which are church legislation Church of England. ... In Westminster System parliaments, an Act of Parliament is a part of the law passed by the Parliament. ... The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom will be created under the provisions of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 to take over the judicial functions of the Law Lords in the House of Lords and from the Judicial committee of the Privy Council. ... The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, has a judicial function as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. ... The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... There are various levels of judiciary in England and Wales — different types of courts have different styles of judges. ... This article or section needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ...

Full title of the Act

The long title of the Act is: The long title (properly, the title) is one of the parts, together with the short title, and the operative provisions (sections and Schedules), which comprise an Act of Parliament or Bill in the United Kingdom and certain other Commonwealth Realms. ...

An Act to make provision for modifying the office of Lord Chancellor, and to make provision relating to the functions of that office; to establish a Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, and to abolish the appellate jurisdiction of the House of Lords; to make provision about the jurisdiction of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and the judicial functions of the President of the Council; to make other provision about the judiciary, their appointment and discipline; and for connected purposes.

Legislative history

The Bill was originally introduced in the House of Lords on February 24, 2004, and proposed the following, much broader, changes: This article is about the British House of Lords. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

• Abolition of the office of "Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain", generally known as the Lord Chancellor.
• Setting up of a "Supreme Court of the United Kingdom" and moving the Law Lords out of the House of Lords to this new court.
• Other measures relating to the judiciary, including changes to the position of the Lord Chief Justice and changes to the Privy Council's Judicial Committee.

The Bill caused much controversy and the Lords made amendments to it. The final Act keeps the post of Lord Chancellor, though its role in relation to the judiciary is greatly reduced and the office holder is no longer automatically Speaker of the House of Lords. Another major change is that the Lord Chancellor can now be from either the House of Commons or the House of Lords. Other measures remain generally the same as stated above though. This article or section needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ... The supreme court in some countries, provinces, and states, functions as a court of last resort whose rulings cannot be challenged. ... The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, has a judicial function as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. ... The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales is the second-highest judge of the Courts of England and Wales, after the Lord Chancellor, and the presiding judge of Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal, and of the Queens Bench Division of the High Court. ... The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ...

The newly created Cabinet position of Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs (originally created to wholly replace the Lord Chancellor's executive function) will continue, although the holder of that Cabinet post will likely also hold the ancient office of Lord Chancellor too. The Lord Chancellor will remain as the custodian of the Great Seal (the Bill originally intended to put this into commission). In the Politics of the United Kingdom, the Cabinet is a formal body comprised of government officials chosen by the Prime Minister. ... The Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs is a United Kingdom cabinet position. ... The Great Seal of the Realm is a British institution by which the monarch can authorise official documents without having to sign each document individually. ...

The Bill was approved by both Houses on March 21, 2005, and received Royal Assent on March 24. March 21 is the 80th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (81st in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... // The granting of Royal Assent is the formal method by which a constitutional monarch completes the legislative process of lawmaking by formally assenting to an Act of Parliament. ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in leap years). ...

Changes resulting from the Act

Following the passage of the Act, the House of Lords made new arrangements for the speakership of the House, as the Lord Chancellor is no longer speaker. The Speaker takes the title Lord Speaker, whether a man or a woman. The number of deputy speakers are to be reduced from 25 to 12. The system of deputy Speakers is also expected to be reformed. These decisions will be taken by the House of Lords for itself. The Lord Speaker (or Lady Speaker) will be a new position in the British Parliament created once the Constitutional Reform Acts provisions about the Speakership of the House of Lords comes into effect. ...

The new Supreme Court will need a new building, separate from the Houses of Parliament where the House of Lords currently sits to exercise its judicial functions. The Act gives time for a suitable building to be found and fitted out before the Law Lords move out of the Palace of Westminster. After a lengthy survey of suitable sites, including Somerset House, it was decided that the location for the new court will be Middlesex Guildhall, in Parliament Square, Westminster, which is currently a Crown court. Lord Foster was chosen to make the necessary alterations. The building is expected to reopen after renovation in 2008. This may refer to the: British Houses of Parliament. ... The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, has a judicial function as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. ... The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, in London, England is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (the House of Lords and the House of Commons) meet to conduct their business. ... The central courtyard of Somerset House in London. ... The Middlesex Guildhall is a building on the south-west corner of Parliament Square in London. ... Anti-war protesters gather at Parliament Square on the afternoon of March 20, 2003. ... Westminster is a district within the City of Westminster in London. ... Crown Court and County Court in Oxford. ... Reichstag, German parliamant The Armadillo, Sir Norman Fosters Clyde Auditorium in Glasgow Norman Robert Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank, OM (born 1 June 1935) is a British architect. ...

Motivation

The office of Lord Chancellor will be reformed to remove his ability to act as both a government minister and a judge. This is motivated in part by concerns that the historical admixture of legislative, judicial, and executive power, may not be in conformance with the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights, because a judicial officer, having legislative or executive power, is likely not to be considered sufficiently impartial to provide a fair trial. The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, also known as the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), was adopted under the auspices of the Council of Europe[1] in 1950 to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms. ...

External links

• The full text of the Act, from OPSI
• House of Common Reports on Bills January 2005 Scroll halfway down the page for this Bill's two reports.
• Department for Constitutional Affairs The official website of the Department of Constitutional Affairs, which includes a section on constitutional reform in the UK.
• [1] The election and role of the new Lord Speaker of the House of Lords