The Constitutional Reform Bill now before Parliament will require certain Treaties to be ratified by Parliament rather than merely being agreed to using the Royal Prerogative. Save that the following clause is in the Bill:
(Where section 24 provides for the requirment for Parliament to ratify treaties):
26 Section 24 not to apply in exceptional cases
Section 24 does not apply to a treaty if a Minister of the Crown is of the opinion
that, exceptionally, the treaty should be ratified without the requirements of
that section having been met.
So all Treaties will be ratified by Parliament unless a Minister opines otherwise. The Bill is silent on what criteria the Minster should apply; save that the power can only be used in exceptional cases; or more properly on what are in the Minister's opinion exceptional cases.
It can only be in the United Kingdom that the elected dictatorship has the gall to arrogate to itself the power to withdraw a matter from the Sovereign legislature's consideration based upon the subjective opinion of one politician.
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