PUBLIC LAW IN SCOTLAND. Ed by Aileen McHarg and Tom Mullen Edinburgh: Avizandum Publishing (www.avizandum.com), 2006. xiii +353 pp. ISBN 9781904968082. £29.95.
| Published date | 01 May 2009 |
| Author | Gavin Little |
| Pages | 366-367 |
| DOI | 10.3366/E136498090900170X |
| Date | 01 May 2009 |
It is only natural to feel a degree of trepidation on being asked to review a book of essays on Scots public law two years and a landmark Scottish Parliamentary election after it was first published. It is always possible that it could be rendered redundant by subsequent events in what is, post-devolution, a dynamic field of law. Happily, however, this is not the case with this collection of essays. Inevitably, some of the contributions have been overtaken to an extent by substantive developments, but this does not detract from the book's overall worth: it remains relevant, scholarly and stimulating. Indeed, it is to the book's credit that many of the essays anticipate the change of political furniture that took place at Holyrood following the 2007 election. And reflecting on the essays with the benefit of hindsight reminds one that, thus far, all that can be detected since the coming into office of the minority SNP Government is a change in the tone of Scottish constitutional debate, rather than any major seismic shift in the substantive actuality of public law.
The essays are grouped into three themed parts, following an introductory chapter by Aileen McHarg, who considers the issue of what is distinctive about public law in Scotland, concluding that it is (currently at least) institutional pluralism. The scene having been set, the first part considers Scotland's position in the wider constitutional context, focussing on different aspects of sovereignty and political authority. The second part covers what is termed the governance of Scotland with essays on a range of issues, including the democratic process, law-making, public accountability, local government and the judiciary. The third part brings together essays on the control of public power, focussing, as one would expect, on judicial review under the Scotland Act and common law, tribunals, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, the position of the Crown and human rights.
As all of the contributions are of a high standard, it might seem unfair to select some for further discussion, but a short review leaves no alternative: the selection, in turn, merely reflects the reviewer's own particular interests. In part I, Stephen Tierney's essay provides a readable and useful summary of the politico-constitutional history of Scotland's place in the union and of the devolution settlement before raising the thorny question of what is to become of orthodox parliamentary sovereignty. Gavin Anderson's...
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