Legal Challenge
In Jackson v Attorney General, the validity of the Parliament Act 1949 was questioned because it used the 1911 Act. The challenge asserted foremost that the 1949 Act was delegated rather than primary legislation, and that the 1911 Act had delegated power to the Commons. If this were the case, then the Commons could not empower itself through the 1949 Act without direct permission from the Lords. Since it was passed under the 1911 Act, it had never received the required consent of the Lords. However, the 1949 Act was found to be legal. The 1911 Act, it was concluded, was not primarily about empowering the Commons, but rather to restrict the ability of the Lords to affect legislation. This ruling also means that efforts to abolish the House of Lords (a major constitutional change) using the Acts could be successful, although the issue was not directly addressed in the ruling.
Read more about this topic: Parliament Act 1949
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