Primary legislation is law made by the legislative branch of government. This contrasts with secondary legislation, which is usually made by the executive branch. Secondary (or delegated) legislation must be authorised by primary legislation, and conform to boundaries it has laid down.
In the United Kingdom, and other Commonwealth nations, primary legislation takes the form of an Act of Parliament, and in the United States, it is (at federal level) an Act of Congress. In European Union law, the founding treaties are the main primary legislation.
Section 21(1) of the Human Rights Act 1998 contains a definition of "primary legislation".
Famous quotes containing the words primary and/or legislation:
“The primary function of a theater is not to please itself, or even to please its audience. It is to serve talent.”
—Robert Brustein (b. 1927)
“Statecraft is soulcraft. Just as all education is moral education because learning conditions conduct, much legislation is moral legislation because it conditions the action and the thought of the nation in broad and important spheres of life.”
—George F. Will (b. 1941)