The Brexit Challenge for Ireland and the United Kingdom: Constitutions Under Pressure

by Oran Doyle (Editor), Aileen McHarg (Editor), Jo Murkens (Editor)

Overview

Since the 1950s, European integration has included ever more countries with ever-softening borders between them. In its apparent reversal of integration and its recreation of borders, Brexit intensifies deep-seated tensions, both institutional and territorial, within and between the constitutional orders of the United Kingdom and Ireland. In this book, leading scholars from the UK and Ireland assess the pressures exerted by Brexit, from legal, historical, and political perspectives. This book explores the territorial pressures within the UK constitution, connecting them to the status of Northern Ireland before exploring how analogous territorial pressures might be addressed in a united Ireland. The book also critically analyses the Brexit process within the UK, drawing on Irish comparative examples, to assess unresolved tensions between popular mandate, legislative democracy, and executive responsibility. Through practical application, this book explores how constitutions function under the most intense political pressures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781108967228
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	08/26/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Oran Doyle is a Professor in Law at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. He is the author of The Constitution of Ireland: A Contextual Analysis (2018) and a member of the Working Group on Unification Referendums on the Island of Ireland.
Aileen McHarg has published widely on UK and Scottish public law. Previous edited books include The Scottish Independence Referendum: Constitutional and Political Implications (2016). She is joint general editor of the journal Public Law.
Jo Murkens is Associate Professor in the Department of Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He has published in the areas of public law, EU law, and comparative constitutional law, and is a member of the editorial board of Public Law.

Table of Contents

Preface; List of contributors; Introduction: the constitutional tensions of Brexit Oran Doyle, Aileen McHarg and Jo Murkens; Part I. Territorial Pressures in Ireland and the United Kingdom: 1. Subsidiarity, competence, and the UK territorial constitution Jo Hunt; 2. Brexit and the mechanisms for the resolution of conflicts in the context of devolution: do we need a new model? Elisenda Casanas Adam; 3. Beyond matryoshka governance in the 21st century: the curious case of Northern Ireland Sylvia de Mars and Aoife O'Donoghue; 4. Political parties in Northern Ireland and the post-Brexit constitutional debate David Mitchell; 5. The constitutional significance of the people of Northern Ireland C. R. G. Murray; 6. The constitutional politics of a United Ireland Oran Doyle, David Kenny and Christopher McCrudden; 7. The minority rights implications of Irish unification James Rooney; Part II. Institutional Pressures and Contested Legitimacy: 8. Populism and popular sovereignty in the UK and Irish constitutional orders Eoin Daly; 9. Party, democracy and representation: the political consequences of Brexit Malcolm Petrie; 10. Westminster versus Whitehall: what the Brexit debate revealed about an unresolved conflict at the heart of the British constitution David Howarth; 11. Brexit and the problem with delegated legislation Adam Tucker; 12. Litigating Brexit Christopher McCorkindale and Aileen McHarg; 13. The law officers: the relationship between executive lawyers and executive power in Ireland and the United Kingdom Conor Casey; 14. In search of the constitution Martin Loughlin.

Editorial Reviews

'This timely collection provides one of the very first insights into the impact of Brexit on UK and Irish Constitutional law. It tackles this complex and challenging subject with clarity, expertise and insight, in contributions from both newer voices and well-established scholars. It will become essential reading for all who wish to learn more about this subject.' Sionaidh Douglas-Scott, Anniversary Chair in Law, Queen Mary University of London

‘This is a timely and valuable collection of essays that explores the challenges posed by Brexit for Ireland and the UK. These challenges played a significant part in the negotiation of the Withdrawal Agreement, and were centre stage in subsequent trade discourse. The book will be of interest to all those concerned by the impact of Brexit on constitutional ordering broadly conceived.’ Paul Craig, Emeritus Professor of English Law, University of Oxford

From the Publisher