McKee Martin
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK.
J Public Health (Oxf). 2007 Mar;29(1):3-8. doi: 10.1093/pubmed/fdl036. Epub 2006 Jul 26.
Contemporary legislative and constitutional developments in the United Kingdom for public health. This article explores these implications.
Examination of the development of parliamentary sovereignty in the United Kingdom shows that, although there is no formal separation of powers, there is a long established convention that legislation should be subject to detailed parliamentary scrutiny, should respect common law, and should be subject to judicial review. This convention has been overturned. Consequently, many recent laws conflict with long-established human rights. Some are unworkable or damaging or both. Public health professionals are being asked to implement poorly thought out laws, against a background of loss of trust. History warns of the danger that public health could be sucked into participation in repressive policies that override the rights of the individual in the apparent interests of the public good.
There is a need for a rebalancing of power in the United Kingdom, both among the three branches of government (executive, legislature, and judiciary) and its constituent parts (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland). Constitutional reform is a long-term aim but for now much can be done to hold the executive to account and to be aware of the dangers faced by public health.
英国当代公共卫生领域的立法与宪法发展。本文探讨这些影响。
对英国议会主权发展的审视表明，尽管没有正式的权力分立，但长期以来存在一种惯例，即立法应接受议会的详细审查，应尊重普通法，并应接受司法审查。这一惯例已被推翻。因此，许多近期的法律与长期确立的人权相冲突。有些法律不可行、具有破坏性或两者兼而有之。在信任缺失的背景下，公共卫生专业人员被要求执行考虑不周的法律。历史警示了这样一种危险，即公共卫生可能会被卷入以公共利益之名凌驾于个人权利之上的镇压性政策的实施中。
英国需要在政府的三个部门（行政、立法和司法）及其组成部分（英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰）之间重新平衡权力。宪法改革是一个长期目标，但目前可以做很多事情来追究行政部门的责任，并意识到公共卫生所面临的危险。
