Salvesen v Riddell
An Act of the Scottish Parliament was outside its competence because it breached a landlord's Convention right to property, and the court suspended the effect of its decision to allow the Parliament to correct it.
Facts
Section 72 of the Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 2003, passed by the Scottish Parliament, was intended to stop landlords from using a device to end agricultural tenancies held by limited partnerships, in which the landlord was often the limited partner. It applied to notices served between the publication of the Bill and the Act coming into force. Mr Salvesen, a landlord who had served notice to end a tenancy within that period, found that the tenant could now claim a full secure tenancy. He argued that section 72 breached his right to peaceful enjoyment of his possessions under article 1 of the First Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights.
Legal principle
The Supreme Court held that section 72 was outside the competence of the Scottish Parliament, because it breached landlords' Convention rights in an arbitrary and disproportionate way, treating landlords differently according to when they had served notice without any justification. Under section 102 of the Scotland Act 1998, the court suspended the effect of its decision for twelve months, to allow the Parliament to correct the defect. The case shows that the Scottish Parliament's legislation can be invalidated for breaching Convention rights, unlike Acts of the UK Parliament.
Related cases on conventions, ministers and devolution
- Re Allister's Application for Judicial Review [2023] UKSC 5
- Attorney General v Jonathan Cape Ltd [1976] QB 752
- Attorney General v National Assembly for Wales Commission [2012] UKSC 53, [2013] 1 AC 792
- AXA General Insurance Ltd v HM Advocate [2011] UKSC 46, [2012] 1 AC 868
- Carltona Ltd v Commissioners of Works [1943] 2 All ER 560
- Imperial Tobacco Ltd v Lord Advocate [2012] UKSC 61
- Martin v Most [2010] UKSC 10
- Recovery of Medical Costs for Asbestos Diseases (Wales) Bill: Reference by the Counsel General for Wales [2015] UKSC 3, [2015] AC 1016
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This summary is for study and revision and is not legal advice. Although our case summaries are checked for accuracy, we do not guarantee that they are free from errors or omissions. Always read the full judgment for the court's reasoning.
