CCSU v Minister for the Civil Service (GCHQ case) | |
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Court | House of Lords |
Full case name | Council of Civil Service Unions & Others v Minister for the Civil Service |
Decided | 22 November 1984 |
Citations | [1984] UKHL 9, [1985] AC 374, [1984] 3 WLR 1174, [1985] ICR 14, [1984] 3 All ER 935, [1985] IRLR 28 |
ECLI | ECLI:CE:ECHR:1987:0120DEC001160385 |
Transcript | Bailii transcript |
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Judges sitting | |
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Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service [1984] UKHL 9, or the GCHQ case, is a United Kingdom constitutional law and UK labour law case that held the royal prerogative was subject to judicial review.[1]
In 1984, by issuing a directive based on an Order in Council made using the royal prerogative, the government of Margaret Thatcher banned employees of the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) from joining any trade union for national security reasons. The Council of Civil Service Unions claimed in judicial review that the order defeated their legitimate expectation of being able to collectively bargain for fair wages. Glidewell J in the High Court held the instruction was invalid. The Court of Appeal held national security concerns meant that judicial review was impossible. The House of Lords held that exercises of the royal prerogative were subject to judicial review, but there were exceptions, including for matters of national security. This was a significant break from the previous law, which held that prerogative powers were not in any way subject to judicial review. The GCHQ case established that judicial review depends on the nature of the government's powers, not their source.