R v Ministry of Defence, ex parte Smith

Facts

Service personnel were discharged under a policy banning homosexuals from the armed forces.

Issue

Was the policy irrational?

Held

No. Applying anxious scrutiny because rights were at stake, the Court of Appeal still upheld the policy.

Principle

The more substantial the interference with rights, the more the court requires by way of justification.

Why it matters

Shows the limits of Wednesbury. The European Court of Human Rights later found a breach of the right to private life.

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