The new compilation of this new edition has necessitated the re-writing of major parts of the text which reflect the vast amount of legislation introduced by the Blair Government since the last edition was published in 2002. Much of the law has also been affected by the increasing influences of the European Union upon the English Legal Systems. As always, the demands of producing a text that embraces the whole spectrum of the English Law becomes increasingly onerous with each new edition. I therefore owe a considerable debt of thanks to Rachel Moore for her careful research and Renata Corbani and Manickam Balakrishnan of Elsevier for their enthusiastic editorial assistance.