The defenestration of Suella Braverman from the Home Office, after the Fareham MP wrote a wildcat Times article criticising the police’s handling of pro-Palestinian protests, has highlighted the delicate and ill-defined relationship between the … [Read more...] about The police and the constitution
In its response to the Public Administration Select Committee’s 2010 report, Goats and Tsars: Ministerial and other appointments from outside Parliament, the UK Government (led at the time by Prime Minister David Cameron) agreed with the … [Read more...] about Jobs for the boys: The exceptional Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton
It felt like the King’s Speech should have been a bigger event. I was sat watching the King and Queen arrive in Westminster from my office window. I refused an offer to go see him close-up that morning and instead opted out for a packet of Walkers … [Read more...] about A King’s Speech fit for a dying government
We were sad to learn that Tom Legg died peacefully at home last month, aged 88. Tom was a firm friend and supporter of the Constitution Society from its early days, and a founding member of the UK Constitution Monitoring Group. Sir Thomas … [Read more...] about Announcement: Tom Legg
The Constitution Society is delighted to announce the appointment of three new research fellows. David McCann, Binendri Perera and Keegan Shepard will join the Society from November and look to publish their research in 2024. Welcoming them to the … [Read more...] about Announcement: The Constitution Society Appoints Three New Research Fellows
For citizens in a modern democratic society, knowledge and the access to it is a necessity to enable us to keep the powerful in check. It is curious, then, that among the initiatives most regretted by former Prime Minister Tony Blair, was the … [Read more...] about The Guards Can’t Guard Themselves
On 8 September 2022 Tom Scholar was removed from his position as Permanent Secretary to the Treasury by Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng. It was widely reported that the sacking of Scholar was a politically driven decision intended to rail … [Read more...] about ‘Politicisation’ of the Civil Service? The House of Lords Constitution Committee Reports
This is the final instalment of four pieces on the place and function of royal commissions, you can find the previous blogs HERE. Anyone who has listened to recent evidence coming out of the Covid Inquiry will be struck by just how … [Read more...] about Royal Commissions Part Four: Once and Future Royal Commissions?
The Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) is the Government’s centre of expertise, infrastructure and major projects. It gave HS2 an ‘unachievable’ rating in its latest Annual Report, where it noted huge issues around budget, … [Read more...] about HS2 and the constitutional issues of infrastructure
Former supreme court judge Jonathan Sumption recently wrote a piece for the Spectator entitled, somewhat dramatically, "Judgment call: the case for leaving the ECHR”. In the piece, Sumption makes a series of points concerning the European Convention … [Read more...] about Case Adjourned: A response to Jonathan Sumption’s “case for leaving the ECHR”
As the leaves turn and the days grow shorter, the United Kingdom can hear whispers of change in the air as it enters a new season – party conference season. This annual tradition, which stretches back more than a century, sees the major political … [Read more...] about Conference season: Four constitutional questions that parties need to answer
Introduction In Part 1 of this piece I summarised the role of Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) and some trends that it had flagged during the last parliamentary session. Broadly speaking, these included: (1) a … [Read more...] about Spotlight on the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee – Part 2
