Earlier this week, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party (and shadow minister of too many things to list) Angela Rayner gave a speech at the Institute for Government (IfG) outlining the party’s plans to clean up politics. Rayner attacked the current … [Read more...] about Labour’s plans to clean up politics
Professor Andrew Blick is joined by Dr Lisa Claire Whitten, Research Fellow on the ESRC-funded project ‘Governance for a ‘place between’: the Multi-Level Dynamics of Implementing the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland’ based at Queen’s University … [Read more...] about In conversation with Lisa Claire Whitten
The word corruption has not often been used in UK politics over the past two decades, but the Owen Paterson affair has brought it fully into play. Chris Bryant, Chair of the Parliamentary Standards Committee described Mr Paterson's lobbying as … [Read more...] about Is Britain ‘politically corrupt’?
Beyond the arguing over the correct form of address for the Irish president – or should that be President of Ireland – and legal challenges over luminations at Belfast City Hall (neither example is surprising), perhaps the biggest surprise of … [Read more...] about Northern Ireland: a century of uncertainty
A distinguished panel at Public Law Project’s recent conference on accountability and the constitution considered the issue of treaty accountability in the UK - a topic that without a developed field of foreign relations law in the UK can often fall … [Read more...] about Treaty accountability
On Monday 8 November, Parliamentary skirmishes between the government and the Lords over the legal enforcement powers of the new Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) concluded with a Commons victory for the government. The Environment Act … [Read more...] about Certainty versus legality: loading the dice against upholding the law
Introduction and history In spite of high-profile meetings with world leaders, Nicola Sturgeon has largely been excluded from the formal decision-making processes at COP26. This contradiction is reflected elsewhere: the Scottish government … [Read more...] about The politics of Scotland’s autonomous foreign policy
Professor Andrew Blick is joined by Aileen McHarg, Professor of Public Law and Human Rights at Durham Law School and member of the UK Constitution Monitoring Group (UKCMG). In a wide-ranging conversation, they discuss many of themes and findings … [Read more...] about In conversation with Aileen McHarg
Over the last few months, there has been much ink spilled over the Elections Bill, which is currently at the Committee Stage in the House of Commons. A number of the provisions contained in the bill are, however, relatively uncontroversial. Measures … [Read more...] about Eroding the independence of the Electoral Commission: the introduction of a government Strategy and Policy Statement
Following weeks of speculation, the Prime Minister carried out a reshuffle of his cabinet ministers last month – the second major reshuffle of the Johnson premiership and his first since February 2020. Lots has been written already about what this … [Read more...] about What does the reshuffle mean for constitutional reform?
Introduction Much like Brexit itself, the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement’s Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland remains an on-going point of contention. It has left an indelible mark on politics both within Northern Ireland and in Westminster, and … [Read more...] about The politics of the Northern Ireland Protocol
It has often been assumed that sub-state nationalisms, whether in Scotland, Wales, Quebec, Catalonia or the Basque Country, must be motivated by distinct values or attitudes about the great issues of public policy. Indeed, there is a whole school of … [Read more...] about Will ‘British values’ keep us together?
