Local government in England has already become more presidential in form and style, with relatively little debate about the shift in governance from what was once more parliamentary than Parliament itself to an extreme form of presidentialism. This … [Read more...] about One Mayor to Rule Them All: Labour and Local Government
On 29 January, a vacancy appeared on the government’s public appointments website which stood out from the list of otherwise rather unremarkable job adverts. The Judicial Appointments Commission is seeking a new chair. The next day, the JAC’s own … [Read more...] about Who Appoints Our Judges? Inside the Judicial Appointments Commission
Supporters of assisted dying are resigning themselves to defeat amid concerns that the landmark legislation passed by the Commons will almost definitely run out of time in the Lords. Alongside other developments, this has sparked renewed hostility … [Read more...] about Is the House of Lords Overplaying its Hand?
The Labour Party’s decision to prevent Andy Burnham, the directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, from standing as a parliamentary candidate in the forthcoming Gorton and Denton by-election has largely been treated as an episode of internal … [Read more...] about Our Elections are in a Chokehold: The Burnham Example
Judicial overreach, the concept that courts have exceeded their constitutional power to interpret and develop common law and strayed into political decision making or policy development, has long haunted both academic and political writing on … [Read more...] about How to Measure Judicial Overreach Systemically
Recent executive conduct in the United States under Donald Trump has revived an old constitutional anxiety: what happens when those at the apex of executive power are willing to test, stretch, or disregard the limits that law and convention … [Read more...] about Can the Constitution Really Restrain a Prime Minister?
Job title: Contributing WriterWorking for: The Constitution SocietyLocation: London/RemoteSalary: £100 per day (£200 per piece)Length of contract: 11 months fixed termClosing date: 20 February 2026Application form: HERE Job details The … [Read more...] about Contributing Writer Opportunities: Write for the Constitution Society
Shortly before Christmas, on 16 December 2025, the Government announced an urgent independent review into foreign financial interference in UK politics. The review is to be led by former DExEU Permanent Secretary Philip Rycroft. Though newspaper … [Read more...] about Dirty Money and the Need for Disinfectant
On 18 December, the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness, Alison McGovern, indicated that the Government had invited local authorities to advise on whether there should be a one-year delay to local elections. This invitation arises amidst … [Read more...] about Delaying Local Government Elections: Electoral Advantage or Genuine Reform?
In 1948, the grounds for allowing judicial review of government decisions developed significantly with the Wednesbury case. Since then, this area of review has continued to evolve, with executive decisions increasingly being subjected to rationality … [Read more...] about Proportionality and reasoning in judicial review
On 20 November, the COVID-19 Inquiry, chaired by Baroness Hallett, published its second report on ‘core decision-making and political governance’ (Module 2). The report set out nineteen recommendations and drew a number of stark … [Read more...] about Trust Lost, Lessons Learned: Outcomes of the COVID-19 Inquiry
David Lammy, the Justice Secretary, recently proposed changes to the criminal justice system to reduce the use of juries in criminal trials. The proposals have elicited strong condemnation from a range of different parties. They seem to … [Read more...] about The End of Trial by Jury in the United Kingdom?
