The (constitutional) state we’re in: A week in British politics
If proof were needed that a week can be a long time in politics, one would need to look no further than the events of the last seven days in […]
The Internal Market Bill – A Perfect Constitutional Storm
The willingness of the UK’s Brexiteer-led Government to pick fights with the European Union is a given. So too, now, is its appetite for a show-down with the courts, as […]
The Judicial Review Review III: Limiting judicial review by ‘clarifying’ non-justiciability — or putting lipstick on the proverbial pig
Having considered, in my first two posts in this series, the general scope and underlying agenda of the Government’s Review of judicial review and the possibility of codifying the grounds […]
The Judicial Review Review II: Codifying Judicial Review — Clarification or Evisceration?
In my first post on the Review of judicial review, I noted, among other things, the potentially far-reaching nature of the recommendations that might emerge, bearing in mind the Review’s […]
The Judicial Review Review I: The Reform Agenda and its Potential Scope
The UK Government has announced a review of judicial review — the Independent Review of Administrative Law — with notably broad terms of reference. This post is the first in […]
The United Kingdom’s constitution and Brexit: A ‘constitutional moment’?
I recently completed work on an article for a special issue of the Japanese legal journal Horitsu Jiho. The theme of the special issue is the impact of the forces […]
The Fundamentality of Rights at Common Law
I recently completed a paper, to be published in a forthcoming edited collection, on ‘The Fundamentality of Rights at Common Law’. The concern of the paper is with the senses […]
1,000 words / The Supreme Court’s Judgment in Cherry/Miller (No 2)
This short piece, which forms part of my 1,000 words series of posts, aims to set out in an accessible way the key points of the Supreme Court’s judgment in […]
A new approach to constitutional adjudication? Miller II in the Supreme Court
The following is my detailed, initial analysis of the Supreme Court’s judgment in the Cherry/Miller (No 2) case. For a shorter explanation of the case, see this 1,000 words post. […]
Prorogation and justiciability: Some thoughts ahead of the Miller II case in the Supreme Court
A good deal has been said in recent days about whether the Government’s advice to the Queen concerning the prorogation of Parliament raises a legal question on which courts can […]
The Brexit Secretary says he has “set in stone” the repeal of the European Communities Act 1972 — but the legal significance of this misleading claim is very limited
Earlier today, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, Stephen Barclay MP, posted a tweet saying that he had “signed the legislation setting in stone the repeal” of […]
Letter to The Times: Parliament’s (limited) capacity to prevent a no-deal Brexit
The following letter was published in The Times on 12 August 2019. It responds to an article, published in the same newspaper on 9 August, in which Professor Vernon Bogdanor […]
Can Parliament prevent a no-deal Brexit?
Boris Johnson, the UK’s new Prime Minister, says that the UK will leave the EU on 31 October “do or die”. With negotiations between the UK and the EU apparently […]
House of Lords Constitution Committee reports on Parliamentary Scrutiny of Treaties
By Mark Elliott and Stephen Tierney The topic of parliamentary scrutiny of the making of treaties could hardly be more topical, given the role that Parliament is currently playing in […]
Royal Assent and constitutional principle: A further response to John Finnis
A good deal has been written over the last couple of weeks about the granting of Royal Assent to legislation — and, in particular, about whether the Government can prevent […]
Does the Prime Minister’s request for an Article 50 extension scupper the Cooper-Letwin Bill?
Earlier today, the Prime Minister wrote to the President of the European Council requesting a further extension of the Article 50 period to 30 June 2019. Meanwhile, the Cooper-Letwin Bill […]
