Law Articles
Writing a Constitution
I gave a lecture last night to the Statute Law Society on the subject of Writing a Constitution. Our constitution is sick (though its condition is chronic rather than acute); a written constitution is [...]
Investigatory Powers Act Review
My independent Investigatory Powers Act review was announced on 17 January. I am conducting the review together with a small strap-cleared team comprising Natasha Barnes, barrister at 1 Crown Office Row John Davies, [...]
National Security and the Law
"National Security and the Law" was the subject of this year's Birkenhead Lecture. It contains a description and assessment of the current state of our law on counter-terrorism, hostile state activity and surveillance - [...]
The Lords and the Law
What use is the House of Lords? What contribution is made by peers with experience as lawyers and judges? How could the Lords be reformed, and does it make sense to speak of the [...]
Parliament should resist this executive power grab
The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill raises serious concerns for legal certainty and - more fundamentally still - for the role of Parliament in law-making. An excellent and impartial introduction to the [...]
Can we be forced to stay at home?
We are advised to stay at home these days, probably for good reason. But as of this afternoon, that advice became a legally binding rule. The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 were issued [...]