Monroe v Hopkins libel case: a retrograde judgment
Is it possible that Britain’s populist polemicist Katie Hopkins may be right? Perhaps, just on this one thing: the outcome of the Jack Monroe libel trial. She says the High Court judge who found...
View ArticleImpeachment: its origins in Medieval England – and revival in modern Britain?
Impeachment – the ousting of presidents by the actions of parliaments and similar representative bodies – seems to be in vogue just now, whether in Zimbabwe, Brazil and now in the US in the case of...
View ArticleBoris Johnson’s colourful private life: a matter of public interest?
It is open season in the UK press on MP Boris Johnson’s “colourful” private life as it is revealed that he and his wife are divorcing. He is alleged to be a serial adulterer with one woman said to have...
View ArticleMental Capacity (Amendment) Bill and DoLS: Welcome but flawed concession
A useful byproduct of the Brexit madness in the UK Houses of Parliament seems to have been a small outbreak of moderately good sense in a matter far removed from the political hurly burly. To avoid a...
View ArticleA ‘sovereign’ Parliament hamstrung over Brexit – or taking control?
The UK Parliament is sovereign – but do those who know of and respect this constitutional principle really understand how limited Parliament’s sovereignty is? Much has been said of parliamentary...
View ArticleDo we need a modern treason law? A historical perspective
The Shamima Begum affair has – inevitably – prompted another outing for those who want Britain’s treason laws updated and reinvigorated. There seems no particular law to deal with someone who leaves...
View ArticleUK Government of National Unity? Here’s how (perhaps)
So, in light of the Brexit deadlock, we need a “Government of National Unity” according to the former UK Prime Minister Sir John Major (and others). But how do we get from here to there? He (and...
View ArticleUK Parliament or Executive: which is top dog in Britain’s constitution?
Boris Johnson is telling all who are willing to listen that he has a mandate from the people to cling to his post as prime minister come what may. This gives him remarkable powers – to ignore the long...
View ArticlePriti Patel and bullying: what is the law?
Can a person whose behaviour constitutes bullying really be exonerated if there was “no intention” to bully, as the case of Priti Patel, UK Home Secrtary, suggests? The answer is fundamentally no – but...
View ArticleThe Colston Four and ‘perverse’ jury verdicts: a very English tradition
The UK “Colston Four” trial of various people involved in removing the statue of the slave trader (and “philanthropist”) Edwin Colston from the streets of Bristol has focused attention on so-called...
View Article
