Sir Robert Buckland, is a senior conservative politician and barrister. Under Boris Johnson he was made Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, a role he held until 2021, and oversaw the criminal justice system during the Covid 19 pandemic. 

As a backbencher and minister, he favoured reforms such as increased prison sentences for grooming gangs and better protections for victims of crime. In this wide-ranging interview with journalist Frances Gibb, Sir Robert champions the importance of jury trials, calls for reforms to murder and manslaughter classification to introduce ‘second degree murder and also condemns the current assisted dying bill as “unworkable” and urges an overhaul of the Ministry of Justice.

"The Lord Chancellors: Where Politics meets Justice” is a new video podcast series launched by The University of Law and hosted by the journalist Frances Gibb. It will examine the ancient post of Lord Chancellor, which is now combined with the role of Justice Secretary. The position holds the delicate balance of power between the judiciary and the executive, with special responsibility for maintaining the rule of law.