UCL Constitution Unit

May 2022 marked the 25th anniversary of the election of Tony Blair's first Labour government. It entered office with an ambitious set of manifesto proposals for constitutional reform. These included devolution in Scotland, Wales and London, a new settlement for Northern Ireland, the Human Rights Act, Freedom of Information Act, Lords reform, regulation of elections and referendums, and a referendum on the voting system for the House of Commons. Not all of these ambitions were reached, but further changes occurred beyond 2001, most obviously the establishment of the Supreme Court. This event will look back at the Labour reforms, asking what they sought to achieve, the extent to which those objectives were realised, whether in retrospect mistakes can be identified, and what has been the lasting legacy of these reforms. We are joined by a senior panel who were closely involved from different perspectives.

Lord (Charlie) Falconer of Thoroton is a Labour peer, who has held various frontbench positions including as Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor 2003-07

Baroness (Shami) Chakrabarti is a Labour peer and former Shadow Attorney General, who before this was Director of Liberty 2003-16

Professor Robert Hazell was founding Director of the Constitution Unit, a position he held from 1995 to 2015.

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

In this episode, Professor Alan Renwick is joined by Senior Research Associate Alan Whysall, and  Professor Etain Tannam, Associate Professor of International Peace Studies at Trinity College Dublin to discuss the implications of the Assembly elections for the future of power-sharing and the institutional arrangements in Northern Ireland.

Read further about these themes in Alan Whysall's discussion paper on the future of the institutions and blogpost on challenges after the elections, and Etain Tannam's blogpost on the existing institutions under the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Recent years have raised fundamental questions about the operation of democracy in the UK. Polarisation is high and many citizens feel detached from politics. The ethical standards of those in public life have been called into question. Governing and opposition parties throughout the UK have pledged to review the system’s operation. But how do ordinary citizens want democracy in the UK to work?

This seminar follows the launch on 7 April of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Democracy in the UK – the second report of the Unit’s Democracy in the UK after Brexit research project. Following six weekends of deliberation last year, the Assembly agreed 8 resolutions and 51 recommendations, proposing many changes to how our democracy works. In the seminar, the key conclusions will be presented and discussed with leading experts and some of the Assembly’s members.

Speakers:

Professor Alan Renwick, Deputy Director of the Constitution Unit and Project Lead

Kaela Scott, Director of Innovation and Practice at Involve and Design and Facilitation Lead for the Citizens’ Assembly on Democracy in the UK

Professor Catherine Barnard, Professor of European Union and Labour Law, University of Cambridge

Frances Foley, Deputy Director of Compass

Members from the Citizens’ Assembly

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

If Boris Johnson leaves office before the next general election, Conservative Party members will have a decisive say in who replaces him as party leader and Prime Minister. This prospect raises the wider question of what role ordinary members should play in party leadership elections. The UK has seen extensive variation in the role of ordinary grassroots members, as compared to MPs, in leadership contests – both between the different parties, and over time. This has previously led to some controversies, most obviously around the election (and re-election in 2016) of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader. What consequences does the role of members have for the kinds of leaders and policies that parties adopt? How should this be balanced with the role of MPs? This seminar will explore the key arguments.

Speakers:

Paul Goodman, Editor of Conservative Home and former Conservative MP for Wycombe

Cat Smith MP, Labour Member of Parliament for Lancaster and Fleetwood

Dr Tom Quinn, Senior Lecturer, Department of Government, University of Essex

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Recent years have raised fundamental questions about the kind of democracy that people in the UK want. How do they think government and parliament should relate to each other? What role do they want for the courts? Do they want more or fewer referendums? What standards of behaviour do they expect from their politicians, and how do they expect those standards to be upheld?

These and many other related questions are explored by the Constitution Unit’s Democracy in the UK after Brexit project. This seminar marks the launch in late January 2022 of the project’s first report, which sets out the findings of a major survey of UK public opinion fielded in July 2021. In the seminar, the key findings will be presented and discussed with leading experts.

Professor Alan Renwick, Deputy Director of the Constitution Unit

Paula Surridge, Senior Lecturer in Political Sociology, University of Bristol, and Deputy Director of UK in a Changing Europe

James Johnson, founder of J.L. Partners and former Senior Opinion Research and Strategy Adviser to Prime Minister Theresa May

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit.

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

There are regular calls for reform of the House of Lords. The chamber is widely seen as too large, with unregulated prime ministerial appointments, and has recently been subject to renewed allegations of 'cash for peerages'. The Lord Speaker established a committee to make recommendations on controlling the chamber's size, but its recommendations have been flouted by the current Prime Minister. Boris Johnson is also the first Prime Minister to have overruled recommendations by the House of Lords Appointments Commission about the propriety of his nominees. Meanwhile, bills to end the elections which maintain 92 hereditary peers in the chamber have been repeatedly blocked. So what can be done about the House of Lords? This distinguished panel will consider the difficulties of achieving even small, incremental reforms, and whether new approaches are needed. 

Speakers: 

Baroness (Angela) Smith of Basildon, Labour's Shadow Leader of the House of Lords Lord (Michael) Jay of Ewelme, Crossbench peer and former Chair of the House of Lords Appointments Commission Sir Bernard Jenkin MP, Conservative chair of the House of Commons Liaison Committee and former chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC) 

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit.

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Professor Tim Bale’s book, 'Riding the Populist Wave', highlights how mainstream right-wing parties across Europe – including the UK Conservatives – have faced challenges responding to electoral pressure from the populist radical right. How such parties respond may have important implications for everyday politics, and raise concerns about the robustness of constitutional protections, and even of liberal democracy itself. This seminar reflects on the international trends, with a particular interest in how they are affecting, and may continue to affect, the UK.

Speakers:

• Tim Bale, Professor of Politics, Queen Mary University of London
• Lord (Daniel) Finkelstein, journalist and Conservative life peer

Chair: Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit

Read: Riding the populist wave: Europe's mainstream right crisis

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

In 2020, the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) launched its Standards Matter 2 review to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the mechanisms to support high standards of conduct in public life. In June 2021, CSPL published initial findings from the review, and its final report and recommendations on 1 November 2021. CSPL’s chair, Lord (Jonathan) Evans, will talk about the review and CSPL’s main recommendations with Professor Meg Russell, Director of the Constitution Unit.

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Parliament is scrutinising two sets of government proposals relating to elections: the Elections Bill and the draft Online Safety Bill. Some aspects of both measures have been widely welcomed, but others are controversial. Will tighter parliamentary control over the Electoral Commission harm that body’s independence? Will voter ID requirements reduce access to the ballot? Does the Bill deal effectively with complex questions concerning notional expenditure and ‘third party’ regulation? Will the proposals on online safety – much changed since they were first put forward in 2019 – enable rather than inhibit misinformation? In this seminar, a panel of leading experts and practitioners will reflect.

Speakers:

Justin Fisher, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Policy Unit, Brunel University

Laura Lock, Deputy Chief Executive of the Association of Electoral Administrators

Baroness (Nicky) Morgan of Cotes, former Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport, now Vice-Chair of the APPG on Digital Regulation and Responsibility

Louise Edwards, Director of Regulation at the Electoral Commission

Chair: Dr Alan Renwick, Deputy Director of the Constitution Unit

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Dr Harshan Kumarasingham and Prof Robert Hazell (Constitution Unit) in discussion with Prof Linda Colley FBA about her latest book on warfare, constitutions and the making of the modern world.

Speakers: Prof Linda Colley FBA, Shelby M.C. Davis 1958 Professor of History at Princeton University and Dr Harshan Kumarasingham, Senior Lecturer in British Politics at the University of Edinburgh

Chair: Prof Robert Hazell, The Constitution  Unit

Links:

Website: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-historical-sciences/constitution-unit

Mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/ucl/constitution-unit

Blog: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit