Constitutional Law

The 2019 Parliament has exposed systematic weaknesses in the UK constitution, according to members of the United Kingdom Constitution Monitoring Group (UKCMG).

A Lord Ordinary has ruled that the UK government acted lawfully in vetoing the Scottish Parliament’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill from receiving lawful assent, after a legal challenge to the block was brought by the Scottish Ministers. It was argued for the petitioners that the preconditions

Yesterday the Scottish government released the text of its petition seeking judicial review of the UK government’s use of a s.35 Order to prevent the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from receiving Royal Assent. Much of what is contained therein has been mooted in commentary on the s.

The UK government has availed itself of section 35 of the Scotland Act to stop Holyrood's Gender Recognition Reform Bill from receiving Royal Assent. Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said he would use section 35 following a review of the bill by UK government lawyers. UK ministers are concerned the b

The United Kingdom Constitution Monitoring Group (UKCMG) has warned that the UK constitution is under increasing strain, threatening the quality and stability of our democracy.

A Lords committee has called for the creation of a revitalised, better-functioning and less rancorous United Kingdom in a new report. In Respect and Co-operation: Building a Stronger Union for the 21st century, published today, the Constitution Committee details a series of reforms to strengthen the

The actions of the UK government during the coronavirus emergency this year bear the hallmarks of authoritarianism, Lord Sumption has warned. The former Supreme Court justice noted that authoritarian government promotes "loyalty at the expense of wisdom and flattery at the expense of objective advic

Edinburgh Law School's Professor Jo Shaw has presented her new book, The People in Question: Citizens and Constitutions in Uncertain Times, at a virtual book launch. Professor Shaw has also produced an essay which updates the book to take into consideration the current crisis – The pandemic an

A new book by an academic at Edinburgh Law School is to be launched at a virtual event this month. The People in Question: Citizens and Constitutions in Uncertain Times, by Professor Jo Shaw, will be launched at an event chaired by Professor Neil Walker.

SLN's editor reviews Trials of the State: Law and the Decline of Politics by Jonathan Sumption. Though apt to be caricatured as some sort of anti-judge in the post-prorogation world, iconoclast jurist Jonathan Sumption—in this, his first popular legal book—echoes Montesquieu wh

The Supreme Court's judgment handed down today upholds that of the Inner House to the effect that the advice of the Prime Minister given to the Queen to prorogue Parliament was unlawful, but does so on different grounds "calling upon what it takes to be fundamental constitutional principl