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PODCAST

The Constitution Unit

The Constitution Unit

The Constitution Unit conducts timely, rigorous, independent research into constitutional change and the reform of political institutions. Our research has significant real-world impact, informing policy-makers engaged in such changes - both in the United Kingdom and around the world. On this channel, you will find the audio recordings of the Constitution Unit"s past events.

government

All Episodes

01:12:05

Review of Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/07/02

This is a recording of a panel session from our conference looking at the government's constitutional reform agenda. The focus of the discussion was the government's review of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act and it's repeal bill: the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Bill. Speakers:Lord McLoughlin, Chair of Parliamentary Joint Committee on Review of the FTPAChris Bryant MP, member of Joint Committee on Review of FTPAProf Petra Schleiter, OxfordProf Alison Young, Cambridge.Chair: Prof Meg Russell

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00:43:24

Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland discusses the...

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/06/30

This episode is a recording of the Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland QC MP kicking off our two-day conference jointly organised with the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Oxford University and UK in a Changing Europe with a speech outlining the government's plans for constitutional reform. The speech was delivered on 17 June 2021. Suggested reading:All conference outputs such as videos, audio, blogs and reading lists Transcript of the speech by Robert Buckland, published

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01:18:46

Launch event: Final Report by the Working Group on...

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/06/10

The Working Group on Unification Referendums on the Island of Ireland published its Final Report on 26 May. The report explores how any potential future referendum or referendums on the constitutional status of Northern Ireland would best be designed and conducted.The Working Group takes no view on whether such referendums should take place or what the outcome should be. It concludes that referendums should not be called without a clear plan for the referendum processes that would follow, and it

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00:37:59

Deciding Northern Ireland’s Future

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/06/03

The future of the Union here in the UK – that is, the union of England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland – is very much in the news. In Scotland, many opinion polls over the past year (though not so much over the last few months) have suggested majority support for independence, and political parties that want another referendum on the issue secured a majority of seats in the Scottish Parliament elections last month. In Wales, support for independence seems to have grown, though still at a far

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00:36:47

Does the UK Still Have a Political Constitution?

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/05/28

Most countries have a document call the Constitution – a legal text setting out basic principles of how that country is governed. And in most of those countries there’s a constitutional court (or supreme court) that determines whether the ordinary laws passed by the legislature are compatible with the Constitution and that strikes them down if it concludes they are not.The UK, famously, has no such capital C Constitution – no codified rulebook. And the courts here in the UK can’t (at least formally)

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01:09:22

Ministerial Standards

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/05/26

Westminster and Holyrood have both been engulfed by scandals over ministerial behaviour in the past year. The Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) has launched a further review, Standards Matter 2, to evaluate the institutions and processes that uphold standards of conduct in Westminster and beyond. Sir Alex Allan, former Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests, discusses the standards regime in Westminster and Whitehall; discussing the standards regime in Scotland we have Susan Deacon,

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01:12:01

Regulating public appointments

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/04/30

Peter Riddell steps down as the Commissioner for Public Appointments in September. The Commissioner’s role is to ensure fair and open competition, with the final choice made by ministers. His predecessor Sir David Normington had warned on departure that changes made by government would weaken OCPA. Peter Riddell had different criticisms in his final annual report. In this valedictory talk, he will reflect on the system of public appointments, and discuss what changes are needed to provide public

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00:32:54

Ideas of Democracy

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/03/25

Democracy is what one social scientist once famously called an ‘essentially contested concept’ – one that we are never likely all to agree about. And disagreements over the form that democracy should take have lately sparked major political conflicts in many democratic countries. How far were politicians in the UK obliged to follow the so-called ‘will of the people’ as expressed in the Brexit referendum of 2016? Can the strongman democracy pursued by leaders in Hungary, India, and Brazil be called

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01:15:13

Can Johnson prevent indyref2?

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/03/23

If the SNP win a majority in the Scottish Parliament elections in May, Nicola Sturgeon will declare they have a mandate for a second independence referendum. Boris Johnson has said he will refuse to allow one. But can he can really resist? Prof Aileen McHarg explains the legal issues; James Forsyth the politics, and the need for an alternative offer; and Dr Alan Renwick the referendum process, if the Scots are to make a fully informed decision.Prof Aileen McHarg is Professor of Public Law and Human

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00:28:51

The Prerogative Powers of Governments

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/03/12

We typically divide the modern state into three branches: the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary. On a traditional view, the legislature makes the laws, the executive implements them, and the judiciary decides on disputes. In reality, in most states, the executive in fact plays a much bigger role than that. It not only executes the will of the legislature, but also shapes the policy agenda, develops legislative proposals, and conducts a great deal of foreign policy. And on some matters

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01:12:04

Attitudes to Democracy in the UK Today

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/02/25

How do people in the UK view democracy? How do they think UK democracy ought to operate? What roles do they think should be played by parliament, government, the courts, and the public themselves? How do such attitudes vary across the population, and what shapes them?The Constitution Unit has just embarked on a major new research project – Democracy in the UK after Brexit – that seeks answers to such questions. But what do we already know on these matters? What do we not know? And what can we learn

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01:01:30

Boris Johnson and Parliament

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/01/27

In partnership with The UK in a Changing Europe two seasoned Conservative parliamentarians and the director of the Constitution Unit look back at Boris Johnson’s relationship with parliament, reflect on the highs and lows, expectations and reality, and lessons for the future.Speakers:Mark Harper MPLord Young of CookhamProfessor Meg RussellChair: Jill Rutter

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01:24:39

Taking Back Control: Why the House of Commons Should...

The Constitution Unit ·

2021/01/22

'Taking Back Control: Why the House of Commons Should Govern its own Time' is a Constitution Unit report which explores why MPs lack control of their own institution, what problems this causes, & what should be done. The Constitution Unit hosted a launch event to discuss the findings of the report. Speakers:Karen Bradley MP, Chair of the House of Commons Procedure Committee.Valerie Vaz MP, Shadow Leader of the House of Commons.Sir David Natzler, former Clerk of the House of Commons, also formerly

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01:12:00

Devolution and the Union

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/12/04

As the final part of the Constitution Unit’s 25th anniversary celebrations, we look at devolution and the Union. Devolution had a deceptively easy start in the UK, thanks to Labour-controlled governments in London, Edinburgh and Cardiff, the breakthrough of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast, and lack of interest in England. But with the election of governments of different persuasions tensions have grown, and been hugely exacerbated by the rupture of Brexit. To chart this increasingly bumpy

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01:27:08

Launch event: Interim Report by the Working Group on...

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/12/04

The Working Group is independent of all political parties and governments and is funded by the British Academy and Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. The Group takes no view on whether such referendums should take place or what the outcome should be. The report concludes that referendums should not be called without a clear plan for the referendum processes that would follow, and it identifies difficult issues that need discussion and analysis. For example, what evidence would inform the decision to

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01:09:45

Populism and the Rise of Autocracy

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/12/03

There are concerns about the rise of populism and erosion of democratic standards throughout the world. Examples include countries such as Hungary, Poland and Brazil, growing support for populist parties in western Europe, and recent development in the US. Populism has grown through new challenger parties, but also through capture of previously mainstream parties.This Policy and Practice seminar discuss these worldwide trends, how to counter them, and how worried we should be about a populist rise

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01:19:49

Constitutional Reform, Then and Now

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/11/27

As part of the Constitution Unit’s 25th anniversary celebrations, this online seminar looks back at the constitutional reform agenda of the 1997 Labour government, and forward at the constitutional reforms proposed in the 2019 Conservative manifesto. What were the key questions, and motivating factors, then and now? Jack Straw, who held senior positions in the Brown and Blair cabinets, and Professor Francesca Klug OBE, discuss the origins of New Labour’s constitutional reform programme, its

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00:30:37

Monarchy in Modern Democracy

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/10/22

Serious books on monarchy are rare, but a new volume on Europe’s eight contemporary democracies helps to fill the gap. Does monarchy still deserve the attention of students of politics? And is the fact that most of the world’s healthiest democracies are monarchies anything more than a coincidence? In this episode of 'UCL Uncovering Politics', book co-author, Professor Robert Hazell, explores some of these questions. Host:Dr Alan RenwickGuest: Professor Robert HazellFind out more about the project:

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00:38:47

Checks and Balances in Democracy

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/10/07

The long-standing idea that democracy needs checks and balances is questioned in some quarters. So what is the case for checks and balances, and what are the arguments against? Should we look upon different kinds of checks and balances in different ways? And what are the contemporary tensions bringing these debates to the fore? This UCL Uncovering Politics podcast episode explores these questions with three leading thinkers on constitutional politics.Host:Dr Alan RenwickGuests:Professor Meg

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01:18:22

The Johnson government's constitutional reform...

The Constitution Unit ·

2020/01/14

Conservative experts Lord Dunlop and Chris White speak at The Constitution Unit's first seminar of 2020.The Conservatives’ 2019 manifesto commits the new government ‘to look at the broader aspects of our constitution: the relationship between the government, parliament and the courts; the functioning of the Royal Prerogative; the role of the House of Lords; and access to justice for ordinary people’. There were also specific commitments: to update the Human Rights Act; to ensure that judicial review

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