As the year comes to an end, blog editor Dave Busfield-Birch examines the blog’s content in 2025, and offers some insight into the reach of the blog through the lens of its readership statistics. The posts below cover a wide range of topics such as Prime Minister’s Questions in the French parliament, reform of the House of Lords, and the effects on the monarchy of the actions of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. We also take time to recommend that you read a tribute to our late colleague Bob Morris. Read on to find out in which German city the blog seems to have a cult following, and other statistics that raise many questions, including ‘is former President of the United States Joe Biden reading our blog on a daily basis and if not, why are we so popular in Wilmington, Delaware’?
Continue readingA ‘shopping list of autocratic actions’: what would-be autocrats do to recede democracy
Democratic backsliding remains a threat to democracy across the globe, with elected political leaders in many countries using their political mandate to dilute constitutional protections and weaken democratic institutions. Joep van Lit and Carolien van Ham explain the seven key modes of ‘autocratisation’ and their creation of a ‘shopping list’ of autocratic behaviours that offers a practical resource to recognise early warning signs of democratic recession.
Continue readingECHR reform: a danger of contagion in relation to Article 3
Ahead of tomorrow’s meeting on reform of the European Convention of Human Rights, Veronika Fikfak argues that a tipping point for future significant change to the Convention has been reached. She also warns of the danger of negative approaches to the implementation of European Court of Human Rights judgments spreading throughout member states, explores key differences between the European and UK debates on the Convention, and urges the Starmer government not to seek a reinterpretation of Article 3 (which prohibits inhuman and degrading treatment), a policy that she views as undermining the very core of the human rights system.
Continue readingDo the government’s electoral reforms go far enough?
On 24 October, the Constitution Unit hosted an event asking whether the government’s electoral reforms go far enough. A common theme that emerged was that the government should go further than its current plans. Rowan Hall summarises the contributions, which are available in full on YouTube and as an episode of our podcast.
Continue readingStarmer’s constitutional timidity
Monitor 91, published today, provides an analysis of constitutional events over the last four months, a period in which the government has announced numerous electoral reforms, created a new standards body, introduced a bill to increase public accountability, and continued progress on legislation to enhance devolution in England. However, in this post, which replicates the lead article from today’s new issue of Monitor, Meg Russell and Alan Renwick argue that many of the reforms fail to go far enough. They say that the government could be seeking to lead, and to set the tone on constitutional standards, but changes instead feel timid and reluctant in the face of serious threats.
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