Over a year after taking office, Keir Starmer’s government has announced its long-awaited Ethics and IntegrityCommission, as well as other changes to how civil servants and ministers are regulated. Peter Riddell believes that the package of reforms is a positive one, but that the lack of a statutory footing inhibits enforcement. He also argues that these changes should represent a milestone, not a finish line, and that further action should be taken before the end of the current parliament.
Monitor 90, published today, provides an analysis of constitutional events over the last four months, a period in which the Unit hosted its annual conference and celebrated its thirtieth anniversary, and the Starmer government marked its first year in office. This post, by Meg Russell and Alan Renwick, which also serves as the issue’s lead article, argues that the government’s constitutional scorecard is mixed. The bill to remove hereditary peers from parliament has made significant progress, but further reform of the Lords feels a long way off. Keir Starmer’s relationship with his own backbenchers has deteriorated rapidly, with significant effects on government bills. Attacks on judges and the rule of law remain disturbingly common. Away from Westminster, an English devolution bill has been tabled, and measures aimed at increasing respect for democracy have been taken in Scotland and Wales. This post argues that the public still feel that politicians are not being straight with them, and that this perception needs to be fixed for democracy to function effectively.
The Cabinet Manual is an important guide to the workings of the UK’s uncodified constitution, providing an accessible roadmap for ministers, officials and the public. But the document has not been updated since its publication in 2011, despite some significant constitutional changes taking place. In this post, Lisa James argues that updating the Manual should be a government priority.
Today the Unit published Monitor 89, providing an analysis of constitutional events over the last four months. This post by Alan Renwick and Meg Russell, which also serves as the issue’s lead article, highlights welcome action by the government on devolution, commitment to the rule of law and the removal of hereditary peers from the House of Lords, but calls for stronger action on wider Lords reform, progress on the promised Ethics and Integrity Commission, and action on the pre-election pledge to strengthen parliamentary scrutiny of legislation. It warns that the governments of the UK must strive to maintain healthy checks and balances, avoid polarisation, and foster open political discourse at a time whenevents in the US are showing the dangers of not doing so.
Today the Constitution Unit publishes a wide-ranging new report. The Constitutional Landscape: Options for Reform briefly summarises 31 areas of constitutional policy, describing the current state of affairs and the options for reform. In this post Lisa James, one of the report’s authors, explores its contents.
