David Anderson

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This afternoon, @bricksilk.bsky.social will lead a debate in the House of Lords on introducing a written, or codified, constitution in the UK. The debate comes after the Prime Minister indicated that he favoured introducing a codified constitution over the summer. And so...

The wording has to be right: yesterday’s intensive and high-quality HL debates on the Hillsborough Law demonstrate the importance of not being blinded by the justice of a cause: hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2026-1...

This is worth a few minutes of anyone's time giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

Outstanding

The first in a new series of posts – 'Constitutional Law 101' – that I will be publishing over the course of the academic year. A (hopefully) accessible introduction to the subject for Law students and others. publiclawforeveryone.com/2026/10/16/c...

Burnham says von der Leyen is "open" to revisiting european police databases it lost during Brexit. They are - eurodac (asylum biometric data) - Schengen Information System (SIS II) (data base of criminal alerts) - European Arrest Warrant

❗“The ECHR is not a constraint on British security. It is one of its foundations,” write 3 former Independent Reviewers of Terrorism Legislation👇 🔗 www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-a... via @lawsocietygazette.bsky.social “Walking away would not make Britain freer. It would make Britain weaker.”

New post out: We have a fascinating guest post looking at how Putin has ratcheted up his campaign against Europe - through hybrid warfare, global alliances and support for malicious actors. Also looks at whether/how the escalation will continue. samf.substack.com/p/putins-cam...

England is a made up thing. It has no basis in the ineluctable laws of nature. Its extent is defined by Edward II getting his arse handed to him. Athelstan conquering York. The Welsh of Cumbria were incorporated, the Welsh of Gwynedd were not. It is a political idea, an aspiration - not taxonomy.

Thomas Edison in 1910. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves on this net zero business, lads

This is terrifying, and the author (as I learned during my year on the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme) a genuine expert. Time to sort out our priorities. www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/09...

Retrospective taxation https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04369/

The UK is safer & stronger with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). New paper sets out how ECHR membership supports national security, international cooperation & UK influence abroad. Ft. foreword by Lord Carlile, @bricksilk.bsky.social & Sir Max Hill. justice.org.uk/news/former-...

Why the story of the Vegetable Lamb was believed timharford.com/2026/09/why-...

contrary to the most conventional of all conventional wisdoms, the "help to buy did nothing but shove up house prices duh" wisdom, it actually worked www.gov.uk/government/p... report from people putting a lot more work into the question, worth a breezy look at

Legislating for the past: what is retrospective legislation and when is it ok? With particular reference to political donations By me for @instituteforgovernment.org.uk www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/retr...

Very welcome new edition of this invaluable and authoritative work

My room-mate is (as so often) right.

This still gets me every time. Albert Camus' letter to a teacher after he'd been awarded the Nobel Prize.

Bill Bryson’s words seem appropriate to post right now

Interesting evidence session today in HL Justice and Home Affairs Cttee: a Crown Court Judge and two barristers answered questions about the steps that are taken (and not taken) to mitigate the effect of distressing trials on jurors www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/....

Phase 2 of the Southport Inquiry is under way www.bbc.co.uk/news/article.... I'll be giving evidence tomorrow, with others: supporting material and transcript will appear here www.southport.public-inquiry.uk/evidence/.

Lord Briggs is next President of the UKSC: lnkd.in/p/e5ytH7aj

Imagine telling a man wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes that meeting him will be one of the greatest memories of your life. ㅤ Witkoff told Putin he would be “right at the top” of his retirement stories. ㅤ Ukraine was invaded. Putin gets admiration. Kyiv gets pressure.

The shift from “no one is watching” to “someone might be watching” — thanks to surveillance cameras, phone tapping, and similar technologies — took the entirety of the 20th century. The final shift to “something is always watching” could be completed inside a decade, and still catch us unaware.

Policy Exchange presents: The Home Secretary Interviews. Exclusive new in-depth interviews with 14 Home Secretaries 1990 - 2024. Read them in their own words on policing, immigration, protest and more from May, Blunkett, Straw, Howard, Braverman, Clarke... Full report ⬇️

One of the best job applications ever written came from the hands of Robert Pirosh in 1934. MGM loved it, took him on and in 1949 he won an Oscar for ‘Battleground’.

Interviewed today on BBC R4 WATO at the end of a long segment (from 7 to 21 minutes in) on Prevent and violence-fixated individuals: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/... I’ll be giving public evidence in September to Sir Adrian Fulford’s inquiry, which will look in detail at this issue.

The indomitable Judge Prost, sanctioned by the US administration, will be well worth hearing.

New post out: "The myth of the 'Boriswave'" The online right claim that the immigrants who arrived between 21-24 will bankrupt the country. This isn't remotely true but they've created a mainstream panic that could lead us down a dangerous path. (£/free trial) samf.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...

Jewish Population of Europe in 1933 and 2015 Numbers by country: brilliantmaps.com/jewish-po...

What A Circle With 5,000km Radius Centred On Paris Looks Like On A Mercator Map brilliantmaps.com/5000km-ra...

While we wait to hear what Andy Burnham is going to do about curtailing the right to trial by jury, the House of Lords justice and home affairs committee is trying to find out how much of an ordeal jury service can be and whether jurors need more support. rozenberg.substack.com/p/the-trauma...