Lecture: The British Constitution – its Strengths, Weaknesses and Risks

Norfolk Cambridge Society’s twelfth public lecture given by Professor Michael Kenny. The topic will be “The British Constitution – its Strengths, Weaknesses and Risks.”

The Constitution of the United Kingdom comprises both written and unwritten arrangements. Hitherto no attempt has been made to codify such arrangements into a single document.

Does this matter? Is it a strength or a weakness? Have the much-lauded checks and balances in the British system been shown to be illusory? Should we consider codifying some of Britain’s long-established conventions now that our politicians no longer seem to respect the norms that governed parliamentary behaviour in previous eras? What kind of balance do we need to strike in our territorial constitution between the UK Government and its devolved counterparts? And finally, what kinds of processes should we be developing to make sensible constitutional change happen?

Price: £5 – £15 per person