My successor as Independent Prevent Commissioner is Tim Jacques. I welcome him warmly to the post and wish him every success in helping improve Prevent and hold it to account. www.gov.uk/government/n...

A new offence of planning a mass attack/killing, without the need to prove a defined ideology? My take on the Today prog is here, from 0715: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/....

On BBC R4Today programme at 7.15ish, talking about a possible new criminal offence.

There’s a lot of confusion right now among journalists and MP about secondary legislation and what a possible EU deal would mean. A quick thread to clear a few things up on votes, Henry VIII powers & parliamentary scrutiny. 🧵 1/ First: what is a “normal parliamentary vote”?

Quoted here by CBS news share.google/G4J9dLD3eBA3...

Commented to BBC TV on the thoughtful and sensible Southport Inquiry report. More from me on the ITV evening news at 1830/2200.

My letter to the Security Minister, marking the end of my tenure as Interim Independent Prevent Commissioner, was published on the IPC's website this morning: www.gov.uk/government/p.... I will remain in post until Tuesday 14th April.

Thinking of all those engaged in conflict resolution this week

Home Affairs Select Committee’s report published today on combatting new forms of extremism supports the central recommendation of my 2025 report, Lessons for Prevent: committees.parliament.uk/committee/83....

Fascinating giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

Three excellent things have just happened: 1) the Rycroft Review of pol finance has been published 2) govt is implementing key changes with immediate effect 3) those changes got cross-party support in the Commons. Careful scrutiny of the detail will now be essential. www.gov.uk/government/p...

Report of the Independent Review into Countering Foreign Financial Influence and Interference in UK Politics (the Rycroft Review): assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69c29f...

Excerpts here, and a full recording, of Lord Verdirame’s brilliant Grotius-inspired lecture last night on international law at an inflection point.

Lawyers applying to become judges in England and Wales can now use artificial intelligence to improve work they have already written. But they have been warned that using AI in qualifying tests could result in disqualification from future judicial appointments rozenberg.substack.com/p/artificial...

Tried to tell them! hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2026-0...

An incoming Reform government would "focus on making change via executive orders rather than legislation, where possible" www.theguardian.com/politics/202... As predicted last August on The Empty City blog: emptycity.substack.com/p/yes-an-inc...

🚨A historic breakthrough today for the fight against #SLAPPs as for the first time ever, the High Court has formally branded legal action as a #SLAPP, throwing out a “spectacularly inflated” £8m libel claim against @danneidle.bsky.social who reported on a barrister’s role in a tax avoidance scheme

Time to address the scandal that MPs’ and peers’ spouses and partners are given free passes to the parliamentary estate without even being vetted first. Along with a few other peers I raised this issue with Lord Speaker in January. An urgent review is needed.

Legal advice re use of UK bases for attacks on Iranian missile bases now published www.gov.uk/government/n...

Just published this Q&A with @mikeschmitt.bsky.social & @rgoodlaw.bsky.social Bottom line: -US strikes on #Iran would be flatly illegal -would trigger armed conflict between the US and Iran -other countries (like the UK) are obligated not to assist www.justsecurity.org/132180/us-ir...

Thank you #AFPS and UK Commando Force for an informative and action-packed parliamentary visit to Camp Viking, Arctic Norway. Much to be impressed by and to reflect on.

My piece for Verfassungsblog on the High Court judgment regarding the proscription of Palestine Action. verfassungsblog.de/palestine-ac...

What to do about extremism? My 4-minute answer (starts 2.10 pm) hansard.parliament.uk/Lords/2026-0....

A reminder of the HL Constitution Committee’s report on the appointment and removal of permanent secretaries, including the cabinet secretary publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5803/ld....

New post out: "The most dangerous man in America" Understanding "Trump's Prime Minister" Stephen Miller - the nexus of all the streams of right-wing thought and behaviour that embody the current regime. (£/free trial) open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/t...

Spotlight are spot-on, as so often

This is great: Meet Hereditary Peer Lord Hampton – The Only Serving Teacher In Parliament www.politicshome.com/news/article...

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

As National Security Adviser, I was often at the UK’s HQ in Helmand, Camp Bastion. Too often, the tannoy would announce medevac helicopters inbound. The huge base w’d fall silent, out of respect for the young men or women who were fighting for their lives. No, they had not stayed a little back.

It is an excellent speech.

wikipedia turns 25 today! the last unenshittified major website! backbone of online info! triumph of humanity! powered by urge of unpaid randos to correct each other! somehow mostly reliable! "good thing wikipedia works in practice, because it sure doesn't work in theory" - old wiki adage

Happy for the police to hang on to your phone, laptop and cloud data indefinitely without even a requirement of reasonable suspicion? Such laws and proposals look dry on the page but erode personal freedom. Cracking debate this afternoon in the House of Lords: parliamentlive.tv/event/index/...

Fantastic news that a government body is now on here. Zero excuse at this point for all others not doing the same

I wrote about this last month. Overshooting on reducing migration is going to be very costly. samf.substack.com/p/the-oversh...

After deciding to give Lord Irvine of Lairg the sack, No. 10 debated what to do with him afterward. One option was to make him a senior judge of the European Court of Justice ("Derry could learn French between now and October"). Another was to let him sit as a Law Lord. 1/2

New post out: We have an interview with John Bew - one of the most influential people in British politics over the past decade + foreign policy adviser to four PMs. (Free to read) samf.substack.com/p/interview-...

Everything you need to know about the US’ slow turn against the EU.

An overlooked alternate reason for rising claims in UK as fall in Europe is that data-sharing + finger-printing is now a barrier to making a second claim to a second EU country (but not to UK) Being outside that system can make UK a court of appeal for failed claims in the EU, says Alan Manning

Good morning and welcome to your FT Weekend highlight giftlink thread. We start with this fantastic essay by Tim Wu, one of the big brains of web 1.0, cautioning that Silicon valley may be winning the AI battle to lose the bigger economic war to China as.ft.com/r/83deb81e-3...

What's going on in Strasbourg today - and how is it relevant to the case for continued UK membership of the European Convention on Human Rights? Updated text of my lecture this week in Stormont is here: www.daqc.co.uk/2025/12/10/t...

Last Friday the Constitution Society and Learn with the Lords welcomed thousands of students in person and online across the UK to participate in a special question time event at the home of the famous Putney Debates. Dexter Govan has the story: https://consoc.org.uk/question-time-in-putney/

As Nick says here, this really is a 'gem of a story' and told expertly and brilliantly by @victoriancommons.bsky.social

My speech of today to NIHRC now published in full by Joshua Rozenberg: “The ECHR - the view from London and Strasbourg”

Senior members of the UK government will meet ministers from 45 other Council of Europe member states in Strasbourg on Wednesday to discuss the challenges posed by “irregular” migration. rozenberg.substack.com/p/stopping-t...

A much-needed consultation - spread the news! www.gov.uk/government/c...

NEW BLOGPOST Abolishing trial by jury: why is the government overlooking the obvious? thesecretbarrister.com/2025/12/02/a...

My 5-minute introduction (no doubt hideously over-simplified) is here: www.daqc.co.uk/2025/11/28/s...

Off to St Mary’s Church Putney, appropriately by boat, to revisit the 1647 Leveller/Grandee debates with live and streamed school audiences for Learn with the Lords. Where does sovereignty lie? Nerdishly excited.