Talking Constitutions

In this special episode of Talking Constitutions, Professor Jim Gallagher discusses with John Hudson the past, present, and future of the office of Lord Advocate, and gives his views on desirable reform.

This episode explores the adversarial nature of contemporary politics, considering its causes, its bad effects, and also what its benefits may be.

Discussants are Wendy Chamberlain, MP for N.E. Fife and the Liberal Democrats’ Chief Whip and Spokesperson for Work and Pensions; Stephen Gethins, formerly an MP at Westminster and the Scottish National Party’s Front Bench Spokesman for International Affairs and Europe; currently acting Vice-Principal (International Affairs) at the University of St Andrews; and Daniel Greenberg, Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (since 1 January 2023).

In this special episode of Talking Constitutions, recorded to mark the 50th anniversary of the Watergate break-in on 17 June 1972, Professor Colin Kidd (University of St Andrews and All Souls College Oxford) tells John Hudson about the events, the politics, and the constitutional significance of the Watergate scandal.

The subject of this episode is ‘Historical Constitutions’. Discussants are Jill Harries (Professor Emerita of Ancient History, University of St Andrews), Colin Kidd (Professor of Modern History, University of St Andrews) and Harshan Kumarasingham (Senior Lecturer in British Politics,  University of Edinburgh and co-convenor of Arthur Berriedale Keith Forum on Commonwealth Constitutionalism). The episode is chaired by John Hudson (Professor of Legal History, University of St Andrews).

The subject of this episode is ‘Current debates on the UK constitution’. Discussants are Stephen Gethins (Professor from Practice, University of St Andrews, and formerly the Scottish National Party’s Front Bench Spokesman for International Affairs and Europe), Nicola McEwen (Professor of Territorial Politics at the Centre on Constitutional Change, University of Edinburgh, and Senior Research Fellow with the ESRC initiative, UK in a Changing Europe), and Catherine Stihler (Chief Executive Officer of Creative Commons and formerly a Labour Member of the European Parliament). The episode is chaired by John Hudson (Professor of Legal History, University of St Andrews).