Category Archives: Uncategorized

The disruptive impact of a snap general election on the work of the Intelligence and Security Committee

This post first appeared on the Democratic Audit blog in April 2017, and then on the Political Studies Association Parliaments Group blog in May 2017. Elections are a central and necessary feature of any democratic system. However, elections are also highly … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Some thoughts on the latest appointments to the ISC

In previous posts, here , here and here, I’ve written about the process of appointing members of the Intelligence and Security Committee, and in particular about the new arrangements for appointments introduced by the Justice and Security Act, 2013. Although … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Britain’s response to the attacks in Paris

This post brings together two similar pieces I wrote in response to the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015. They focus in particular on the potential impact of events in Paris on the passage of the Investigatory Powers Bill currently making its … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Submission to Joint Committee on Draft Investigatory Powers Bill

This was my written submission to the Joint Committee on the Draft Investigatory Powers Bill. The committee was established in November 2015 to consider the draft Bill. The committee received a total of 148 written submissions and took oral evidence from … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

MI5 on the BBC: more PR than scrutiny

This post first appeared on the Democratic Audit blog on 6th October 2015. Public statements by heads of the British intelligence and security agencies are still rare enough to attract considerable attention. Moreover, representatives of the intelligence agencies do not step … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment