King's College London

A high-profile panel at the event, held on 2 December at the Houses of Parliament, consisted of Baroness (Brenda) Hale, the former president of the UK Supreme Court; Lord Hermer, the UK Attorney General; Sir Robert Buckland, the former UK Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice; Dr Carmen Pavel, reader in politics, philosophy and economics, King’s College London; Jennifer Nadel, director of compassion In politics; and Baroness (Shami) Chakrabarti, the former director of Liberty and sponsor of the evening.

The centre co-organised the event with the Institute for Constitutional and Democratic Research (ICDR), the cross-party think tank Compassion in Politics, and barrister Dr Sam Fowles, director of the ICDR, a barrister at 39 Essex Chambers, and visiting fellow at the centre.

Sam opened proceedings and introduced the panel. Over the course of the evening, there was discussion of the origins of the convention as a response to appalling events in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s; and its continued relevance today. Participants noted the leading role that the UK had played in devising the convention, and that it should be seen as a cross-party document, rather than being the property of any one group.

Panel members described the many important outcomes associated with the convention in the field of rights protection; and the significance of its being incorporated into UK law via the Human Rights Act 1998. They discussed domestic and international challenges the convention faced, and how it might be better promoted to the public. Among the audience were staff and PhD researchers from the Department of Political Economy at King's and the wider School of Politics and Economics.

The reception marked the close of another busy year for the centre. Events held have included a conference on better engagement between the public and elected representatives; policy workshops on environmental regulation and on devolution; an international conference on democracy; a day-long seminar on populism and democracy; a session on careers in law for students; and a report launch in conjunction with the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, with which the centre has formed a partnership. More activities are planned for 2026.

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