Double Jeopardy - UK Law and Politics

The second Part of Sir Brian Leveson’s Independent Review of the Criminal Courts was published last week but largely overlooked in light of the Mandelson scandal.    In this week’s episode Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by Sir Brian to discuss the details of his mammoth, Part 2 Report and to get his response to the very strong criticisms from both the legal profession, the judiciary and politicians from all sides to his first Report on jury reform.  Sir Brian’s Second Report covers a vast range of issues which, if enacted in full, certainly do have the potential to achieve radical change in the way our criminal justice system functions.  His recommendations include the creation of a Criminal Justice Adviser to the Prime Minister with the aim of co-ordinating a single vision for the currently fragmented criminal justice agencies (police, courts service, CPS and prisons); a National Listing Framework to reduce the number of ineffective hearings; the setting up of remote hearings by default for preliminary hearings in the Crown Court and first hearings in the magistrates courts to reduce travel to and from court centres; vastly increased use of AI for case management; legal aid reforms and numerous other significant changes to promote increased efficiency.  Are Sir Brian’s recommendations really new?  And what are the chances of the Government embracing them in full, as he urges them to do, alongside increased funding for the justice system and implementation of the structural reforms to jury trial explained in his first Report?     For anyone interested in reading the full report, click here...  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-of-the-criminal-courts-part-2  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is the future of anti-SLAPP laws in the UK?  And what are the implications of the recent High Court Judgment in Hurst v Solicitors Regulation Authority (https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/082-Hurst-v-SRA-002.pdf)in which the SRA was heavily criticised for holding that the experienced Osborne Clarke media solicitor, Ashley Hurst, was guilty of professional misconduct on the basis that he had wrongly attempted to deter tax campaigner Dan Neidle from publishing allegations of dishonesty over his tax affairs against former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Nadim Zahawi?     Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the issues with distinguished media lawyer Gavin Millar KC who explains why he and other media lawyers and organisations are pressing the Government to include a universal anti-SLAPP law in the next King’s Speech.   Ken and Tim go on to discuss the extraordinary efforts by a small group of members of the House of Lords to block the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill by endless amendments which have no hope of being debated before the April deadline when the Lords must vote on it.  They explain the threat to invoke the Parliament Act 1911 as a means of guaranteeing that the Bill becomes law and the constitutional implications of the Lords being seen to frustrate the will of the House of Commons.   Finally, the duo summarise Sir Brian Leveson’s reply to critics of his jury reform recommendations as set out in his Sunday Times comment piece and they speculate on why the Government is finding it impossible to appoint anyone to Chair the Judicial Appointments Commission as it faces a heavy workload in light of recent retirements of a number of senior Judges, including the Master of the Rolls. -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain's legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain's legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you'll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are the Government’s plans to reduce the shameful backlog of some 80,000 cases awaiting trial in the Crown Court built on sand? Is the prediction in Part 1 of Sir Brian Leveson's Independent Review of Criminal Courts reliable? Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by Cassia Rowland. Cassia is a Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government (IFG) and the author of the IFG's Report “Trial and Error? The impact of restricting jury trials on court demand” published on 21st January - https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/judge-only-trials-court-demand-productivity⁠ Cassia's Report provides a critical, data-based analysis of the Lammy proposals to address the Crown Court backlog. She claims the proposed reforms will result in “marginal gains at best” and will not fix the fundamental crisis in the criminal justice system. The Report urges the Government to avoid radical structural changes to the right to jury trial. Instead, it recommends focusing on alternatives, such as investing in court staff, buildings, and technology, rather than experimenting with fundamental rights. Ken and Tim debate with Cassia the central question: whether restricting the right to a jury trial is the most effective solution to addressing the Crown Court backlog. They delve into the details of the Leveson, Lammy, and IFG reports, and examine whether the IFG's data and modelling provide a more reliable foundation for policy than those used by the Leveson Review. Finally, the duo discuss the recent Court of Appeal decision in R v Webster & others (https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/crim/2026/9?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email). In this case, five Extinction Rebellion protesters unsuccessfully sought to appeal their convictions. They argued that the trial judge wrongly directed the jury that acquitting on the basis of conscience, rather than the law and evidence, might constitute a criminal offence. Is the principle of “jury equity” still alive and well? -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain's legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain's legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you'll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week’s episode Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss a wide range of issues affecting UK law and politics and answer some listeners’ questions.     Does Elon Musk’s climbdown over Grok’s image generator represent a victory for online safety campaigners and have Ken and Tim been unfair about Ofcom’s record of enforcing the Online Safety Act ?    Will the US Supreme Court’s imminent ruling in  Learning Resources v Trump declare Trump’s unilateral imposition of tariffs without Congressional approval to be unlawful and what would that mean for Trump’s latest threats to impose tariffs on any NATO country opposing his demand to take over Greenland?   And is being turned down for the Nobel Peace Prize a good reason to invade a sovereign State ?   The decision of 6 Palestine Action activists to end their hunger strike was greeted with relief by the Ministry of Justice but what were the activists demanding and what is the law concerning the duty of the Prison Service in response to hunger strikes?  Ken and Tim explain the fundamental shift in the law from mandatory force feeding of the Suffragettes, as established in the 1909 judgment in Leigh v Gladstone, to the turning point in the ‘70s and 80s involving IRA hunger strikers.     What do recent amendments to the Parole Board’s powers and the Justice Secretary’s new power to direct the Parole Board to refer a release decision in “top-tier” cases to the High Court say about Labour’s approach to sentencing, fairness and respect for judicial independence?  See this for a background to the changes - https://www.no5.com/2025/12/the-parole-board-new-powers-and-new-challenges/   Finally, Ken and Tim reflect on the defection of Robert Jenrick to Reform, the record of his replacement as Shadow Justice Secretary, Nick Timothy MP, and the mysterious decision by SFO Director, Nick Ephgrave, to announce his early retirement after only 2 and half years in the job. -- overing the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton says of President Trump that “the part he likes about the phrase ‘Donroe Doctrine” is the word ‘Don’ -  he doesn’t do doctrine” but the abduction of the sitting Venezuelan President Maduro and repeated explicit threats to acquire Greenland, by force if necessary, from Trump, Vance and the increasingly unhinged US Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller would appear to signal the end of any hope for the continuation of a rules-based global order.  To discuss the implications for public international law of Trump’s open contempt for the idea that he should be constrained by anything other than his own personal “morality”, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by their Matrix chambers colleague and Professor of Public International Law at the London School of Economics, Devika Hovell. What was the international law status of the Maduro government before 3rd January 2026 and to what extent does the US law enforcement justification for his capture hold water in international law terms?  And given the raw reality of US power, does it really matter in practice? To what extent does the “Donroe Doctrine” have any legal coherence and in what way is it different from the 19th century Monroe Doctrine to which it claims an historic link?  What is the status of Greenland in international law and absent the consent of Denmark or the people of Greenland could the USA lawfully “buy” Greenland from the Greenlanders? Finally, given the reality that the USA, China and Russia have no respect for international law, is Attorney General Lord Hermer KC right to acknowledge that statecraft/diplomacy is the only way to manage a world dominated by Trump and raw US power? -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

To start the New Year, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined once again by the UK’s leading legal journalist and author of the daily blog, A Lawyer Writes, Joshua Rozenberg, to review some key issues in UK law and politics during 2025 and to look forward to likely developments in 2026.   Against the background of a polarised, often ill-informed, debate around migration, asylum and Article 8 of the ECHR, where does the embarrassing case of Alaa Abd El-Fattah fit in this confused, fevered political landscape?    2025 saw persistent populist attacks on the judiciary, with Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick the most persistent offender, and the trio debate whether judicial independence is under greater threat now than ever before.     With every corner of our criminal justice system in a state of apparently permanent decline, what do the cases of Andrew Malkinson, Tom Hayes, Carlo Palombo and Lucy Letby tell us about the ability of the system to prevent and ultimately reverse miscarriages of justice?   Looking forward to 2026, Ken, Tim and Joshua cover the prospects for effective regulation of the internet and the potential for conflict between the EU approach and that of the Trump regime.  They also debate the ability of the Government to secure Parliamentary approval for the plan radically to limit the right to jury trial and the chaotic way in which the proposals were leaked.     Finally, they consider whether the Sentencing Bill, once in force, can really be the magic bullet that will finally achieve the goal of reducing our dependence on imprisonment as the only acceptable form of punishment and lead to a lasting reduction in the prison population. For listeners to the special episode on the Pitcairn Island sexual abuse  case interested in reading the Privy Council judgment, click here - https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/d171ca10-d5ed-4106-a229-e9993bd9867a/content --   Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 2 of their discussion with retired New Zealand High Court Judge and former Chief Crown Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the extraordinary Pitcairn Island sexual abuse trials which took place between 2004-2006 and in which Simon headed the prosecution team. What finally triggered the investigation into what was eventually revealed to be institutionalised, decades long gross sexual abuse of children and young women on this tiny, remote volcanic island in the middle of the South Pacific populated by the descendants of the 1789 mutiny on HMS Bounty ?  As a British Overseas Territory, why was a New Zealand prosecutor in charge of the cases and what were the practical challenges involved in seeking to bring justice to a community of some 50 people who had lived for centuries with no concept of policing or the reality of restraint via the criminal law? -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 1 of a special holiday release of Double Jeopardy, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by the former New Zealand High Court Judge and Chief Crown Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC.  At a time when comparisons are often made between the Leveson/Lammy proposals and the major reforms to New Zealand criminal justice system in 2011 flowing from its Criminal Procedure Act 2011 and the Victims of Crime Reform Act 2011, Simon gives his thoughts on the UK government’s proposed changes to the right to trial by jury and questions whether they will be effective in achieving the radical reduction in the Crown Court backlog.   -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the UK joins 26 other Council of Europe States in calling for a rebalancing of the European Convention on Human Rights as between the individual rights of irregular migrants and the public interest in defending freedom and security, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the political imperatives which drove Justice Secretary David Lammy and Attorney General Lord Hermer to attend a potentially highly significant meeting in Strasbourg designed to head off the rise of populist, anti-ECHR parties across Europe.  Click this link to read the statement issued by the 27 States following the Strasbourg meeting - https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-statement-to-the-conference-of-ministers-of-justice-of-the-council-of-europe Ken and Tim then turn to answering listeners' questions - what do the statistics concerning the number of defeats for the UK in the European Court of Human Rights over the past 45 years really tell us?  Is it really the case that trial by Judge alone is less fair than trial by jury?  If trial by magistrates in the Youth Court is largely the case for children why not for adults?  Should defendants be able to elect judge only trial in the Crown Court in all cases? And what is the evidence that an increase in magistrates’ sentencing powers leads to a rise in the prison population? Finally, the duo anticipate the special episodes of Double Jeopardy to be released over the holiday period in which their guest is the former New Zealand High Court Judge and Chief Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC.  At a time when comparisons are often made with the New Zealand criminal justice system’s experience in 2011 of reforming the right to trial by jury, Simon gives his thoughts on the Lammy/Leveson proposals, explains current issues in the NZ criminal justice system and also discusses his extraordinary role as the chief prosecutor in the Pitcairn Island sexual abuse trials between 2002-2004. -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are the Government’s proposals radically to reduce a citizen’s right to trial by jury a “swift and fair plan to get justice for victims”, as the MoJ press release declared on 2nd December, or a poorly conceived, confused and untested set of measures which will have no real impact on the Crown Court backlog or the general, long term crisis that afflicts our once admired criminal justice system?    What is the explanation for the significant difference between the leaked Lammy memorandum - which revealed a plan to eliminate trial by jury in all cases apart from murder, manslaughter, rape, or other offences meeting a public-interest threshold - and the formal announcement a week later?Cock-up or a deliberate plan designed to smooth the way for the actual proposals?  And will Labour backbenchers rebel in sufficient numbers to defeat the reform plans. To answer these and other questions generated by the furore over the Lammy proposals, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by the current and past Chairs of the Criminal Bar Association, Riel Karmy-Jones KC and Chris Henley KC.   Riel and Chris attack the proposals on the basis that neither the Leveson Report nor the Ministry of Justice have conducted any modelling capable of showing that slashing the right to jury trial will succeed in clearing the backlog, given the multiple other causes of delays in the criminal justice system, both at the pre-charge and post-charge phases. They also address the fact that jury trial is not in truth a “constitutional” right or one guaranteed by the ECHR and they challenge comparisons with Canada and New Zealand which have judge alone trials in serious cases without it being suggested that fair trials are incapable of being delivered. For a further piece by retired Judge Geoffrey Rivlin KC attacking the Lammy and Leveson proposals see this - https://redlionchambers.substack.com/p/juries-and-judges-the-right-to-choose?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&utm_medium=email&r=4n6tab&triedRedirect=true --    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Does the Judgment of the Court of Appeal in the Palestinian Family case of IA & others v. Home Secretary - https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IA.MediaSummary.Final_.pdf - indicate that the Judges are submitting to the political pressure to weaken the protection that Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights provides for the concept of “family life”?    In asserting that the Home Secretary’s policy is a matter for her and for the UK Government; that this was a question of respect for the UK’s law and democratic process; and that the courts must attach considerable weight to the Home Secretary’s immigration policies at a general level, was the Court of Appeal sending a message to immigration and asylum judges that they must adopt a fundamentally different approach when conducting the proportionality balance under Article 8 (2) of the ECHR?   Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC debate the political implications of the Court of Appeal’s ruling and question whether it will do anything to persuade Jenrick, Farage and their followers that the ECHR is not the cause of the UK’s problem of illegal migration.   Ken and Tim then move on to discuss the continuing campaign by a small number of Peers to secure the assisted, filibustered death of Kim Leadbeater’s Assisted Dying Bill.  Is the - apparently co-ordinated - plan to table some 587 amendments to the Bill as approved by the House of Commons a democratic outrage?  Or does the fact that it’s a Private Members’ Bill, to which the Salisbury Convention does not apply, mean that “Kill The Bill” is a legitimate expression of democratic scrutiny of flawed legislation?    Finally, the duo respond to audience questions, including the thorny issue of whether Irish novelist Sally Rooney’s publishers should withhold her royalties for fear of committing a terrorist financing offence in the wake of her public announcement that she intends to use future royalties from her work to donate to Palestine Action.  --    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the Courts Minister, Sarah Sackman, announces the Government’s intention to enact most of the recommendations in Sir Brian Leveson’s Independent Review of the Criminal Courts, including the abolition of the right to jury trial in cases of serious, complex fraud, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the devastating attack on Leveson’s justification for Judge alone fraud trials launched by the former Resident Judge at Southwark Crown Court, Geoffrey Rivlin KC, in an article on the Red Lion Chambers Substack – ⁠https://redlionchambers.substack.com/p/judge-alone-trials-in-serious-fraud⁠  Is retired Judge Rivlin right to argue that the Leveson proposals lack a solid evidential basis and “hang on the thread of Sir Brian’s long-held belief that judges sitting alone can be relied upon to do a better and more efficient job than trials with juries”?  And is Rivlin right to echo Lord Devlin’s warning that if the jury system is allowed to crumble, it can never be rebuilt?  Ken and Tim respond to listeners’ questions.  What will the CCRC and/or the Court of Appeal make of the way in which retired neonatologist, Dr Shoo Lee, is alleged to have approached professional colleagues with a view to them providing fresh evidence for Lucy Letby’s attempt to overturn her convictions for murder and attempted murder? Is Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins right to argue that an organised group of Peers are committing a democratic outrage in pursuing a filibuster campaign with the aim of blocking the Assisted Dying Bill?  Is the approach to oral argument in the US Supreme Court a better way to determine appeals than the way we do things in the UK?   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1ExItQZSL0    Finally, the duo discuss Dominic Cummings’s bizarre, almost certainly defamatory, Twitter attack on Lady Justice Hallett and Counsel to the Covid Inquiry, Hugo Keith KC, in the wake of the publication of the Inquiry’s Second report examining “Core UK decision-making and political governance”.  ---  Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?   Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights. Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.    Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Trump’s threat to sue the BBC for $1billion in a Florida Court over the Panorama documentary just another example of his baseless, abusive use of the Courts to intimidate media companies?  And should the BBC submit to his intimidation given the uncertainties of a Florida jury trial?   Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by leading media law Silk, Gavin Millar KC, to discuss what went wrong in the editing process behind the Panorama documentary and the differences between US and UK defamation laws. Gavin explains the potential knock-out blows that the BBC might deliver should Trump issue a defamation claim and why Trump’s claim would be doomed to fail before an English court. Ken and Tim then dissect Shabana Mahmood’s announcement to Parliament of Labour’s major reforms to the UK’s asylum and returns system and reflect on her defiant rejection of the charge that she is aping Reform’s racist policy agenda.  Will the Government’s reforms achieve the aim of halting the daily flow of migrants across the Channel as well as increasing the removal of those with no right to stay? And can domestic law reform change the way that our Courts interpret the impact of Articles 3 and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in a way which will be immune from review by the Strasbourg Court? Click here for a link to the Government’s paper on Restoring Order and Control - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-and-returns-policy-statement/restoring-order-and-control-a-statement-on-the-governments-asylum-and-returns-policy Finally, the duo follow up last week’s episode on the mistaken Wandsworth prisoner releases with an update on the explanation given by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, about the dire state of our prisons in terms of the recruitment and retention of prison officers against the background of a crazy sentencing system which is calculated to confuse and confound. --- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.  What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.  Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.   Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Shabana Mahmood’s proposed overhaul of immigration policies, modelled on Denmark’s stringent system, likely to go too far? As the Justice Secretary sends officials to Denmark to study its famously strict asylum rules, is there a danger that a tougher approach will simply risk the Labour party losing votes to the Greens and Crobyn on its left? Or might a less liberal approach save Labour from Reform UK? In this episode of Double Jeopardy, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC provide expert legal commentary on political current events, such as the proposed immigration reforms and the accidental release of potentially dangerous prisoners from Wandsworth Prison. The Wandsworth incident underscores systemic issues in the UK’s prisons and sentencing system, problems exacerbated by austerity and huge budget cuts. To close out the episode, Tim makes a nod to American politics, discussing Trump’s potentially unlawful use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, and US Solicitor General D. John Sauer’s high-paced advocacy in the Supreme Court.  —-  Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.  What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.  Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.   Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Dame Emily Thornberry, to discuss the evidence given to the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy by key individuals involved in the decisions to prosecute and ultimately abandon the Chinese Spying case (R v Cash and Berry).    In a highly unusual public examination of the collapse of a politically sensitive prosecution only weeks before it was due to commence, the Joint Committee subjected DPP Stephen Parkinson, First Treasury Counsel Tom Little KC, Deputy National Security Adviser Matthew Collins and Attorney General Lord Hermer KC to detailed cross examination over some 4 ½ hours with a view to understanding what had changed since the charging decision in April 2024 to make the case against Messrs Cash and Berry impossible to continue as the DPP and Tom Little claimed.      Did the judgment in the Russian spy case (R v Roussev) handed down in July 2024 really make any difference to the DPP’s ability to present a case under the Official Secrets Act 1911?  Given the clear and consistent evidence of China’s active threat to the safety and security of the UK during the indictment period as set out in Matt Collins’s three witness statements, why couldn’t a jury determine that China was in law “an enemy” for the purposes of the charge?     And was Lord Hermer right to lay the blame for the collapse of the trial on the failure of the Conservative government speedily to replace the 1911 Act with an updated National Security Act as recommended by the Law Commission in 2017? --  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Does Shabana Mahmood, like Dominic Cummings before her, believe that the Home Office is a broken, dysfunctional bureaucratic institution that needs a radical overhaul?    In this week’s episode Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss these and other questions with the former BBC Home Affairs Correspondent and former adviser to Yvette Cooper, Danny Shaw.  The trio respond to the publication of the 2023 review of the effectiveness of the Home Office commissioned by former Home Secretary Suella Braverman in November 2022. See this link for access to the report -https://nicktimothy.com/report-by-nick-timothy-mp-on-the-home-office-exposes-a-culture-of-defeatism-and-poor-management/    After debating the implications of Nick Timothy's Review, they discuss the announcement by the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, in the wake of the farcical arrest of comedian Graham Linehan and the decision that he will face no charges, that the Met will no longer investigate Non Crime Hate Incidents (NCHIs).  Will this lead to a nationwide change in policy?  The Timothy review also finds that the Home Office has a culture of defeatism with immigration staff feeling that failure is inevitable in enforcement of immigration policy and the department’s ability to deliver has worsened rather than improved. Anyone reading Timothy’s findings can well understand why Home Office officials were so keen to ensure that they never saw the light of day,  but does this simply reinforce the need for intense, honest public debate about a key area of Government?  Finally, the duo revisit the Chinese spying case  and make clear their bemusement at the explanations given by DPP Stephen Parkinson and First Treasury Counsel, Tom Little KC for their decision to drop it. --  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the China spying case continuing to generate headlines, mystery and yet more uncertainty surrounding the true reason for the DPP’s decision to drop charges against Chris Cash and Chris Berry under the Official Secrets Act 1911, and Double Jeopardy having been sent an anonymously leaked copy of his expert witness statement, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC secure an exclusive interview with Professor Kerry Brown, the former UK diplomat, academic and China expert who was due to be a defence witness on behalf of Chris Berry had the case gone to trial. Ken and Tim discuss with Prof Brown a number of the issues he was due to cover at the trial – the recent history of UK/China relations; the networks in Britain engaged with China; the structure of decision-making in China; whether Chris Berry could conceivably have met the second most powerful man in China, Cai Qi, as the Security Services had “assessed”, in the course of his alleged spying activities; analysis of the likely security and intelligence value of the information passed between Cash, Berry and the alleged Chinese State Security agent “Alex”; and, finally, the concept of China as an “enemy” State. Bearing in mind the force, clarity and weight which was bound to be attached to Prof Brown’s defence report, Ken and Tim suggest that the timing of the service of his report and the DPP’s decision to drop the case appears to be more than a coincidence.  Was service of the Brown report on 29th August 2025 the trigger for the meeting convened on 1st September (Chaired by National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell and attended by 20 senior mandarins and spy chiefs as well as Doug Wilson, director-general of the attorney general’s office) where the general theme was how the UK’s relationship with China was going to be damaged by the case and where the main “action point”, according to Caroline Wheeler’s well briefed article in the Times, was for the AG’s office to relay these concerns to the DPP?  The duo conclude by agreeing that unless and until the written advice given to the DPP by prosecuting counsel, Tom Little KC, as to why the case was dropped is published following a waiver of privilege by the Attorney General, the mystery surrounding this case will continue. ----------- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the wake of Robert Jenrick’s speech to the Conservative Party Conference likening Attorney General Lord Hermer KC to a “Mafia lawyer”,  accusing him and Keir Starmer of treason in relation to the Chagos Islands agreement and calling for the sacking of “activist” Judges together with the return of political appointments to our judiciary, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC ask whether Jenrick’s disgusting, populist bile make him the Stephen Miller of UK politics.  They also debate the Government’s kneejerk response to further demonstrations in support of Palestine Action in the form of Shabana Mahmood’s promise to legislate to ban protests on the basis of “cumulative disruption” to the community, despite there being ample powers under existing laws to do just that.   The duo then revisit the continuing mystery of why the DPP felt he had to abandon the criminal trial of Christopher Berry and Christoper Cash on charges of spying for China under the Official Secrets Act 1911 before finishing with praise for the judgment of Mr Justice Bennathan in acquitting a Turkish man for burning a Koran outside the Turkish Consulate in Knightsbridge earlier this year in protest at the Islamisation policies of the Erdogan government.  Who said freedom of speech is dead in the UK?  See the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights Report on the downright lies, lazy misrepresentations and repeated distortions in media reporting of the ECHR and the case law on the issue of deportation of foreign criminals under Article 8 - https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/content/bonavero-reports-series ---  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a brief explanation for the non-appearance of last week’s episode (severe back pain and hard-core painkillers) Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC review Reform’s rapidly evaporating policy agenda, Keir Starmer’s rhetorical revival and Kemi Badenoch’s predictable decision to dump the European Convention on Human Rights and repeal the Human Rights Act having taken legal advice from Lord Wolfson KC.     They then revisit the mysterious – and as yet unexplained – decision by the DPP to abandon the prosecution of Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry on charges of spying for China two weeks before their Old Bailey trial was due to start.  Was it really because UK National Security adviser Jonathan Powell directed that China could not be characterised in open court as “an enemy” under the Official Secrets Act 1911, thereby shafting the prosecution’s case at the eleventh hour?  Or was it to avoid the embarrassment of a hopelessly weak case being exposed by the defence?     Finally, Ken celebrates Ed Miliband’s Conference call for Elon Musk “to get the hell out of our politics” and doubles down on his contempt for the Silicon Valley tech tyrants who seek to lecture us about free speech and cancel culture. ---  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Parliament in recess till mid-October, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC reflect on a number of issues which have dominated the headlines over the past week.     After a brief apology from Tim for misquoting in last week’s episode Lord Hermer’s evidence to the House of Lords Constitution Committee on the issue of reform of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), Ken and Tim discuss what may lie behind the Director of Public Prosecutions’ (DPP) decision suddenly to drop serious charges of spying for China contrary to the Official Secrets Act 1911 against Christopher Berry and Christopher Cash only a few weeks before they were due to stand trial at the Old Bailey – was it because of the legal difficulty in proving that China was an “enemy” State?  Or, more likely, was it because the DPP concluded that his duty of disclosure to secure a fair trial meant he had to disclose material which the Security Services were unwilling to reveal for reasons of national security?     They then debate the interview with Dr Mike Hall on The Trial of Lucy Letby Podcast conducted by Daily Mail journalists Liz Hull and Caroline Cheetham – instructed by Lucy Letby’s defence team as an expert in neonatal medicine, Dr Hall attended every day of Letby’s 10 month trial but was ultimately not called as a defence witness for what he concludes were “tactical reasons”.  He attacks what he calls “the game of law” which meant, in his view, that the jury were deprived of crucial alternative expert evidence which may have undermined the prosecution’s medical case on causation.  Ken then lays into the extraordinary behaviour of tech behemoth Meta in defending its use of back-to school pictures of schoolgirls as young as 13 to promote its Threads site as “bait” to attract adult male followers.      The duo conclude with a less than complimentary review of an article in the Daily Telegraph by former Tory Attorney General Sir Michael Ellis KC where he sets out his 10 ways to save the UK from the road to ruin.  Is Ellis simply a fool to be ignored or should his ideas be taken seriously as yet another indication of the rise of radical right-wing populism?    ---    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.     Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.    Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.     If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices