UK Law and Politics 2025-2026: What’s Happened and What’s Coming Next

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

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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.