Can Jenrick Go Any Lower? Plus Palestine Action, Chinese Spying and Burning the Koran

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

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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.