Under the leadership of Shannon Hale, Director of the Rule of Law Programme for the Margaret Thatcher Centre, and Blair Gibbs, Policy Director, we launched a landmark series of events, bringing to bear a greater scrutiny of issues relating to the rule of law than has, until now, been the case within the United Kingdom. The first Rule of Law Conference took place on Monday, 16th June at Gray’s Inn, London.

For Margaret Thatcher, the rule of law was of equal importance to freedom and democracy, and yet in Britain today, basic concepts such as natural justice, due process and innocence until proven guilty are no longer at the heart of a legal system that denies too many access to justice. Two-tier justice seems increasingly commonplace.

In partnership with the Danube Institute and the International Reagan Thatcher Society, this first event in the series focused on the growth in powers of the state and regulators, and a discussion around how together, we will work to reshape policy in this most critical of fields through a series of keynote addresses and panel discussions led by leading jurists, academics, politicians, practitioners and opinion formers.

Among the keynote speakers and panellists were:

The Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP, Shadow Justice Secretary
The Rt Hon Sir Robert Buckland, Former Lord Chancellor
Dr Larry Arnn, President, Hillsdale College
The Rt Hon The Lord Young of Acton, Founder, The Free Speech Union
Dr Tim Aker, Academic Director, The Margaret Thatcher Centre
The Rt Hon The Lord Wolfson of Tredegar KC, Shadow Attorney General
Jack Rankin MP, Windsor
Martin Howe KC, Barrister, 8 New Square
Kerry Underwood, Solicitor, Law Abroad Plc
Preston Byrne, Fellow, The Adam Smith Institute
David Oldroyd-Bolt, Anglosphere Fellow at the Danube Institute
Professor James Allan, University of Queensland
Matthew Richardson, Barrister, Brown Rudnick LLP
Stephen Hackett, Barrister, 3 Hare Court
Adam King, Barrister, QEB Hollis Whitman
The Rt Hon Sir David Davis MP, Former Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union
Adam Richardson, Barrister, 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square
Steve Barrett, Barrister & Writer
Istvan Kiss, Executive Director, The Danube Institute
Melissa O’Sullivan Secretary & Treasurer, The International Reagan-Thatcher Society
Gergely Dobozi, Head of Operations, The Danube Institute
Donal Blaney, Founder, The Margaret Thatcher Centre
Shannon Hale, Director, The Rule of Law Programme, The Margaret Thatcher Centre