Weekly Update

It is now more than three months since one of the most vocal opponents of the Coronavirus lockdown, former UK Supreme Court Justice Jonathan Sumption, wrote in the Sunday Times:

"as soon as the scientists start talking about a month or even three or six months, we are entering a realm of sinister fantasy in which the cure has taken over as the biggest threat to our society".

What, then, does he think of the Government's announcement this week that from 24th July it will be compulsory to wear a face mask in shops in England, a requirement enforceable by the police and punishable by criminal penalty?

Is this an example of what he described in his Reith Lectures as "law's expanding empire", or is it the product of praiseworthy politics informed by independent scientific advice?

You can find out from Jonathan Sumption himself next week at the webinar we are holding, in partnership with Jones Day and Prospect magazine, on Democracy and the Rule of Law in the age of Covid-19. Joshua Rozenberg will interview Jonathan Sumption, followed by questions from participants, before former US appellate court Judge Ann Williams offers some reflections from America. You can register to attend for free

 Read our full Weekly Update here