The Case for a Written Constitution

In this Keynote Lecture, renowned philosopher A. C. Grayling will set out the case for a written constitution, to address the centuries-old anomaly that the UK has no formally agreed written Constitution, despite forming the model for constitutions around the world.

Professor Grayling will examine the constitutional questions raised by Brexit, and argue that now more than ever, it is time for the UK to debate and confirm a written constitutional Agreement of the People for the twenty-first century.

Professor Grayling lays out the terms of the debate:

The debate about the merits of written versus unwritten constitutions comes down to a debate about the merits of clarity versus flexibility in the intertwined operations of the political, legal, and governmental orders of a state.

It should also be a debate about consistency and transparency versus expediency and political over-plasticity, as recent events have demonstrated: on which ground, I argue for a written constitution.

A. C. Grayling is the Master of the New College of the Humanities, London, and its Professor of Philosophy, and the author of over thirty books of philosophy, biography, history of ideas, and essays. He is a columnist for Prospect magazine, and was for a number of years a columnist on the Guardian and Times.

Register at: www.fljs.org/Written-Constitution