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05 August 2022 / Roger Smith
Issue: 7990 / Categories: Opinion , Constitutional law
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Preserving the union

89700
Won’t anyone think about the constitution, asks Roger Smith

We will know soon enough the Tory party leader to succeed Boris Johnson. We know already the horrendous list of challenges that they will face: the Ukraine war, climate change, cost of living crisis, fuel costs, levelling up, NHS collapse. But there is one more. This might beguilingly look as if it can be ignored for the time being. But, it can’t. The future constitution of the UK is in play—whether we like it or not.

The English are particularly obtuse at understanding that the UK is not synonymous with them. By contrast, I have a particular sensitivity on this issue. I spent five years of my school life in endless re-enactments of a selective view of the great Anglo-Scottish battles of the past. I represented the invading and invariably defeated English. Somehow, the school bell always rang before we could get to the bloody defeats of Flodden and Culloden. All this was fuelled by classroom drawings of Robbie the Bruce watching the intrepid

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DAC Beachcroft—Paul Brehony

DAC Beachcroft—Paul Brehony

Commercial disputes practice expands with partner hire in London

Ward Hadaway—Maria Coster

Ward Hadaway—Maria Coster

Partner appointed to lead family and matrimonial department in Leeds

Slater Heelis—Helen Marsh

Slater Heelis—Helen Marsh

Commercial property team expands in Manchester with partner appointment

NEWS
SRM Recruitment has been announced as the headline sponsor of the Law Society RFC Festival of Sport 2026, which will take place on 20 September at Richmond Athletic Association. The specialist legal search firm joins the event as organisers prepare to welcome more than 110 teams across five sports, including rugby sevens, netball and five-a-side football
The civil justice landscape could be heading for a shake-up, with reform of the Solicitors Act 1974 gathering pace
Global mobility is transforming family law, creating new challenges around jurisdiction, assets and child arrangements
A series of procedural developments could have significant practical consequences for litigators. Writing in NLJ this week, columnist Stephen Gold highlights important updates ranging from digital court reforms to family procedure and admissions of liability
As family structures evolve, the law may face difficult questions about inheritance rights for those in polyamorous relationships
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