"An informative, provocative and deeply personal account of a distinguished life in law and politics." – Lord Pannick QC"A brave trailblazer for human rights." – Sir Harold Evans, former editor of the Sunday Times"In his eloquent memoir, Anthony Lester weaves the story of the expansion of human rights at home and abroad … This rich history by a great human rights lawyer is a reminder that 'hope dies last…', and that we cannot give up hope." – Margaret H. Marshall, ...

― Human Rights― Equality― Free Speech― Privacy― The Rule of LawThese five ideas are vitally important to the way of life we enjoy today. The battle to establish them in law was long and difficult, and Anthony Lester was at the heart of the thirty-year campaign that resulted in the Human Rights Act, as well as the struggle for race and gender equality that culminated in the Equality Act of 2010.Today, however, our society is at risk of becoming le...

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction“Caroline Elkins has written an important book that can change our understanding not just of Africa but of ourselves. —Bill Berkeley, author of The Graves Are Not Yet Full: Race, Tribe and Power in the Heart of AfricaA major work of history that for the first time reveals the violence and terror at the heart of Britain's civilizing mission in Kenya.As part of the A...

SHORTLISTED FOR THE AHRC'S ANNUAL HUMAN RIGHTS MEDALS AND AWARDSThe first decade of the twenty-first century has seen a sharp decline in respect for human rights and the international rule of law. The legal conventions of the new realpolitik seem to owe more to Guantanamo than Geneva.Australia has tarnished its reputation in the field of human rights, through its support for illegal warfare, its failure to honour international conventions, its refusal to de...

Today it is usually not long before a problem gets expressed as a human rights issue. Indeed, human rights law continues to gain increasing attention internationally, and must move quickly in order to keep up with a social world that changes so rapidly. This Very Short Introduction, in its second edition, brings the issue of human rights up to date, considering the current controversies surrounding the movement. Discussing torture and arbitrary detention in the context of counter ...

First published as part of the best-selling The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, Christopher Harvie and Colin Matthew's Very Short Introduction to Nineteenth-Century Britain is a sharp but subtle account of remarkable economic and social change and an even more remarkable political stability. Britain in 1789 was overwhelmingly rural, agrarian, multilingual, and almost half Celtic. By 1914, when it faced its greatest test since the defeat of Napoleon, it was largely ...

The definitive study of this troubled regionThe Northern Ireland conflict is the most protracted and bitter campaign of terrorist violence in modern history. Despite decommissioning and political compromise, violent incidents are still rife and Unionists and Nationalists are as segregated as ever. This landmark introduction uses the latest archival material to chart the history of The Troubles and examine their legacy. Exploring the effects of sectarian violence, B...

‘When put to the test, most people have difficulty identifying what justice is, especially when there is tension between proper process and a desired result. Due process is inherent in our conception of justice. But bad process can yield the right result, just as good process can produce the wrong result. The legal system is designed to produce justice. We call it the justice system — sometimes un-selfconsciously, sometimes with bitter irony. It is designed to produce justice according to ...

New Zealanders are too complacent about the continuing erosion of their right to know what government is doing on their behalf. Political risk has become a primary consideration in whether official information requests will be met, and successive governments have allowed free speech rights to be overridden.Drawing on decades of experience as a journalist and editor, Gavin Ellis chronicles the patterns of erosion and calls for entrenchment of the Bill of Rights Act. As supreme law, it would...

This acclaimed book provides a topical and contextual outline of the principles, doctrines and institutions that underpin the United Kingdom constitution. The second edition of The Constitution of the United Kingdom has been extensively rewritten to take account of recent constitutional developments, particularly changes made following the 2010 general election. The chapters are written in sufficient detail for anyone coming to the subject for the first time to develop a clear and informed...

The last decade has seen radical changes in the way we are governed. Reforms such as the Human Rights Act and devolution have led to the replacement of one constitutional order by another. This book is the first to describe and analyse Britain's new constitution, asking why it was that the old system, seemingly hallowed by time, came under challenge, and why it is being replaced.The Human Rights Act and the devolution legislation have the character of fundamental law. They in pract...

A short, sharp intervention in the crucial debate about the future of democracy, which has been brought to a head by events from Brexit to the Trump phenomenon.We live in strange days in the history of democracy.Every serious politician in the Western world supports democracy. Yet when the EU Referendum and American Elections both delivered the ‘wrong’ result, elites challenged the merit of the people’s will, and some even tried to block it. Preferring unel...