This interview is based on a conversation which the authors had on December 17, 2019 in the immediate aftermath of the UK general election. It has been revised and updated from the original transcript.
Rosemary Bechler (RB): Following the general election in 2019, for the first time in nearly four years we are clear what ‘Brexit means’– a hard Brexit, with no opportunity for comment on the trade deal with the EU previously promised to the parliamentarians, and an end to the parliamentary privileges that kept a ‘soft Brexit’ on the Westminster table, even if never allowed anywhere near a public debate.
We are being warned that all the institutions that might threaten to hamper or challenge the progress of this executive will be radically overhauled, including the judiciary, the civil service, press and broadcasting and so on. Do you feel that we may come to see British parliamentary democracy as one of the main casualties of this chapter in our history?
