To start the New Year, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined once again by the UK’s leading legal journalist and author of the daily blog, A Lawyer Writes, Joshua Rozenberg, to review some key issues in UK law and politics during 2025 and to look forward to likely developments in 2026.   Against the background of a polarised, often ill-informed, debate around migration, asylum and Article 8 of the ECHR, where does the embarrassing case of Alaa Abd El-Fattah fit in this confused, fevered political landscape?    2025 saw persistent populist attacks on the judiciary, with Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick the most persistent offender, and the trio debate whether judicial independence is under greater threat now than ever before.     With every corner of our criminal justice system in a state of apparently permanent decline, what do the cases of Andrew Malkinson, Tom Hayes, Carlo Palombo and Lucy Letby tell us about the ability of the system to prevent and ultimately reverse miscarriages of justice?   Looking forward to 2026, Ken, Tim and Joshua cover the prospects for effective regulation of the internet and the potential for conflict between the EU approach and that of the Trump regime.  They also debate the ability of the Government to secure Parliamentary approval for the plan radically to limit the right to jury trial and the chaotic way in which the proposals were leaked.     Finally, they consider whether the Sentencing Bill, once in force, can really be the magic bullet that will finally achieve the goal of reducing our dependence on imprisonment as the only acceptable form of punishment and lead to a lasting reduction in the prison population. For listeners to the special episode on the Pitcairn Island sexual abuse  case interested in reading the Privy Council judgment, click here - https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/d171ca10-d5ed-4106-a229-e9993bd9867a/content --   Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.     What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.     Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

In Part 2 of their discussion with retired New Zealand High Court Judge and former Chief Crown Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the extraordinary Pitcairn Island sexual abuse trials which took place between 2004-2006 and in which Simon headed the prosecution team. What finally triggered the investigation into what was eventually revealed to be institutionalised, decades long gross sexual abuse of children and young women on this tiny, remote volcanic island in the middle of the South Pacific populated by the descendants of the 1789 mutiny on HMS Bounty ?  As a British Overseas Territory, why was a New Zealand prosecutor in charge of the cases and what were the practical challenges involved in seeking to bring justice to a community of some 50 people who had lived for centuries with no concept of policing or the reality of restraint via the criminal law? -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

In Part 1 of a special holiday release of Double Jeopardy, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by the former New Zealand High Court Judge and Chief Crown Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC.  At a time when comparisons are often made between the Leveson/Lammy proposals and the major reforms to New Zealand criminal justice system in 2011 flowing from its Criminal Procedure Act 2011 and the Victims of Crime Reform Act 2011, Simon gives his thoughts on the UK government’s proposed changes to the right to trial by jury and questions whether they will be effective in achieving the radical reduction in the Crown Court backlog.   -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

As the UK joins 26 other Council of Europe States in calling for a rebalancing of the European Convention on Human Rights as between the individual rights of irregular migrants and the public interest in defending freedom and security, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the political imperatives which drove Justice Secretary David Lammy and Attorney General Lord Hermer to attend a potentially highly significant meeting in Strasbourg designed to head off the rise of populist, anti-ECHR parties across Europe.  Click this link to read the statement issued by the 27 States following the Strasbourg meeting - https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-statement-to-the-conference-of-ministers-of-justice-of-the-council-of-europe Ken and Tim then turn to answering listeners' questions - what do the statistics concerning the number of defeats for the UK in the European Court of Human Rights over the past 45 years really tell us?  Is it really the case that trial by Judge alone is less fair than trial by jury?  If trial by magistrates in the Youth Court is largely the case for children why not for adults?  Should defendants be able to elect judge only trial in the Crown Court in all cases? And what is the evidence that an increase in magistrates’ sentencing powers leads to a rise in the prison population? Finally, the duo anticipate the special episodes of Double Jeopardy to be released over the holiday period in which their guest is the former New Zealand High Court Judge and Chief Prosecutor for Auckland, Simon Moore KC.  At a time when comparisons are often made with the New Zealand criminal justice system’s experience in 2011 of reforming the right to trial by jury, Simon gives his thoughts on the Lammy/Leveson proposals, explains current issues in the NZ criminal justice system and also discusses his extraordinary role as the chief prosecutor in the Pitcairn Island sexual abuse trials between 2002-2004. -- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Are the Government’s proposals radically to reduce a citizen’s right to trial by jury a “swift and fair plan to get justice for victims”, as the MoJ press release declared on 2nd December, or a poorly conceived, confused and untested set of measures which will have no real impact on the Crown Court backlog or the general, long term crisis that afflicts our once admired criminal justice system?    What is the explanation for the significant difference between the leaked Lammy memorandum - which revealed a plan to eliminate trial by jury in all cases apart from murder, manslaughter, rape, or other offences meeting a public-interest threshold - and the formal announcement a week later?Cock-up or a deliberate plan designed to smooth the way for the actual proposals?  And will Labour backbenchers rebel in sufficient numbers to defeat the reform plans. To answer these and other questions generated by the furore over the Lammy proposals, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by the current and past Chairs of the Criminal Bar Association, Riel Karmy-Jones KC and Chris Henley KC.   Riel and Chris attack the proposals on the basis that neither the Leveson Report nor the Ministry of Justice have conducted any modelling capable of showing that slashing the right to jury trial will succeed in clearing the backlog, given the multiple other causes of delays in the criminal justice system, both at the pre-charge and post-charge phases. They also address the fact that jury trial is not in truth a “constitutional” right or one guaranteed by the ECHR and they challenge comparisons with Canada and New Zealand which have judge alone trials in serious cases without it being suggested that fair trials are incapable of being delivered. For a further piece by retired Judge Geoffrey Rivlin KC attacking the Lammy and Leveson proposals see this - https://redlionchambers.substack.com/p/juries-and-judges-the-right-to-choose?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&utm_medium=email&r=4n6tab&triedRedirect=true --    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Does the Judgment of the Court of Appeal in the Palestinian Family case of IA & others v. Home Secretary - https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IA.MediaSummary.Final_.pdf - indicate that the Judges are submitting to the political pressure to weaken the protection that Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights provides for the concept of “family life”?    In asserting that the Home Secretary’s policy is a matter for her and for the UK Government; that this was a question of respect for the UK’s law and democratic process; and that the courts must attach considerable weight to the Home Secretary’s immigration policies at a general level, was the Court of Appeal sending a message to immigration and asylum judges that they must adopt a fundamentally different approach when conducting the proportionality balance under Article 8 (2) of the ECHR?   Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC debate the political implications of the Court of Appeal’s ruling and question whether it will do anything to persuade Jenrick, Farage and their followers that the ECHR is not the cause of the UK’s problem of illegal migration.   Ken and Tim then move on to discuss the continuing campaign by a small number of Peers to secure the assisted, filibustered death of Kim Leadbeater’s Assisted Dying Bill.  Is the - apparently co-ordinated - plan to table some 587 amendments to the Bill as approved by the House of Commons a democratic outrage?  Or does the fact that it’s a Private Members’ Bill, to which the Salisbury Convention does not apply, mean that “Kill The Bill” is a legitimate expression of democratic scrutiny of flawed legislation?    Finally, the duo respond to audience questions, including the thorny issue of whether Irish novelist Sally Rooney’s publishers should withhold her royalties for fear of committing a terrorist financing offence in the wake of her public announcement that she intends to use future royalties from her work to donate to Palestine Action.  --    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. 

As the Courts Minister, Sarah Sackman, announces the Government’s intention to enact most of the recommendations in Sir Brian Leveson’s Independent Review of the Criminal Courts, including the abolition of the right to jury trial in cases of serious, complex fraud, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss the devastating attack on Leveson’s justification for Judge alone fraud trials launched by the former Resident Judge at Southwark Crown Court, Geoffrey Rivlin KC, in an article on the Red Lion Chambers Substack – ⁠https://redlionchambers.substack.com/p/judge-alone-trials-in-serious-fraud⁠  Is retired Judge Rivlin right to argue that the Leveson proposals lack a solid evidential basis and “hang on the thread of Sir Brian’s long-held belief that judges sitting alone can be relied upon to do a better and more efficient job than trials with juries”?  And is Rivlin right to echo Lord Devlin’s warning that if the jury system is allowed to crumble, it can never be rebuilt?  Ken and Tim respond to listeners’ questions.  What will the CCRC and/or the Court of Appeal make of the way in which retired neonatologist, Dr Shoo Lee, is alleged to have approached professional colleagues with a view to them providing fresh evidence for Lucy Letby’s attempt to overturn her convictions for murder and attempted murder? Is Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins right to argue that an organised group of Peers are committing a democratic outrage in pursuing a filibuster campaign with the aim of blocking the Assisted Dying Bill?  Is the approach to oral argument in the US Supreme Court a better way to determine appeals than the way we do things in the UK?   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1ExItQZSL0    Finally, the duo discuss Dominic Cummings’s bizarre, almost certainly defamatory, Twitter attack on Lady Justice Hallett and Counsel to the Covid Inquiry, Hugo Keith KC, in the wake of the publication of the Inquiry’s Second report examining “Core UK decision-making and political governance”.  ---  Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?   Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights. Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.    Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. 

Is Trump’s threat to sue the BBC for $1billion in a Florida Court over the Panorama documentary just another example of his baseless, abusive use of the Courts to intimidate media companies?  And should the BBC submit to his intimidation given the uncertainties of a Florida jury trial?   Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by leading media law Silk, Gavin Millar KC, to discuss what went wrong in the editing process behind the Panorama documentary and the differences between US and UK defamation laws. Gavin explains the potential knock-out blows that the BBC might deliver should Trump issue a defamation claim and why Trump’s claim would be doomed to fail before an English court. Ken and Tim then dissect Shabana Mahmood’s announcement to Parliament of Labour’s major reforms to the UK’s asylum and returns system and reflect on her defiant rejection of the charge that she is aping Reform’s racist policy agenda.  Will the Government’s reforms achieve the aim of halting the daily flow of migrants across the Channel as well as increasing the removal of those with no right to stay? And can domestic law reform change the way that our Courts interpret the impact of Articles 3 and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in a way which will be immune from review by the Strasbourg Court? Click here for a link to the Government’s paper on Restoring Order and Control - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-and-returns-policy-statement/restoring-order-and-control-a-statement-on-the-governments-asylum-and-returns-policy Finally, the duo follow up last week’s episode on the mistaken Wandsworth prisoner releases with an update on the explanation given by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, about the dire state of our prisons in terms of the recruitment and retention of prison officers against the background of a crazy sentencing system which is calculated to confuse and confound. --- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.  What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.  Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.   Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Is Shabana Mahmood’s proposed overhaul of immigration policies, modelled on Denmark’s stringent system, likely to go too far? As the Justice Secretary sends officials to Denmark to study its famously strict asylum rules, is there a danger that a tougher approach will simply risk the Labour party losing votes to the Greens and Crobyn on its left? Or might a less liberal approach save Labour from Reform UK? In this episode of Double Jeopardy, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC provide expert legal commentary on political current events, such as the proposed immigration reforms and the accidental release of potentially dangerous prisoners from Wandsworth Prison. The Wandsworth incident underscores systemic issues in the UK’s prisons and sentencing system, problems exacerbated by austerity and huge budget cuts. To close out the episode, Tim makes a nod to American politics, discussing Trump’s potentially unlawful use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, and US Solicitor General D. John Sauer’s high-paced advocacy in the Supreme Court.  —-  Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.  What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.  Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.   Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.  If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Dame Emily Thornberry, to discuss the evidence given to the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy by key individuals involved in the decisions to prosecute and ultimately abandon the Chinese Spying case (R v Cash and Berry).    In a highly unusual public examination of the collapse of a politically sensitive prosecution only weeks before it was due to commence, the Joint Committee subjected DPP Stephen Parkinson, First Treasury Counsel Tom Little KC, Deputy National Security Adviser Matthew Collins and Attorney General Lord Hermer KC to detailed cross examination over some 4 ½ hours with a view to understanding what had changed since the charging decision in April 2024 to make the case against Messrs Cash and Berry impossible to continue as the DPP and Tom Little claimed.      Did the judgment in the Russian spy case (R v Roussev) handed down in July 2024 really make any difference to the DPP’s ability to present a case under the Official Secrets Act 1911?  Given the clear and consistent evidence of China’s active threat to the safety and security of the UK during the indictment period as set out in Matt Collins’s three witness statements, why couldn’t a jury determine that China was in law “an enemy” for the purposes of the charge?     And was Lord Hermer right to lay the blame for the collapse of the trial on the failure of the Conservative government speedily to replace the 1911 Act with an updated National Security Act as recommended by the Law Commission in 2017? --  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Does Shabana Mahmood, like Dominic Cummings before her, believe that the Home Office is a broken, dysfunctional bureaucratic institution that needs a radical overhaul?    In this week’s episode Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC discuss these and other questions with the former BBC Home Affairs Correspondent and former adviser to Yvette Cooper, Danny Shaw.  The trio respond to the publication of the 2023 review of the effectiveness of the Home Office commissioned by former Home Secretary Suella Braverman in November 2022. See this link for access to the report -https://nicktimothy.com/report-by-nick-timothy-mp-on-the-home-office-exposes-a-culture-of-defeatism-and-poor-management/    After debating the implications of Nick Timothy's Review, they discuss the announcement by the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, in the wake of the farcical arrest of comedian Graham Linehan and the decision that he will face no charges, that the Met will no longer investigate Non Crime Hate Incidents (NCHIs).  Will this lead to a nationwide change in policy?  The Timothy review also finds that the Home Office has a culture of defeatism with immigration staff feeling that failure is inevitable in enforcement of immigration policy and the department’s ability to deliver has worsened rather than improved. Anyone reading Timothy’s findings can well understand why Home Office officials were so keen to ensure that they never saw the light of day,  but does this simply reinforce the need for intense, honest public debate about a key area of Government?  Finally, the duo revisit the Chinese spying case  and make clear their bemusement at the explanations given by DPP Stephen Parkinson and First Treasury Counsel, Tom Little KC for their decision to drop it. --  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. 

With the China spying case continuing to generate headlines, mystery and yet more uncertainty surrounding the true reason for the DPP’s decision to drop charges against Chris Cash and Chris Berry under the Official Secrets Act 1911, and Double Jeopardy having been sent an anonymously leaked copy of his expert witness statement, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC secure an exclusive interview with Professor Kerry Brown, the former UK diplomat, academic and China expert who was due to be a defence witness on behalf of Chris Berry had the case gone to trial. Ken and Tim discuss with Prof Brown a number of the issues he was due to cover at the trial – the recent history of UK/China relations; the networks in Britain engaged with China; the structure of decision-making in China; whether Chris Berry could conceivably have met the second most powerful man in China, Cai Qi, as the Security Services had “assessed”, in the course of his alleged spying activities; analysis of the likely security and intelligence value of the information passed between Cash, Berry and the alleged Chinese State Security agent “Alex”; and, finally, the concept of China as an “enemy” State. Bearing in mind the force, clarity and weight which was bound to be attached to Prof Brown’s defence report, Ken and Tim suggest that the timing of the service of his report and the DPP’s decision to drop the case appears to be more than a coincidence.  Was service of the Brown report on 29th August 2025 the trigger for the meeting convened on 1st September (Chaired by National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell and attended by 20 senior mandarins and spy chiefs as well as Doug Wilson, director-general of the attorney general’s office) where the general theme was how the UK’s relationship with China was going to be damaged by the case and where the main “action point”, according to Caroline Wheeler’s well briefed article in the Times, was for the AG’s office to relay these concerns to the DPP?  The duo conclude by agreeing that unless and until the written advice given to the DPP by prosecuting counsel, Tom Little KC, as to why the case was dropped is published following a waiver of privilege by the Attorney General, the mystery surrounding this case will continue. ----------- Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

In the wake of Robert Jenrick’s speech to the Conservative Party Conference likening Attorney General Lord Hermer KC to a “Mafia lawyer”,  accusing him and Keir Starmer of treason in relation to the Chagos Islands agreement and calling for the sacking of “activist” Judges together with the return of political appointments to our judiciary, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC ask whether Jenrick’s disgusting, populist bile make him the Stephen Miller of UK politics.  They also debate the Government’s kneejerk response to further demonstrations in support of Palestine Action in the form of Shabana Mahmood’s promise to legislate to ban protests on the basis of “cumulative disruption” to the community, despite there being ample powers under existing laws to do just that.   The duo then revisit the continuing mystery of why the DPP felt he had to abandon the criminal trial of Christopher Berry and Christoper Cash on charges of spying for China under the Official Secrets Act 1911 before finishing with praise for the judgment of Mr Justice Bennathan in acquitting a Turkish man for burning a Koran outside the Turkish Consulate in Knightsbridge earlier this year in protest at the Islamisation policies of the Erdogan government.  Who said freedom of speech is dead in the UK?  See the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights Report on the downright lies, lazy misrepresentations and repeated distortions in media reporting of the ECHR and the case law on the issue of deportation of foreign criminals under Article 8 - https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/content/bonavero-reports-series ---  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.  Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

After a brief explanation for the non-appearance of last week’s episode (severe back pain and hard-core painkillers) Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC review Reform’s rapidly evaporating policy agenda, Keir Starmer’s rhetorical revival and Kemi Badenoch’s predictable decision to dump the European Convention on Human Rights and repeal the Human Rights Act having taken legal advice from Lord Wolfson KC.     They then revisit the mysterious – and as yet unexplained – decision by the DPP to abandon the prosecution of Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry on charges of spying for China two weeks before their Old Bailey trial was due to start.  Was it really because UK National Security adviser Jonathan Powell directed that China could not be characterised in open court as “an enemy” under the Official Secrets Act 1911, thereby shafting the prosecution’s case at the eleventh hour?  Or was it to avoid the embarrassment of a hopelessly weak case being exposed by the defence?     Finally, Ken celebrates Ed Miliband’s Conference call for Elon Musk “to get the hell out of our politics” and doubles down on his contempt for the Silicon Valley tech tyrants who seek to lecture us about free speech and cancel culture. ---  Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.  Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.   If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

With Parliament in recess till mid-October, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC reflect on a number of issues which have dominated the headlines over the past week.     After a brief apology from Tim for misquoting in last week’s episode Lord Hermer’s evidence to the House of Lords Constitution Committee on the issue of reform of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), Ken and Tim discuss what may lie behind the Director of Public Prosecutions’ (DPP) decision suddenly to drop serious charges of spying for China contrary to the Official Secrets Act 1911 against Christopher Berry and Christopher Cash only a few weeks before they were due to stand trial at the Old Bailey – was it because of the legal difficulty in proving that China was an “enemy” State?  Or, more likely, was it because the DPP concluded that his duty of disclosure to secure a fair trial meant he had to disclose material which the Security Services were unwilling to reveal for reasons of national security?     They then debate the interview with Dr Mike Hall on The Trial of Lucy Letby Podcast conducted by Daily Mail journalists Liz Hull and Caroline Cheetham – instructed by Lucy Letby’s defence team as an expert in neonatal medicine, Dr Hall attended every day of Letby’s 10 month trial but was ultimately not called as a defence witness for what he concludes were “tactical reasons”.  He attacks what he calls “the game of law” which meant, in his view, that the jury were deprived of crucial alternative expert evidence which may have undermined the prosecution’s medical case on causation.  Ken then lays into the extraordinary behaviour of tech behemoth Meta in defending its use of back-to school pictures of schoolgirls as young as 13 to promote its Threads site as “bait” to attract adult male followers.      The duo conclude with a less than complimentary review of an article in the Daily Telegraph by former Tory Attorney General Sir Michael Ellis KC where he sets out his 10 ways to save the UK from the road to ruin.  Is Ellis simply a fool to be ignored or should his ideas be taken seriously as yet another indication of the rise of radical right-wing populism?    ---    Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?  Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.     Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.    Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.     If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. 

The recent mass arrests at Palestine Action protests, Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally, the turmoil generated by the sacking of Angela Rayner and Peter Mandelson and the political fall-out from the arrest of Graham Linehan all contribute to a mood of crisis in UK law and politics. Can a weakened and wounded Government reverse the tide?   Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC begin with an obituary to their Matrix chambers colleague and friend, Conor Gearty KC, the esteemed Professor and barrister who died suddenly last week at the age of 67. They then go behind the headlines to discuss a host of issues which have combined to create a crisis for a Labour government only recently elected with a thumping majority, including: Palestine Action demonstrations-  the escalation of arrests under UK anti-terrorism laws and the legal challenges to these laws and their implications; the Cabinet reshuffle– what will be the impact on the Home Office and Ministry of Justice policies?; The sacking of Peter Mandelson and the failures of “due process”; the arrest of Graham Linehan – what does it say about the state of free speech laws in the UK?; is the Assisted Dying Bill in peril following the House of Lords’ debate?  ---     Covering the critical intersections of politics and law in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.    What happens when politics and law collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system?    Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.    Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.    Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.    Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.     Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape.    If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy. 

Unpack one of the most dramatic moments in the life of the Labour government so far: Angela Rayner’s resignation, a sweeping cabinet reshuffle, and Shabana Mahmood’s arrival as Home Secretary. With David Lammy moved to Justice and Yvette Cooper shifted to the Foreign Office, what does this signal for immigration, asylum, and criminal justice reform? To explore the current events in UK politics, Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC are joined by Sir Jonathan Jones KCB KC, former Treasury Solicitor, and Permanent Secretary of the Government Legal Department 2014-2020. Together they offer expert legal commentary on the growing calls to repeal the Human Rights Act, withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and even abandon the Refugee and Torture Conventions. They discuss whether such moves are legally possible in UK law, the lessons from Denmark’s hardline asylum model, and the challenges of redefining refugee status in a world of mass displacement and criminal gangs exploiting the terms of the 1951 Convention.   The conversation also tackles the complex question of whether withdrawal from the ECHR would breach the Belfast Good Friday Agreement, the role of the common law in safeguarding fundamental rights, and whether a populist government could truly legislate away protections against torture and inhuman treatment or punishment.    With the debate on human rights law at its most febrile in decades, Ken, Tim and Jonathan ask: how far could Britain really go—and at what cost to its international standing, constitutional integrity, and democratic values? Link to The ECHR and the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement on policy exchange here. Link to the ECHR & Immigration Control in the UK: Informing the Public Debate document, authored by Victoria Adelmant, Alice Donald and Başak Çali here. --- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future. What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system? Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays. Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights. Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law. Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades. Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape. If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Does the ECHR really block the UK’s ability to implement effective immigration/asylum policies? And why is Nigel Farage doing his best to persuade the foreign US government and its increasingly far right tech bro cronies, to bully the UK over the Online Safety Act, so recently passed by Parliament? And how does this behaviour align with his loudly professed patriotism and promotion of British sovereignty?  This week on Double Jeopardy, hosts Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC provide expert legal commentary on the Court of Appeal’s ruling on the Bell Hotel injunction case and discuss the broader implications of UK and European asylum policies, with special focus on Denmark and Sweden. The episode also covers Nigel Farage's political manoeuvres, the populist claim that we have a "two-tier justice" system and insights from a recent research paper examining the impacts of European Court of Human Rights rulings on UK deportation policies.    Link to the UK in a Changing Europe 2025 article by Dr Alice Donald, Dr Joelle Grogan and Victoria Adelmant located here: https://ukandeu.ac.uk/explainers/does-the-european-convention-on-human-rights-stop-foreign-criminals-being-removed-from-the-uk/ --- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future.   What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system? Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays.   Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights.   Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law.   Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.    Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape. If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.  

Can the UK tighten its asylum policies without abandoning its commitments to human rights?  Ken Macdonald KC and Tim Owen KC provide expert legal commentary on the Bell Hotel Judgment and its far-reaching impact on the government’s asylum policy. They examine the legal reasoning, the clash between local and central government, and the Court of Appeal challenge now underway. The conversation also covers the limited turnout at far-right protests, new polling showing immigration dominating public concern, and Nigel Farage’s sweeping Reform proposals. With public concern rising and party positions hardening, Ken and Tim ask: how should Labour respond? Link to the Bell Hotel Judgement here: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Epping-Forest-DC-v-Somani-Hotels-Final-Judgment-2.pdf --- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future. What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system? Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays. Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights. Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law. Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape. If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.

Is Chris Philp’s tweet about the different outcomes in the Lucy Connolly/Ricky Jones cases simply moronic and embarrassing or something more sinister? What do the ITV and Panorama documentaries tell us about the safety of Lucy Letby’s convictions? What could potentially derail some of Sir Brian Leveson’s proposals for radical reform of the right to trial by jury? What impact will the Supreme Court’s decision to quash the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo have on the future prosecution of complex financial crimes? In this edition of Double Jeopardy, Ken Macdonald and Tim Owen dig into listener questions and unpack some of the most contentious legal issues shaping headlines in the UK. From Lucy Connolly to Lucy Letby, widespread criticisms of the Leveson Review’s recommendations and the fallout from the Supreme Court’s decision in R v Hayes & Palombo, the hosts provide candid, insider perspectives on how the justice system works, and sometimes falters. Listeners interested in reading the response of the Criminal Bar Association to the Leveson Review (Part 1) can click here - https://www.criminalbar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/CBA-Position-on-the-Independent-Review-of-the-Criminal-Courts-Part-1-.pdf —- Covering the critical intersections of law and politics in the UK with expert commentary on high-profile legal cases, political controversies, prisons and sentencing, human rights law, current political events and the shifting landscape of justice and democracy. With in-depth discussions and influential guests, Double Jeopardy is the podcast that uncovers the forces shaping Britain’s legal and political future. What happens when law and politics collide? How do politics shape the law - and when does the law push back? What happens when judicial independence is tested, human rights come under attack, or freedom of expression is challenged? And who really holds power in Britain’s legal and political system? Get answers to questions like these weekly on Wednesdays. Double Jeopardy is presented by Ken Macdonald KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions, and Tim Owen KC, as they break down the legal and political issues in Britain. From high-profile legal cases to the evolving state of British democracy, Double Jeopardy offers expert legal commentary on the most pressing topics in UK law, politics, and human rights. Ken Macdonald KC served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 2003-2008, shaping modern prosecutorial policy and advocating for the rule of law. He is a former Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, a crossbench member of the House of Lords, and a leading writer, commentator and broadcaster on politics and the rule of law. Tim Owen KC has been involved in many of the most significant public, criminal and human rights law cases over the past four decades.  Both bring unparalleled experience from the frontline of Britain's legal and political landscape. If you like The Rest Is Politics, Talking Politics, Law Pod UK and Today in Focus, you’ll love Double Jeopardy.