By: John Oxley

John Oxley is a corporate strategist and political commentator. He publishes a weekly Substack, Joxley Writes, and frequently appears in other print and broadcast media. He is an associate fellow of the Bright Blue think-tank and an adviser to the Conservative YIMBY campaign.

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This parliament has taught us the strength of our democracy

November 5, 2019

The 57th parliament of the United Kingdom officially comes to an end tomorrow. It has seen off a Prime Minister, survived a prorogation that wasn’t, and failed to deliver Brexit. Decried by the attorney general as a “zombie parliament”, it has gone to the country in search of new brains. It will have a curious [...]
Order, order: The race is on to replace John Bercow

October 10, 2019

The departure of John Bercow from the speakership of the House of Commons will create a vacancy of huge importance. Yesterday, nine hopefuls vied with each other for the honour of replacing him, answering journalists’ questions on everything from the impartiality of the role, to Westminster’s alleged drug problem, to the rules on breast-feeding in [...]
Trying to impeach Boris would be an unmitigated catastrophe

October 2, 2019

Rumours are swirling in Westminster of a plot to impeach Boris Johnson. The news broke over the weekend that, inspired perhaps by the US Democrats’ move against Donald Trump, opposition parties are considering moving to strip the Prime Minister of his position. This is foolish and dangerous. For a start, it is entirely unclear if [...]
We should celebrate the glory of Britain’s unwritten constitution

September 25, 2019

For most of the Cold War, there sat in a safe in Whitehall a 16-chapter document. It was a game plan for when the bombs started falling. In four minutes, as the warning sirens wailed, the United Kingdom would be turned from a constitutional monarchy to 12 regional mini-kingdoms. Each would be overseen by a [...]
Real lives will be ruined by the delay to the laws dropped with the prorogation of parliament

September 17, 2019

The prorogation of parliament has been variously cast as an attempted coup or a smart move in delivering the referendum mandate. Either way, many among both the fans and the critics have overlooked the impact that the end of a parliamentary term can have on real people. For when parliament is prorogued, dissolved or dismissed, [...]
Stuffing the House of Lords with your friends is practically a parliamentary tradition

August 29, 2019

To consolidate his Brexit position, Boris Johnson is rumoured to be lining up a selection of “Brexit heroes” for elevation to the Lords – a line of eurosceptics in ermine, ready to take to the red benches to shore up his support in the upper house. It is a politically expedient plan, with the Conservatives [...]
A brief lesson in governments of national unity, and why they won’t solve Brexit

August 19, 2019

A struggling pound, a Labour leader at odds with his backbenches, and a government trying to pursue multiple contradictory aims. It may sound like last week, but it was in fact the state of things in 1931. The answer, echoed by some today, was a government of national unity – elements of the three main [...]
The Club of Former Prime Ministers welcomes its latest member: Theresa May

July 30, 2019

With Boris Johnson parading into Downing Street and the drama of the chopping and changing of cabinet, it’s easy to forget that Theresa May too has acquired a new role: former Prime Minister. It is a peculiar position to be in. One is freed from the constraints of parliamentary ambition, but also chastened by the [...]
Erskine May is online – now even you can understand parliament’s arcane rules

July 3, 2019

The UK government has allowed the “bible” of parliamentary procedure, Erskine May, to be published online – fully and freely accessible for the first time in the 175-year history of the book. Anyone with an internet connection can now explore the full intricacies of everything that goes on in Westminster, from “Absence, leave of” to [...]
What does Boris Johnson have in common with Oscar Wilde? A brief history of private prosecutions

June 3, 2019

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has been told that he will face court as part of private prosecution brought against him for his conduct in the Brexit campaign. Suddenly, this obscure legal mechanism is in the public spotlight. Indeed, many people may not even have been aware that private prosecutions still existed in modern Britain. [...]

City of London gives green light to controversial Liverpool Street plans

‘Crown jewel’ of Olympic Games memorabilia put up for sale at auction

Bar of the week: Why Three Sheets is a little slice of old Soho

By: John Oxley

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