The legal landscape: Micro-targeted politics and big data Bethany Shiner, Lecture in Law, Middlesex University, London contributed this piece to our report Reining in the Political ‘Wild West’: Campaign Rules for the 21st Century. The evolution of data-driven political campaigning has spawned an entire industry... Posted 15 Feb 2019
The risks of not reforming our electoral law Martin Moore, Director of the Centre for the Study of Media, Communication and Power, and a Senior Research Fellow in the Policy Institute at King’s College London and Damian Tambini, Associate Professor in the Department... Posted 13 Feb 2019
The Cairncross Review on restoring trust in an age of fake news The need to curb the unregulated power of tech giants is finally being recognised in the sphere of journalism and online information as well. In a report published today, the Cairncross Review recommended that online... Posted 12 Feb 2019
Legislation introduced to extend the right to vote to 16 and 17 year olds in Wales Devolution to Wales has meant that we do a number of things differently from other parts of the UK. From having distinct policies around tuition fees for Welsh students heading to university, to bringing forward... Posted 12 Feb 2019
How to improve voters’ confidence in democracy Tom Hawthorn, Head of Policy at the Electoral Commission contributed this article for our recent report Reining in the Political ‘Wild West’: Campaign Rules for the 21st Century. Not so long ago, election campaigning was all... Posted 12 Feb 2019
Now is the time to bring our campaign rules into the 21st century The Rt Hon Dame Cheryl Gillan MP contributed this piece as the forward to our report Reining in the Political ‘Wild West’: Campaign Rules for the 21st Century. Our democracy is at a critical juncture. We... Posted 11 Feb 2019
Six ways to rein in the campaign ‘Wild West’ On Monday, the ERS launched a united call for change – with election regulators, campaigners, academics and MPs alike demanding a review of Britain’s political campaign laws. This week marks 15 years since the... Posted 05 Feb 2019
Reining in the political ‘Wild West’: Why we need campaign rules for the 21st century Political party campaigning has shifted dramatically online in recent years. To give just one example: political parties spent around £1.3 million on Facebook adverts during the 2015 general election. This more than doubled two years... Posted 04 Feb 2019
What is a Citizens’ Assembly? Citizens’ Assemblies are often in the news, from the assemblies that led to the referendums on equal marriage and abortion in Ireland, to the Citizens’ Assembly of Scotland and local council climate assemblies. While the... Posted 24 Jan 2019
House of Lords – Let’s break open this private members’ club once and for all As I write, Lords are pouring into The Queen’s Robing Room to select a new member to join them for life. If that sounds like the bizarre initiation ceremony of a private members’ club, you’d... Posted 23 Jan 2019