Fiona is one of 12 commissioners drawn from policy, academia, legal practice, and Parliament who have been selected for their expertise in assessing how legal frameworks and parliamentary procedures protected the Rule of Law and human rights, and promoted accountability, transparency, and parliamentary control of executive action during the pandemic.
Through this work, the Independent Commission aims to meet the need identified by the House of Lords Select Committee on the Constitution for "a review of the use of emergency powers by the Government, and the scrutiny of those powers by Parliament…to inform the public inquiry and planning for any future emergencies."
Professor de Londras’ appointment builds on the work of the COVID-19 Review Observatory, funded by the UKRI, which she led in Birmingham Law School.
Through the Observatory we revealed patterns of executive dominance, marginalisation of Parliament, and over-reliance on secondary law-making during the pandemic. Working as part of the Independent Commission, I can now think alongside other experts about what these patterns tell us about the workings of our parliamentary and constitutional system and, critically, what safeguards might be put in place to better protect parliamentary democracy and human rights in future public health emergencies.
Professor Fiona de Londras
The Commission will make recommendations for changes in law, policy, practice and procedure, and intends to report in autumn 2023. More information about the Commission, its terms of reference, and the Commissioners is available here.
