Constitutionally Sound - CCC podcast

Constitutionally Sound is the regular podcast run by the Centre on Constitutional Change (CCC). The Centre's fellows are academics in the fields of political science, economics, social policy and constitutional law. They are based at UK universities and research institutes, with a network of international partners.

Our fellows are globally recognised leaders in their fields, working at the cutting edge of the social sciences and humanities, together with younger scholars breaking new ground in their disciplines.

1 July 2022
Migration challenges after Brexit and Covid
Nicola McEwen is joined by Dr Sarah Kyambi, Director of Migration Policy Scotland and David Bell, Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Stirling, for a discussion on migration in Scotland after Brexit and Covid-19. They discuss current challenges in the labour market and where these challenges stem from; immigration and devolution and what the challenges and opportunities might be around transferring powers on immigration to devolved nations; and finally immigration in the context of Scottish independence - how important would immigration be if Scotland were to become independent?

25 May 2022
Northern Ireland after the election
Nicola McEwen is joined by Katy Hayward, Professor of Political Sociology at Queen’s University Belfast and a Senior Fellow of the UK in a Changing Europe, and David McCann, Deputy Editor of Slugger O’Toole and lecturer in Politics and Government at Ulster University for a fascinating discussion on Northern Ireland and the 2022 Assembly elections.
They reflect on the results; the Alliance ‘surge’ and where those votes have come from; what the results might mean for the Protocol and how that might play out next; and what might be next for Northern Ireland itself.

4 April 2022
The Constitutional Future of Wales
Nicola McEwen is joined by Laura McAllister, Professor of Public Policy and the Governance of Wales at Cardiff University, to discuss the constitutional future of Wales. They talk devolution; the work of the new Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales and how it will engage with the people of Wales; and whether the constitutional future of the UK could be changed from Wales.

15 March 2022
The Conservatives in Scotland
In this new episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host Nicola McEwen is joined by guests Alan Convery and Andy Maciver to discuss the Conservatives in Scotland. Is it time for the party to go it alone? Where does Douglas Ross' call for Boris Johnson leave the Scottish leader and the party? What is the Scottish Conservatives strategy beyond opposing another Scottish independence referendum?

3 November 2021
Going Global: Exploring Scotland’s International Relations
As world leaders descend on Glasgow for COP26, we explore how much scope there is for the Scottish Government, as a devolved government, to have a presence on the international stage.

15 June 2021
Northern Ireland: Conflict and Complexity
In this episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host Allan Little, is joined by Katy Hayward, Professor of Political Sociology at Queen’s University Belfast and Jonathan Powell was a British diplomat from 1979 to 1996 and from 1997 to 2007 was Chief of Staff to Tony Blair and the chief British government negotiator on Northern Ireland during that time in office.

1 June 2021
Constitutionally Sound - Election Edition
In this special edition of the Constitutionally Sound podcast, Professor Ailsa Henderson of the University of Edinburgh and Professor Richard Wyn Jones of Cardiff University join host Allan Little to discuss the election results in Scotland and Wales.

31 March 2021
Scottish Independence Then And Now

In this episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host Allan Little, is joined by Professor of Territorial Politics at the University of Edinburgh and Co-Director at the Centre on Constitutional Change, Nicola McEwen, and Professor of Practice in the Management of Public Organisations at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, Ciaran Martin. Listen as they reflect on the Scottish independence referendum in 2014 and how things look now in 2021.

15 February 2021
Constitutionally Sound: Labour and the Union
In this episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host Allan Little is joined by the Centre on Constitutional Change’s Deputy Director, Coree Brown Swan, and former First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones MS. Listen as they compare the approaches of Scottish and Welsh Labour within the constitutional debate, assess Labour’s plans for the Union, and discuss how Brexit and the pandemic have changed the constitutional debate in the UK. 

16 December 2020
Bonus Episode of Constitutionally Sound - Brexit deal or no deal?
In this episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host, Allan Little gets the view from both sides of the talks from Professor Michael Keating (University of Aberdeen) and Elvire Fabry (Jacques Delors Institute). Our guests discuss where we are with the Brexit talks, what kind of relationship might emerge on 1 January, and constitutionally, what the UK’s changed place in the world might mean for governance in the UK.

12 December 2020
Constitutionally Sound - Governing England
The pandemic has not only exposed tensions between Westminster and the devolved nations of the United Kingdom, it has shone an unforgiving light on the way England is governed. It raises the questions - is the UK state over centralised and unresponsive to regional variations and public need? Has the pandemic made the case for devolution in England? Where is governance in England headed?

18 November 2020
Brexit: What Does It Mean For Devolution?
In this first episode of Constitutionally Sound, our host Allan Little is joined by Philip Rycroft, former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Exiting the European Union and Head of the UK Governance Group, and Professor Nicola McEwen, Co-Director of the Centre on Constitutional Change. They will discuss the impact of Brexit on devolution and the Union. Will Brexit bring more powers to the devolved institutions? How has Brexit affected the relations between Westminster and the devolved administrations? Does the UK Government’s approach to the UK internal market amount to a ‘power grab’? Has the Brexit process put the Union under strain?

Catalonia and Scotland: Nations in Flux

Sleeping with an Elephant: Devolution and the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020