The New Zealand Initiative invites you to the launch of James Allan's new book Democracy in Decline. Professor Allan will speak at public events in Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch on 12, 13 and 14 May.
Democracy in Decline charts how democracy is being diluted and restricted in five of the world's oldest democracies – the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. James Allan targets four main, interconnected causes of decline – judicial activism, the transformation and growth of international law, the development of supranational organisations, and the presence of undemocratic elites.
He presents a convincing argument that the same trends are occurring whether the country has a constitutional bill of rights (United States and Canada), a statutory bill of rights (the United Kingdom and New Zealand), or no bill of rights at all (Australia).
Identifying tactics used by lawyers, judges, and international bureaucrats to deny that any decline has occurred, Allan looks ahead to further deterioration caused by attacks on free speech, intolerant worldviews, internationalisation through treaties and conventions, and illegal immigration. Social and political decisions, Allan argues, must be based on counting every adult in a nation state as equal.
Professors Allan's lecture will be of interest to anyone concerned with majority rule and fairness in numbers.
About the speaker
James Allan is the Garrick Professor of Law at the University of Queensland. He is a native born Canadian who practised law at a large firm in Toronto and then at the Bar in London before moving to teach law in Hong Kong, New Zealand and then Australia.
Allan has published widely in the areas of constitutional law, legal philosophy and bill of rights scepticism. He also writes regularly for weeklies and monthlies including being a regular contributor to The Australian, The Spectator Australia, and Quadrant. He was elected to the Mont Pelerin Society in 2011.
Allan worked in the Faculty of Law, University of Otago for 11 years, from 1993 to 2004. During that time he was a regular contributor to the National Business Review.
Date: Monday, 12 May 2014
Time: 5.45 PM - 8.00 PM
Location: The New Zealand Initiative, Level 12, Bayleys Building, 36 Brandon St, Wellington
Date: Tuesday, 13 May 2014
Time: 6.00 PM - 7.30 PM
Location: University of Auckland, Owen G Glenn Building 4, Level 0, 12 Grafton Rd, Auckland
Date: Wednesday, 14 May 2014
Time: 6.00 PM - 7.30 PM
Location: University of Canterbury, Lecture theatre F3, Forestry Building, Forestry Rd, Christchurch