Home / Series / Intelligence Squared / Aired Order / Season 2015 / Episode 6

Magna Carta: Myth And Meaning

June 2015 will see the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, the ‘Great Charter’ which was signed at Runnymede by King John to resolve a political crisis he faced with his barons. Buried within its 69 clauses is one of immeasurable importance. This is the idea that no one should be deprived of their freedom without just cause, and that people are entitled to fair trial by their peers according to the law of the land.At the time Magna Carta did nothing to improve the lot of the vast majority of English people, and all but three of its provisions have been repealed. Yet Magna Carta has come to be seen as the cornerstone of English liberty and an international rallying cry against the arbitrary use of power.But Where does Magna Carta stand today In a time of secret courts in Britain and the Guantanamo gulag, the threat to rights from terror laws and state surveillance of our online activities, do we need to reaffirm its basic principles Should we take things even further, as Tim Berners-Lee has suggested, and create a new Magna Carta for the worldwide web to protect our liberty onlineOn 5th February 2015, Intelligence Squared hosted an evening dedicated to the history, the reinvention and the enduring significance of this historic document. We were joined by leading constitutional historian David Starkey; barrister specialising in civil liberties and public law Dinah Rose QC; and conservative MP and bestselling author Rory Stewart.The event was chaired by Henry Porter, writer and journalist specialising in human rights and the London editor of Vanity Fair.

English
  • Originally Aired February 12, 2015
  • Runtime 60 minutes
  • Production Code 190811508
  • Network BBC World News
  • Created April 16, 2016 by
    Administrator admin
  • Modified April 16, 2016 by
    Administrator admin