Working to make government more effective

Hybrid event

Keynote speech: Rt Hon Victoria Prentis KC MP, Attorney General

The Attorney General discussed the government's commitment to the rule of law.

Victoria Prentis, the attorney general, on stage at the IfG.
Victoria Prentis, Attorney General, discussed the role of the rule of law in her keynote speech.

Watch the event

Listen to the event

The rule of law is a fundamental principle of a constitutional democracy – but in recent years it has been the subject of much debate. 

What role should the rule of law play? What is the government’s commitment to the rule of law? And what part should public law play in solving political disputes? 

As Attorney General, Victoria Prentis KC MP acts at the intersection of politics and the law. She is Chief Legal Adviser to the Crown and advises the government on both domestic and international law. The Attorney General's Office oversees the Law Officers’ departments, which include the Crown Prosecution Service, the Serious Fraud Office, and the Government Legal Department, where the Attorney General was herself a government lawyer for 17 years before being elected as an MP. 

She gave a keynote speech at the Institute for Government. 

The event was chaired by Emma Norris, Deputy Director at the Institute for Government. Following her speech the Attorney General took part in a Q&A with the in-person and online audience. 

Follow us on Twitter @ifgevents and join the conversation using #IfGattorneygeneral.

Our experts

Political party
Conservative
Position
Law officer
Administration
Sunak government
Legislature
House of Commons
Public figures
Victoria Prentis
Publisher
Institute for Government

Related content

17 JUN 2022 Report

UK government law officers

Sir Robert Buckland QC MP offers some of his own experiences of being a law officer and puts forward some ideas for how the roles can be improved.

08 SEP 2020 Explainer

Law officers

There are three UK government law officers: the attorney general, the solicitor general and the advocate general.