Dinsdale Piranha, the Supreme Court and the death of the separation of powers

by Roger Gherson

Montesquieu taught us that liberty survives only where power is divided. The executive, the legislature and the judiciary must restrain each other, or tyranny will follow. The Supreme Court's recent judgment in Shvidler v Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs; Dalston Projects Ltd and Others v Secretary of State for Transport [2025] UKSC 30 shows how far that principle has collapsed. Instead of acting as a constitutional check, the court has reduced itself to a rubber stamp for civil servants and ministers.