Space & Counterspace: Disruptive Technologies from Launch to Orbital Strike

Christopher Morris runs a fortnightly discussion group. Please be aware that group attendance may be limited. It is required to contact Christopher (Christopher.Morris@politics.ox.ac.uk) in advance for availability. Meetings will run both in person and online.

In person location: Boyd Room, Hertford College
Online: Microsoft Teams

When the Health of the People was the Highest Law: Have Coronavirus Restrictions Damaged the Authority of Laws for the Public’s Health?

Cicero’s maxim salus populi suprema lex est—the health of the people is the highest law—has long held a fascinating and influential place within law and politics, not least given its prominence within John Locke’s Second Treatise on Government. It is also a maxim, sometimes a mantra, that is frequently found within works in public health ethics; a necessarily political field of applied philosophy. The maxim itself contains various points of inherent contestability. These include questions regarding the proper, or best, meaning of ‘salus’.
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