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This Policy Brief is inspired by the presentations and discussions from a two-day conference on Referendums in Small States and Territories held at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) in April 2025. It was convened to critically explore the evolving futures of small island states and territories, particularly those with lingering colonial ties, within the analytical frame of referendums.
Referendums remain powerful yet paradoxical instruments of democratic expression—capable of both empowering citizens and entrenching elite agendas. In small states and territories, they offer a rare opportunity for direct civic engagement, often mobilising communities in ways that transcend routine political participation. However, their success hinges on careful design, transparent processes, and genuine political will. As the experiences of jurisdictions such as Bermuda, Bougainville, Grenada, New Caledonia, and Puerto Rico show, referendums can falter when poorly structured, inadequately supported, or manipulated for partisan gain.
The lessons drawn from recent and historical referendums underscore the importance of clarity in question framing, inclusivity in voter eligibility, and the need for robust public education. Moreover, the symbolic and strategic dimensions of referendums—particularly in post-colonial and semi-autonomous contexts—highlight their role not just in shaping policy, but in articulating identity, legitimacy, and aspirations for self-determination.
REFERENDUMS IN SMALL STATES AND TERRITORIES
A POLICY BRIEF
September 2025
Professors Peter Clegg, Godfrey Baldacchino and Caroline Morris
Special Issue of Small States and Territories:(2025) vol 8(1)
Ten years of Veenendaal and Corbett’s ‘Why small states offer important answers to large questions’
(2025) vol 8(1)
Eds Drs Hillary Briffa and Anna-Lena Högenauer
A symposium marking the ten-year anniversary of Veenendaal and Corbett’s (2015) seminal piece, “Why small states offer important answers to large questions”, revisiting their provocation and extending its reach across new disciplines. Featuring 24 interdisciplinary contributions, the symposium explores how small states contribute meaningfully to major debates in political science, international relations, public administration, law, health, education, and beyond, challenging theoretical orthodoxies, enriching comparative insights, and offering scalable models of innovation and resilience. The contributions are organised around four themes: Revisiting the canon: power, agency, and theory-building; Rethinking statehood, sovereignty, and the international legal order; Resilience, innovative governance, and institutional learning; and Representation, rights, and social transformation. They illustrate how smallness is both constraint and catalyst.
Special Issue of Statute Law Review:
Law Reform in Small Jurisdictions
(2025) vol 46(1)
Eds Enrico Albanesi and Jonathan Teasdale
This special issue collects some articles from the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) Law Reform Project sixth annual workshop, held at the IALS on 3 November 2023, concerning ‘Reforming the law: addressing the challenges and opportunities in small jurisdictions’.
Featured jurisdictions include: Seychelles, Guernsey, Jersey and Malta.
https://academic.oup.com/slr/issue/46/1
Judicial appointments in Tonga and laws governing same-sex relations in Pacific Island countries
Visions and Voices
2025
Professor Emerita Jennifer Corrin
The recent controversy about the appointment of Malcolm Bishop KC, an openly gay British barrister, to the position of Lord Chief Justice of Tonga and Lord President of the Land Court has placed the spotlight on the laws governing same-sex relations in Pacific Island countries. This article outlines briefly the process of selection of judges in Tonga and the current objections to this appointment. It then examines the current laws on same-sex relations in Tonga and other Pacific Island countries.
https://pireport.org/2025/01/22/judicial-appointments-in-tonga-and-laws-governing-same-sex-relations-in-pacific-island-countries/
Sustaining Development in Small Islands: Climate Change, Geopolitical Security, and the Permissive Liberal Order
2025
Dr Matthew Bishop et al
This book argues that the viability of small island developing states (SIDS) is threatened by three distinct processes – a backlash against globalisation; rising geopolitical competition between powers; and accelerating climate change – which are pulling at the threads binding the liberal international order together. We suggest that this order has been kinder to SIDS than is often acknowledged because its underpinning norms – sovereign equality, non-interference, and right to development – are inherently permissive and thus provide SIDS with choices rather than imperatives. Their leaders should fight for the continuation and enhancement of that order rather than be seduced by alternatives. We provide a rationale for and examples of policies to achieve this, including reforms to the way ODA is measured, debt restructured, climate finance allocated, and global governance organised. These enhancements represent the most plausible pathway for SIDS in a period of significant global upheaval.
Open Access:
The Constitutional Courts of Small Jurisdictions
2024
Ed Professor Emeritus Danny Pieters
This book identifies features and challenges common to the constitutional courts of small state jurisdictions in Europe, including Andorra, Cyprus, Estonia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, and San Marino. For each country’s constitutional court, the following matters are examined: the history of the court; its composition; its standing and the types of proceedings; jurisdiction of the court; procedural steps and rules; the nature and effect of the decisions rendered; relations with other courts (CJEU, ECHR, etc.); and current issues and future developments. The book concludes by identifying some common features and challenges that constitutional courts of small states are confronted with, formulating recommendations for other small state jurisdictions across the world.
https://www.routledge.com/The-Constitutional-Courts-of-Small-Jurisdictions/Pieters/p/book/9781032620435?srsltid=AfmBOoodOlN5JnuU2MUAJrkbq3q2BQUDRvj23TaDPLkOKIP-lJ4KTdyO
