Thom Brooks
Job title: Principal, Collingwood College & Professor of Law, Ethics and Government, Durham Law School
Affiliation: Durham University (UK)
Areas of expertise: Citizenship and nationality; Immigration and borders; Punishment and criminal justice; Social cohesion and civic integration; Applied political philosophy and public policy
KEY PUBLICATIONS:
Books (major authored works)
- Political Philosophy: The Fundamentals (Oxford: Blackwell, 2025) — foundational overview of central concepts and debates in political philosophy.
- Global Justice: An Introduction (Oxford: Blackwell, 2023) — comprehensive treatment of global justice theory, widely used in teaching and research.
- Reforming the UK’s Citizenship Test: Building Bridges, Not Barriers (Bristol University Press, 2022) — policy-relevant analysis of citizenship testing in the UK.
- New Arrivals: A Fair Immigration Plan for Labour (Fabian Society, 2022) — influential policy proposal, winner of the Jenny Jeger Prize.
- Punishment: A Critical Introduction, 2nd ed. (Routledge, 2021) — key text on theories and functions of punishment.
- Climate Change Ethics for an Endangered World (Routledge, 2020) — normative ethical exploration of climate policy and justice.
- Becoming British: UK Citizenship Examined (Biteback, 2016) — critical study of British citizenship policy and integration.
Select Edited Volumes (influential collections)
- British Legal Reform: An Agenda for Change (Policy Press, 2024), co-edited with Catherine Atkinson & David Drew — agenda-setting work on legal reform.
- The Oxford Handbook of Global Justice (Oxford University Press, ed., 2020) — landmark reference work in global justice.
- Political Emotions: Towards a Decent Public Sphere (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022) — essays on emotions and political life.
Notable Articles & Chapters (recent influence)
- Brooks, T. (2025). “Republican Children,” Philosophy and Public Affairs 53(1): 37–65 — in a leading journal.
- Brooks, T. (2025). “Testing Citizenship,” Philosophy Compass 20(8): 1–11 — philosophical analysis of citizenship tests.
- Brooks, T. (2024). “Cruel and Unusual Punishment,” in The Oxford Handbook of the Philosophy of Punishment, Oxford: OUP — major cross-disciplinary chapter.
- Brooks, T. (2024). “Immigration and Nationality Law Reform,” in British Legal Reform (Policy Press) — policy-oriented chapter bridging law and reform.
- Brooks, T. (2023). “Punitive Restoration,” in Palgrave Handbook on the Philosophy of Punishment — important contribution to debates on punishment theory.
CONTACT:
Professor Thom Brooks
Principal
Collingwood College
Durham University, DH1 3LT
United Kingdom
thom.brooks [at] durham.ac.uk