Paul Billingham

Paul Billingham joined DPIR as an Associate Professor in April 2018. Prior to this, he was a Junior Research Fellow at Christ Church, Oxford, from October 2015.

His research centres on the relationship between the actions of the state and the beliefs and values of citizens, especially their religious beliefs. He considers both the way in which citizens’ beliefs might constrain state action, given the liberal demand that laws be justified to all citizens, and the ways in which the state might permissibly seek to influence citizens’ values, to conform them to liberal ideals. The former question concerns public justification and public reason, while the latter concerns the state's role in value-promotion and moral formation. Through this focus, his work touches upon many important topics within political theory, including state legitimacy, pluralism, freedom of conscience, religious exemptions, and the place of religion within public life.

For more about Paul, visit his personal website.