Modern slavery white paper published – Home Office

Posted December 16th, 2013 in bills, imprisonment, news, trafficking in human beings by sally

‘A flagship Bill to tackle modern slavery, the first of its kind in Europe, was published today by the Home Secretary Theresa May.’

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Home Office, 16th December 2013

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

‘We tinker with assisted suicide laws at our peril’, warns Baroness Butler-Sloss – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 16th, 2013 in appeals, assisted suicide, bills, human rights, judges, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘Baroness Butler-Sloss’s message as Supreme Court considers landmark right-to-die challenge.’

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Daily Telegraph, 15th December 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Government’s Modern Slavery Bill will ‘fail victims and spare criminals’ – The Independent

Posted December 16th, 2013 in bills, consultations, news, police, reports, trafficking in human beings, victims by sally

‘The Government’s Modern Slavery Bill is being rushed through Parliament without proper consultation and will offer almost no help to the victims of the crime, sources close to the process have told The Independent on Sunday.’

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The Independent, 14th December 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Short Cuts – London Review of Books

Posted December 12th, 2013 in bills, charities, elections, lobbying, news by sally

‘The Lobbying Bill – due to complete the Lords committee stage before Christmas – is intended ‘to ensure that people know whose interests are being represented by consultant lobbyists who make representations to government’. Part One provides that lobbyists must disclose the names of their clients four times a year in a public register; there will be a registrar to enforce compliance, and sanctions for non-compliance. This should make ministers more cautious about promoting policies that favour special interests, and should make special interest groups more cautious in their dealings with ministers. Those who want to engage in this type of lobbying, and can afford it, can properly be expected to bear the costs of regulation.’

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London Review of Books, 19th December 2013

Source: www.lrb.co.uk

Same-sex weddings to begin in March – BBC News

Posted December 11th, 2013 in bills, Church of England, equality, homosexuality, marriage, news by sally

‘The first same-sex weddings in England and Wales will be able to take place from 29 March 2014, Equalities Minister Maria Miller says.’

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BBC News, 10th December 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judges to rule on ‘right to die’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 9th, 2013 in appeals, assisted suicide, bills, human rights, judiciary, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘A panel of Britain’s most senior judges are preparing to make a landmark ruling over attempts to introduce a ”right to die” under human rights legislation.’

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Daily Telegraph, 8th December 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Government backtracks on mesothelioma reforms but moves to end recoverability – Litigation Futures

‘The government has responded to widespread pressure and scrapped plans to impose an insurance industry-devised mesothelioma pre-action protocol (PAP) and the fixed recoverable costs regime (FRC) that underpinned it.’

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Litigtaiton Futures, 5th December 2013

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court fees set to soar for commercial litigation – Litigation Futures

Posted December 4th, 2013 in bills, consultations, costs, courts, fees, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

‘Court fees for litigants in commercial money claims could rise from under £3,000 to more than £21,000 under plans by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) for a percentage-based fee system.’

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Litigation Futures, 4th December 2013

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Prince Charles faces fresh challenge to secret communications with ministers – The Guardian

‘Prince Charles is to face a fresh challenge to his secret communication channel to government ministers when a court is asked to reveal whether he lobbied for an exemption to property laws affecting his £800m estate.’

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The Guardian, 3rd December 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Children and Families Bill 2013 – all change, but is it for the better? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted December 3rd, 2013 in adoption, bills, care orders, children, families, fostering, news, time limits by sally

‘The Children and Families Bill 2013 represents one of the biggest shake-ups of the law relating to family life in years.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 3rd december 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Government to legislate to cap the cost of payday loans – OUT-LAW.com

‘The Government will introduce legislation to cap the cost of payday loans to borrowers, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 27th November 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Ministers defeated in Lords over licences for bankers – BBC News

Posted November 27th, 2013 in banking, bills, codes of practice, financial regulation, licensing, news, parliament, standards by tracey

‘The government has been defeated in the House of Lords over its plans for reforming the banking system. A Labour amendment to the Financial Services Bill, which would introduce a licensing system for senior bankers, was passed by five votes.’

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BBC News, 26th November 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

EU migrants: David Cameron sets out more benefit restrictions – The Guardian

Posted November 27th, 2013 in benefits, bills, EC law, employment, enforcement, fines, housing, immigration, news, statistics by tracey

‘David Cameron made a fresh effort to assuage public concern about a wave of migration from Bulgaria and Romania on Tuesday when he announced a series of benefit restrictions on all EU migrant workers, including a ban on access to housing benefit for all new arrivals and a three-month ban before jobseeker’s allowance can be claimed.’

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The Guardian, 27th November 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Forced marriage and the “lawfully wedded” wife – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted November 26th, 2013 in bills, forced marriages, news by tracey

‘Today, on the 32nd International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill reaches the Committee stage of the House of Lords. The Bill introduces a raft of measures covering matters as diverse as dangerous dogs, extradition proceedings, firearms and, tucked away in Part 10, forced marriage. Forced marriage is to be criminalised. “Was it not already?”, you may ask.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 25th November 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Asbestos NHS treatment cost recovery bill is voted into law – BBC News

Posted November 21st, 2013 in asbestos, bills, costs, insurance, news, Wales by sally

“A bill to recover the costs of treating Welsh asbestos patients from businesses or insurers has been passed by assembly members.”

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BBC News, 20th November 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Extradition: why the government is wrong to remove the automatic right to appeal – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

“The government has come under fire from extradition and human rights practitioners for seeking to remove the automatic right of appeal in extradition cases.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 15th November 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Miranda, Prisoner Votes & Judicial Review Myths – The Human Rights Roundup – UK Human Rights Blog

“This week, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the draft Voting Eligibility (Prisoners) Bill took evidence , and there were notable comments from the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, the body which monitors compliance with the European Court of Human Rights. Meanwhile, Baroness Hale weighed in on the proposed judicial review changes and, continuing along the judicial review vein, David Miranda (pictured) began his claim on Wednesday.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 11th November 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

New Asbo plans are assault on basic freedom, says former DPP Lord Macdonald – Daily Telegraph

Posted November 11th, 2013 in anti-social behaviour, bills, demonstrations, freedom of expression, news, police by michael

“Plans to replace Asbos with wide ranging new orders clamping down on anything likely to cause ‘annoyance’ amount to ‘gross state  interference’ with basic freedoms, Lord Macdonald warns.”

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Daily Telegraph, 8th November 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Dominic Grieve: Every prisoner in Britain could sue for damages over voting ban – Daily Telegraph

Posted November 7th, 2013 in bills, damages, elections, human rights, news, prisons, treaties by tracey

“Tens of thousands of prisoners could be in line for compensation because they have been denied their ‘human right’ to vote, the Attorney General has warned. Dominic Grieve warned that all 85,000 prisoners in England and Wales could lodge claims with the European Court of Human Rights if they are barred from vote at the next election, costing taxpayers more than £60 million.”

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Daily Telegraph, 6th November 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Lord Chief Justice: public should decide if Islamic veil should be allowed in court – Daily Telegraph

“The most senior judge in England and Wales says a public consultation will open on the ‘divisive’ subject soon.”

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Daily Telegraph, 5th November 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk