Can marriage officers refuse to marry same-sex couples? – OUP Blog

Posted October 9th, 2017 in civil servants, equality, human rights, marriage, news by sally

‘Freedom of religion and same-sex equality are not inherently incompatible. But sometimes they do seem to be on a collision course. This happens, for instance, when religiously devout marriage officers refuse to marry same-sex couples. In the wake of legal recognition of same-sex marriage around the world, states have grappled with civil servants who cannot reconcile their legal duties with their religious beliefs.’

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OUP Blog, 9th October 2017

Source: blog.oup.com

Civil servant kept woman from Nigeria in ‘domestic servitude’ – The Guardian

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in civil servants, news, trafficking in human beings by sally

‘A civil servant and her husband kept an African woman in servitude at their home, a judge has concluded.’

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The Guardian, 21st August 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

Online trolling laws under consideration following abuse of MPs – The Independent

‘An investigation into the abuse of MPs and parliamentary candidates is considering whether new laws are needed to protect public servants because of the rise of social media.’

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The Independent, 24th July 2017

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Whistleblowers and journalists ‘at risk of prison’ in secrets law reform – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 17th, 2017 in civil servants, media, news, official secrets act, whistleblowers by sally

‘Proposals by the Law Commission to reform the 1989 Official Secrets Act (OSA) could lead to the imprisonment of civil servants and journalists for disclosing information that would be available to anyone asking for it under the Freedom of Information Act, a leading campaigner for freedom of information has said.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 15th May 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Purdah: Government should obey the law in the run-up to an election – UK Human Rights Blog

‘Last November the judge decided that the UK’s air pollution plans under EU and domestic laws were not good enough. The case has a long, and unedifying back-story of Government not doing what the law says it should do.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 16th May 2017

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

No “reason why”: Essop and Naeem in the Supreme Court – Cloisters

‘Robin Allen QC and Anna Beale consider the latest case on indirect discrimination and ask the pressing question: are equal pay cases suddenly significantly easier for Claimants?’

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Cloisters, 5th April 2017

Source: www.cloisters.com

The Supreme Court makes Indirect Discrimination simple again – 11 KBW

‘In the joined cases of Essop and Naeem ([2017] UKSC 27) the Supreme Court has taken on a daunting task: the simplification of indirect discrimination law. This is not a case note in the usual sense. We have not set out the facts, the law and then a statement of what is novel. At the hearing we tried to give the Supreme Court a new vocabulary to use as a tool for its analysis. The aim of this note is to explain that language as simply as we can. If we succeed, what we have to say will seem obvious. Those reading Lady Hale’s judgment (with which all of their Lordships agreed) will have had that experience. She has distilled, from an area of law that was submerging into great complexity, a handful of principles that dispel confusion and whch make intractable issues straightforward.’

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11 KBW, 5th April 2017

Source: www.11kbw.com

Immigration officers who claim promotion tests are discriminatory set to sue Home Office – Daily Telegraph

‘Black immigration officers struggled to pass promotion exams because the tests were racist, a court has heard. A group of 49 Home Office employees is now set to sue the Government over claims that the exams are discriminatory.’

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Daily Telegraph, 5th April 2017

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

‘Itchy’ clerks wigs are scrapped after 300 years to make Commons less ‘stuffy’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 7th, 2017 in civil servants, legal profession, news, parliament by sally

‘The 300-year-old custom of clerks wearing wigs in the Commons has been scrapped to save money and make the Commons “less stuffy”.’

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Daily Telegraph, 6th February 2017

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Monitoring officer issues section 5 report over re-designation of role – Local Government Lawyer

Posted September 28th, 2016 in civil servants, local government, news, reports by sally

‘The monitoring officer at Slough, Gurpreet Anand, has issued a statutory report amid claims that the Leader of the borough council unlawfully sought to re-designate the role.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 27th September 2016

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Government breached personal data security 9,000 times in a year – The Guardian

‘Personal data security was breached nearly 9,000 times by the government in a year, the National Audit Office (NAO) has found. The watchdog revealed the 17 largest departments recorded 8,995 data breaches in 2014-15 – but that only 14 were reported to the Information Commissioner (ICO).’

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The Guardian, 14th September 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Civil servant stole £1m from Government to buy a luxury flat – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 17th, 2016 in civil servants, fraud, news, sentencing by tracey

‘A Department for Education manager who defrauded the Government of more than £1m to buy a luxury flat has been jailed after he was turned in by his mother.’

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Daily Telegraph, 16th June 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Ministry of Justice officials ‘helped private firms win government contracts’ – The Guardian

‘Ministers have ordered an immediate inquiry into allegations that former senior civil servants from the Ministry of Justice have used their Whitehall knowledge and contacts to help private companies secure government contracts worth millions.’

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The Guardian, 14th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Whistleblowers let down by government, say MPs – The Guardian

Posted March 11th, 2016 in civil servants, news, select committees, whistleblowers by tracey

‘Public accounts committee says Cabinet Office has shown a lack of urgency in strengthening laws to protect public servants.’

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The Guardian, 11th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Civil servants ‘complacent’ over e-Borders fiasco – The Guardian

Posted March 4th, 2016 in budgets, civil servants, immigration, news by tracey

‘Civil servants overseeing the e-Borders programme have been accused by parliament’s spending watchdog of being “complacent” and “worryingly dismissive” of failings that could damage national security.’

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The Guardian, 4th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Prisoners won’t have to declare convictions when seeking work, David Cameron says – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 9th, 2016 in civil servants, criminal records, employment, news, recruitment, speeches by sally

‘Prime Minister says that prisoners should not have to submit a list of previous convictions when initially applying for jobs’

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Daily Telegraph, 8th February 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

No case for rewriting FoI Act, says information commissioner – The Guardian

‘Advice given to ministers by civil servants should not be excluded from freedom of information legislation, according to the official responsible for overseeing the workings of the act.’

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The Guardian, 20th January 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ex-civil service chief criticises government for attempts to curb FoI legislation – The Guardian

Posted December 15th, 2015 in civil servants, freedom of information, legislation, news by sally

‘The UK government’s reasons for curbing freedom of information laws have been challenged by Lord Kerslake, the former head of the civil service.’

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The Guardian, 15th December 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Dansk Jurist-og Økonomforbund (acting on behalf of Toftgaard) v Indenrigs-og Sundhedsministeriet (Centralorganisationernes Fællesudvalg and others intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted October 1st, 2013 in age discrimination, civil servants, EC law, employment, law reports, redundancy by sally

Dansk Jurist-og Økonomforbund (acting on behalf of Toftgaard) v Indenrigs-og Sundhedsministeriet (Centralorganisationernes Fællesudvalg and others intervening) (Case C-546/11); [2013] WLR (D) 360

“Article 6(2) of Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment applied only to retirement or invalidity benefits under an occupational social security scheme.”

WLR Daily, 26th September 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Confidentiality clauses in public sector payoffs ‘must not stop whistleblowers’ – The Guardian

“Margaret Hodge says government must make clear deals should not stop whistleblowers from speaking out, after NAO report.”

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The Guardian, 21st June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk