Human rights must be protected against the abuse of power – The Guardian
‘The Tories’ British bill of rights could deprive victims of the right to seek redress. It must be fought.’
The Guardian, 16th May 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Category: constitutional law
Straining out a Gnat and Swallowing a Camel: The Convention, the Charter and Mrs May – UK Human Rights Blog
‘In a speech about Brexit last week, the Home Secretary shared what she called her “hard-headed analysis”: membership of an unreformed EU makes us safer, but – beware the non-sequitur – we must withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights, which does not.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 6th May 2016
Source: https://ukhumanrightsblog.com
Human Rights: Whether in Europe or Out – Gresham College
‘With the in/out Europe vote to come (or having gone) what will the result mean for Human Rights? How is or has the debate been framed?’
Gresham College, 6th April 2016
Source: www.gresham.ac.uk
Robert Thomas: Local Government Devolution in England – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘At last, devolution is happening in England, but there are some areas of concern especially as regards the lack of public engagement and the legal framework.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 2nd March 2016
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
The Attorney General on who should decide what the public interest is – Attorney General’s Office
‘The Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC MP spoke at University College London’s Law Faculty on his role as a guardian of the public interest.’
Attorney General’s Office, 8th February 2016
Source: www.gov.uk/ago
Cavalier with our Constitution: a Charter too far – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Last week Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, tabled a set of proposals which the government hopes will form the basis of the UK’s renegotiated relationship with the EU, in advance of an in-out referendum. Politically, the proposals may be just the job: a new commitment to enhance competitiveness, proposals to limit benefits to migrants, recognition that member states’ different aspirations for further integration must be respected, and creation of a (“red card”) mechanism to block EU legislation. Legally, however, they raise more questions than they answer.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 9th February 2016
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Graham John Wheeler: When Should the Lords Reject Secondary Legislation? – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘On 26 October 2015, the House of Lords debated the Tax Credits (Income Thresholds and Determination of Rates) (Amendment) Regulations 2015. The Regulations were approved, but subject to two riders. Critics claimed that these riders constituted “fatal” amendments, and that they were therefore tantamount to a rejection of the legislation. It was argued that it is constitutionally improper for the House of Lords to reject financial legislation in this way.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 7th December 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Speech by President of the Queen’s Bench Division: Justice for the 21st Century – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary
‘Sir Brian Leveson, President of the Queen’s Bench Division gave the Caroline Weatherill Lecture “Justice for the 21st Century” in the Isle of Man on 9 October 2015.’
Courts and Tribunals Judicairy, 12th October 2015
Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk
Ruvi Ziegler: The ‘Brexit’ Referendum: We Need to Talk about the (General Election) Franchise – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘In its 27 May 2015 Queen’s speech, the Conservative government announced that ‘early legislation will be introduced to provide for an in/out referendum’. The following day, it introduced the European Union Referendum Bill, which passed its third reading in the House of Commons on 7 September 2015 (by 316 votes to 53). The second reading in the House of Lords is scheduled for 13 October 2015. Following the recommendation of the Electoral Commission, the initially proposed question: ‘Should the UK remain a member of the European Union?’ was replaced with an arguably more neutral question: ‘should the UK remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union’.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 7th October 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Joshua Folkard: Horizontal Direct Effect of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in the English Courts – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘The Court of Appeal has recently pronounced (twice) that some provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union have horizontal direct effect. These decisions provide some guidance as to the legal and constitutional status of the Charter (at least from an English perspective). The Court of Appeal in both cases held that this conclusion required the disapplication of primary UK legislation. These decisions therefore raise an issue as to the appropriate balance of power between Parliament and English judges.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 23rd September 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Secret prosecution of terrorism suspect raises ‘difficult constitutional issues’ – The Guardian
‘The decisions that led to a terrorism suspect being prosecuted in conditions of almost unprecedented secrecy raise “really difficult constitutional issues” about the independence of prosecutors from government, the head of the judiciary in England and Wales warned on Wednesday.’
The Guardian, 1st July 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘English votes for English laws’ plan to be set out – BBC News
‘The government is expected to set out its proposals to give MPs from English constituencies the final say on laws affecting England only.’
BBC News, 2nd July 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Paul Bernal: Privacy, Surveillance and Brexit…. – UK Constitutional Law Association
An Englishman’s home is his castle, so the old saying goes, and it might be thought that the implication is that the English place a special importance on privacy. The reverse, however, seems to be the case, when the law is considered – for much of the law that provides protection for our privacy, particularly in relation to surveillance, does not originate in the UK but in Europe. With the perfect storm of possible ‘Brexit’ and the potential repeal of the Human Rights Act (HRA), that might leave our privacy in an even more precarious state than it currently is. The so-called ‘British Bill of Rights’ has yet to see the light of day: one of the key questions could be what provision it makes for privacy, particularly in relation to the internet and other forms of communications.
Full story
UK Constitutional Law Association, 18th June 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Michael Gove determined to scrap the Human Rights Act – even if Scotland retains it – Independent
‘Scotland could be allowed to retain the Human Rights Act even if Westminster sidelined the European Court in favour of an “English” Bill of Rights, according to new plans being considered by Michael Gove.‘
Independent, 31st May 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Brantley and others v Constituency Boundaries Commission and others – WLR Daily
‘A proclamation signed by the Governor General authorising alteration of the constituency boundaries in the territories of St Christopher and Nevis was made, under section 119 of the Constitution, when it was published in the Official Gazette; and it came into force, pursuant to section 50(6) of the Constitution, on the next dissolution of Parliament after it was made. Therefore, where the Governor General had dissolved Parliament with effect from 16 January 2015 and fixed the election date for 16 February 2015, and, by proclamation published in the Official Gazette on 20 January, authorised alteration of the constituency boundaries, the proclamation, having been made after the dissolution of Parliament, if valid only came into force on the dissolution of the Parliament elected in February 2015 and did not govern the 2015 election.’
WLR Daily, 11th May 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
HRA Watch: Reform, Repeal, Replace? Mark Elliott: Could the Devolved Nations Block Repeal of the Human Rights Act and the Enactment of a New Bill of Rights? – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘In my last post on the proposed repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998 and the enactment of a British Bill of Rights, I considered the extent to which the House of Lords might thwart the Government’s plans. My conclusion was that the Lords might plausibly assert itself so as to delay the legislation, traditional understandings of the Salisbury Convention notwithstanding, but that the Parliament Act 1911 clearly deprives the Lords of any absolute veto. What, however, of the devolved nations? Could they block the implementation of the UK Government’s proposals?’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 16th May 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Attorney General Dominic Grieve questions what Tories trying to achieve by replacing Human Rights Act with British Bill of Rights – The Independent
‘The former Attorney General Dominic Grieve has questioned what the Conservative Party is trying to achieve through its plan to replace the Human Rights Act with a new British Bill of Rights.’
Full story
The Independent, 17th May 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
HRA Watch: Reform, Repeal, Replace? Tobias Lock: Legal implications of human rights reform in the UK – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘The return of a majority Conservative government in last week’s general election in the UK has made the Conservative Party’s plans for reforming human rights law in the United Kingdom a likely prospect. It is recalled that on 3 October 2014, the Conservative Party published its policy document ‘Protecting Human Rights in the UK’ which sets out its proposal to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) and replace it with a new British Bill of Rights. In addition, the policy document also raised the prospect that the UK might withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 15th May 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org/blog
Benedict Douglas: Why Human Rights Have Not Been Accepted in the UK – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘The major modern and historic human rights documents recognise human rights as inalienably and universally attaching to individuals by virtue of their humanity. However, this justification for rights possession in dignity or any other foundational human characteristic is absent from the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). This lack of recognition of a deeper fundamental basis for Convention rights underlies both the euro-sceptic and party political hostility to rights in the UK, and the lack of ownership of rights amongst the public recognised by the Commission on a Bill of Rights. If the conception of human rights accepted and respected within the UN rights documents it to take root in the UK, our courts or a new Bill of Rights must recognise a moral, more fundamental, justification for human rights.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 5th May 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
