‘The Metropolitan Police are paying compensation to two women handcuffed and arrested at a vigil for Sarah Everard, murdered by police officer Wayne Couzens.’
The Independent, 14th September 2023
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘The only events for which Metropolitan police chiefs authorised the potential use of baton rounds in the past six years were black-led gatherings, documents show.’
The Guardian, 6th August 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Six environmental activists who underwent a retrial over charges related to tunnelling near Euston station in London in protest against HS2 have been sentenced.’
The Guardian, 1st August 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Two Just Stop Oil protesters who scaled the bridge at the Dartford crossing, closing it to traffic for more than a day and a half, have been refused permission to appeal against their sentences.’
The Guardian, 31st July 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Leading lawyers have accused the government of undermining trial by jury after a climate activist was told she faces contempt proceedings over holding a sign outside court.’
The Guardian, 26th July 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘New measures aimed at curbing protest methods often used by environmental groups have come into effect.’
BBC News, 2nd July 2023
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘As many will have seen in the media, environmental activist group Insulate Britain (IB) has carried out London protests in a manner deliberately designed to cause serious disruption. These protest tactics have included activists deliberately blocking highways by sitting down in the road, and often gluing themselves to its surface and/or locking themselves to each other to make their removal more time-consuming. IB has repeatedly stated that these protests will continue until its demands are met.’
Law Society's Gazette, 16th June 2023
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘The National Council for Civil Liberties, also known as Liberty, is threatening a judicial review of the Home Secretary’s efforts to widen the circumstances in which the police can impose conditions on people organising or taking part in protests.’
Local Government Lawyer, 19th June 2023
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘Three activists who lay on a road outside an immigration detention centre to prevent people being put on a Home Office deportation flight to Jamaica have been cleared by a jury of charges of causing a public nuisance.’
The Guardian, 13th June 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Conservative politicians in the UK and the US are making headlines for regulatory efforts targeting core free speech principles under the guise of protecting members of the public from harm. Four days prior to the coronation of King Charles III – a coincidence according to the UK government – the controversial Public Order Act 2023 (POA 2023), introduced by former Home Secretary Priti Patel, received royal assent. The application of the new law, in conjunction with the expansive powers granted to police under prior legislation, led to the controversial targeting and arrest of dozens of peaceful anti-monarchy protesters during the coronation proceedings. In the US, Republicans are responsible for a flurry of recent regulations censoring expression concerning sexual orientation, race, and other issues at the forefront of the so-called ‘culture war’ in public school classrooms and libraries across the country. These regulatory efforts highlight the increasingly illiberal posture of conservative parties in these countries, which undermines shared democratic values and reflects a broader shift toward the use of anti-democratic means to achieve political ends.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 1st June 2023
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
‘In a report published on 11 May, the House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (“SLSC”) drew attention to a constitutional issue of considerable interest and novelty. The SLSC drew the attention of the House of Lords to draft regulations that, if they come into effect, will allow police in England and Wales to impose restrictions on protests and processions that cause “more than minor” hindrance to day-to-day activities for other people, including going to and fro on the highway (The Public Order Act 1986 (Serious Disruption to the Life of the Community) Regulations 2023). The changes would also allow the police to take into account the cumulative effect of repeated protests. The changes amend sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 and effectively alter the meaning of the threshold criterion of causing “serious disruption to the life of the community” in respect of processions and assemblies by defining that term in a way that imposes a lower threshold than its ordinary words suggest.’
UK Constitutional Law Association , 22nd May 2023
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
‘In recent years, a lot has been written about “the right to protest” and “the right to free speech” in the UK. Yet neither phrase appears in the latest Public Order Act, which became law on 2nd May 2023. The absence of those phrases is unsurprising. First, neither phrase is precise enough for legal drafting. Second, the Tory government behind the 2023 Act wishes to avoid these conceptual problems by painting a picture of protest movements gone wild. In this post, I consider the new Act amid reports of its use during the coronation. From this early case study, we see a dangerous illustration of what is yet to come.’
Oxford Human Rights Hub, 9th May 2023
Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
‘Police in England and Wales are to be given new powers to tackle “disruptive” slow walking used by protesters to block roads.’
BBC News, 28th April 2023
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘One protester has been jailed for five weeks and three others given fines and community service for their part in a protest to demand government action on insulation.’
The Guardian, 20th April 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘On 28 June 2022, section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (‘the PCSCA’) came into force. Following a recommendation by the Law Commission, the new statutory offence of intentionally or recklessly causing public nuisance codified and abolished the old offence of common law public nuisance.’
Doughty Street Chambers, 15th March 2023
Source: insights.doughtystreet.co.uk
‘Seven climate activists who glued themselves to the road outside the Natural History Museum in south-west London have been convicted of obstructing a highway.’
The Guardian, 5th April 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A climate activist who allegedly held a sign outside court telling jurors they were entitled to find protesters not guilty based on their conscience may still face a criminal charge.’
The Guardian, 4th April 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The UK has been downgraded in an annual global index of civic freedoms as a result of the government’s “increasingly authoritarian” drive to impose restrictive and punitive laws on public protests.’
The Guardian, 16th March 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
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