“You don’t have the votes!” – 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square

Posted March 10th, 2021 in chambers articles, elections, local government, news, parliament by sally

‘Imagine. The UK May 2024 general election is finally drawing to a close. After months of campaigning, the votes are in and pundits are predicting a clear win for Party A. The leader of Party B is concerned the election was not fair and accusations of voter fraud and spoiled ballots begin to fly on social media and the national news. How will this be investigated? Will anyone be prosecuted? Could the election result really be overturned?’

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4-5 Gray's Inn Square, 4th March 2021

Source: www.4-5.co.uk

Warning over photo ID law change for UK-wide and English elections – The Guardian

Posted March 9th, 2021 in bills, elections, equality, identification, minorities, news by tracey

‘Changing the law to force people to show photo ID to take part in UK elections will be catastrophic for ethnic minority communities, increasing barriers to access and in effect disenfranchising them, equality and democracy campaigners have warned.’

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The Guardian, 9th March 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

New Acts – legislation.gov.uk

Posted December 17th, 2020 in boundaries, conflict of laws, elections, legislation, parliament, treaties by tracey

Parliamentary Constituencies Act 2020

Private International Law (Implementation of Agreements) Act 2020

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Trump’s challenges to the US election: What would happen here? – 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square

‘In light of the recent challenges to the US presidential election, Richard Price OBE QC and Vivienne Sedgley draw comparison with the means of challenging elections in England.’

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4-5 Gray's Inn Square, 2nd December 2020

Source: www.4-5.co.uk

Legal action taken against PM over refusal to investigate Kremlin meddling – The Guardian

‘A cross-party group of MPs and peers including a former national security adviser are taking legal action against Boris Johnson over his government’s refusal to order an inquiry into Russian interference in UK elections.’

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The Guardian, 29th October 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

UK court overturns ruling on $1.8bn of Venezuelan gold – The Guardian

‘A battle for the control of more than $1.8bn worth of Venezuelan gold stored at the Bank of England has swung in favour of the government of Nicolás Maduro after an appeals court in London overturned an earlier high court ruling concerning whom the UK recognised as Venezuela’s president.’

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The Guardian, 5th October 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Challenge to new voter ID pilot dismissed by Court of Appeal – UK Human Rights Blog

‘The Government’s announcement that eleven local authorities across England would be taking part in voter ID pilots for the 2019 local elections was controversial. There is a heated debate as to whether citizens should have to provide photo identification before receiving their ballot at elections. For some, it is a straight-forward measure to avoid the risk of fraud. For others, it is a policy that, by design or inadvertently, leads to the disenfranchisement of certain groups.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 9th June 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Court of Appeal holds remote hearing for dispute over requirement for voter ID at elections – Local Government Lawyer

Posted April 28th, 2020 in appeals, elections, identification, local government, news, remote hearings by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has reserved judgment in an appeal over a High Court ruling last year that voter ID schemes in 10 local authorities were lawful.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 24th April 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

UK voter ID plan disenfranchises the poor, appeal court told – The Guardian

Posted April 24th, 2020 in appeals, documents, elections, equality, identification, news by sally

‘Pilot schemes requiring voters to produce photo ID at polling stations disenfranchise those who do not have or cannot find their documents and alienate people from the democratic process, the court of appeal has been told.’

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The Guardian, 23rd April 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

MPs no longer to get automatic vote on constituency boundary plans – The Guardian

Posted March 27th, 2020 in boundaries, brexit, elections, news, parliament by sally

‘MPs will no longer automatically get a vote on any future plans to redraw constituency boundaries.’

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The Guardian, 26th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Law Commissions call for single, consistent legislative framework for elections – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 18th, 2020 in elections, Law Commission, news, statute law revision by sally

‘Electoral legislation that originates from the Victorian era is “out-dated, confusing and no longer fit for purpose”, the Law Commissions of England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission have said in a report calling for the adoption of a single, consistent legislative framework.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 17th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Councils and Electoral Commission welcome government decision to put May 2020 elections back by one year – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 16th, 2020 in delay, elections, health & safety, local government, news, ombudsmen by sally

‘The government has decided to postpone the 7 May 2020 local and mayoral elections in England for one year.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 13th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

MPs call for unlimited fines for those who breach electoral law – The Guardian

Posted January 20th, 2020 in budgets, elections, fines, inquiries, internet, news, parliament, political parties by sally

‘Political organisations would face unlimited fines for breaking electoral law under new proposals to protect UK elections and referendums from “dirty money and dodgy data misuse”.’

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The Guardian, 18th January 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Judge makes preliminary ruling in Carole Cadwalladr libel case – The Guardian

‘A judge has issued a preliminary ruling in a libel action against the investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr and warned that broadcasts and public speeches should not be interpreted as though they were formal written texts.’

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The Guardian, 12th December 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Campaigners threaten UK parties with legal action over data processing – The Guardian

Posted December 10th, 2019 in data protection, elections, news, political parties by sally

‘A data rights group has threatened legal action against the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats over the parties’ use of personal data ahead of Thursday’s election.’

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The Guardian, 9th December 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

The Future Could Be Accessible, But Only If All Disability Shortlists Are Made Legal – Oxford Human Rights Hub

‘Tuesday 3 December marked the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPWD), but with only one week to go until the UK General Election, the prospects of sufficient Members of Parliament with disabilities being elected looks dismal. The theme of the 2019 IDPWD is ‘The Future is Accessible’, examining what barriers need to be removed to enable full inclusion of people with disabilities. Reforming Section 104 of the Equality Act 2010 on selection of candidates to allow for All Disability Shortlists would remove a significant barrier. The legitimacy of our democracy and political engagement by disabled people requires it.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 5th December 2019

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Restrictions to maintain free and fair elections – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted December 2nd, 2019 in advertising, defamation, elections, news by sally

‘Elections are hotly contested affairs, rife with accusations and mud-slinging. George Bernard Shaw put it bluntly: ‘An election is a moral horror, as bad as a battle except for the blood; a mud bath for every soul concerned in it.’ ‘

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Law Society's Gazette, 2nd December 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Landmarks in law: the Brexit court ruling that thwarted Boris Johnson – The Guardian

‘By declaring the prorogation of parliament to be unlawful, the Supreme Court made a decision with huge legal consequences.’

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The Guardian, 29th November 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Christopher Bevan: Anti-HRA Rhetoric and the Conservative Party 2019 Manifesto: Are the Proposals for a British Bill of Rights and Repeal of the Human Rights Act “Dead in the Water”? – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted November 28th, 2019 in elections, human rights, news, political parties by sally

‘The ECHR was incorporated into UK domestic law through the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA), which came into effect in October 2000 and has been hailed as a “constitutional statute” enjoying limited protection from implied repeal which this status brings (see Thoburn v Sunderland City Council). It has been further referred to as a “higher order” provision under which the long established doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty has yielded its station to the constitutional morality of the rule of law. It is arguable that the HRA has provided substantial positive protections to citizens as judgments finding violation against the UK have decreased in trend from 6.8% of Strasbourg judgments in 2001 to 0.2% in 2017.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 28th November 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

A ‘Law Check’ of Conservative Party HQ’s Fake Twitter ‘Fact Check’ – Church Court Chambers

Posted November 28th, 2019 in elections, fraud, internet, misrepresentation, news, political parties by sally

‘For even the most dyed in the wool Conservative voter, Conservative Central Headquarters’ decision to rename their twitter account as factcheckUK during Monday night’s leadership debates would have appeared unedifying. This conduct, which has the clear potential to mislead the public, goes beyond party lines and drifts into tactics that no one would properly describe as fair or opaque. Indeed, it is tactic one would expect to be utilised by one of the worlds autocratic regimes rather than by a major party in a democracy like the United Kingdom.’

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Church Court Chambers, November 2019

Source: churchcourtchambers.co.uk