Category: government departments

High Court: Covid self-employed support scheme does not unlawfully discriminate against women – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 1st, 2021 in Administrative Court, coronavirus, employment, equality, government departments, HM Revenue & Customs, human rights, judicial review, maternity leave, news, self-employment, sex discrimination, taxation, women by sally

‘R (The Motherhood Plan and Anor) v HM Treasury [2021] EWHC 309 (Admin). In a judgment handed down on 17 February 2021, the High Court has ruled that the Self Employment Income Support Scheme (“the Scheme”) introduced during the coronavirus pandemic does not indirectly discriminate against self-employed women who have taken a period of leave relating to maternity or pregnancy in the last three tax years.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 26th February 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Unhappy judges not as dissatisfied as they were, research shows – Litigation Futures

Posted March 1st, 2021 in government departments, judges, judiciary, news, statistics by sally

‘Judges are a bit happier in their jobs than they were five years ago but feel seriously undervalued by the government, the latest judicial attitude survey has revealed.’

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Litigation Futures, 1st March 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

New laws to protect victims added to Domestic Abuse Bill – Home Office

Posted March 1st, 2021 in bills, coercive & controlling behaviour, domestic violence, families, government departments, imprisonment, pornography, press releases, sentencing, victims by sally

‘A raft of new amendments to the Domestic Abuse Bill will be presented, providing greater protections for victims and further clamping down on perpetrators.’

Full press release

Home Office, 1st March 2021

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

High court dismisses case on ‘failure to give guidance on prioritising patients’ – The Independent

Posted March 1st, 2021 in codes of practice, coronavirus, doctors, government departments, hospitals, medical treatment, news by sally

‘A legal challenge to the government’s alleged failure to issue national guidance on how to prioritise patients during the Covid-19 pandemic has been dismissed by the High Court.’

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The Independent, 28th February 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Non-fatal strangulation to carry five years in prison under reforms – The Guardian

Posted March 1st, 2021 in bills, domestic violence, families, government departments, imprisonment, news, sentencing, victims by sally

‘Ministers will make non-fatal strangulation a specific criminal offence punishable by five years’ imprisonment following pressure from campaigners.’

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The Guardian, 1st March 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Government reveals long-awaited whiplash rules and tariffs – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 26th, 2021 in accidents, civil procedure rules, damages, government departments, limitations, news, personal injuries, road traffic by sally

‘The government has confirmed that legislation paving the way for whiplash reforms will come into force from 31 May. Newly-published draft statutory instruments have also finally indicated the tariff levels at which damages will be set for soft tissue injuries suffered in road traffic accidents.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 26th February 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government agrees to call pregnant ministers ‘mothers’ – The Independent

Posted February 26th, 2021 in attorney general, bills, drafting, gender, government departments, maternity leave, news, parliament, pregnancy, transgender persons, women by sally

‘The government has agreed to change the wording in its new maternity leave legislation from referring to “pregnant people” to “mothers” after the phrasing was rejected by the House of Lords – despite gender-neutral language being government convention.’

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The Independent, 26th February 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

New UK laws needed to stop hate speech and extremism, says report – The Guardian

Posted February 24th, 2021 in freedom of expression, government departments, hate crime, internet, news, public order, terrorism by sally

‘Massive gaps in the law allow terrorism to be glorified and hatred to be spread, and a major crackdown is needed to stop more violence being triggered, an official report has said.’

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The Guardian, 24th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

James Bevan: ‘10-year prison sentences for breaching COVID-19 entry requirements into the United Kingdom’? Governmental Decree is undermining the Rule of Law – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted February 24th, 2021 in constitutional law, coronavirus, criminal justice, disclosure, emergency powers, forgery, government departments, imprisonment, news, parliament, rule of law, sentencing by sally

‘The Secretary of State for Health, Matt Hancock, announced in Parliament on Tuesday 9th February that those returning from ‘red list’ countries who fail to disclose that fact could receive a 10-year prison sentence following conviction (see The Telegraph).’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th February 2021

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

The PPE procurement case: transparency missed in both politics and law – Transparency Project

Posted February 24th, 2021 in coronavirus, government departments, judicial review, news, public procurement by sally

‘Last week the High Court made a widely publicised decision declaring that a government minister and his department had acted unlawfully in relation to the award of PPE procurement contracts in the early weeks of the pandemic. The case is called R (Good Law Project and others) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care [2021] EWHC 346 (Admin). It’s of particular interest to us because it’s all about transparency.’

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Transparency Project, 23rd February 2021

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Fewer than one in six ‘hostile environment’ raids led to deportations – The Guardian

Posted February 22nd, 2021 in care homes, deportation, enforcement, government departments, immigration, news, statistics by sally

‘Fewer than one in six of more than 44,000 “intelligence-led” Home Office immigration enforcement raids on people’s homes since the introduction of the “hostile environment” policy have resulted in deportations, according to data obtained by the Guardian.’

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The Guardian, 21st February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Fly-tipping: Licensing system failing to stop dumping, Panorama finds – BBC News

Posted February 22nd, 2021 in enforcement, government departments, licensing, local government, news, waste by sally

‘A BBC Panorama investigation has revealed how the government’s licensing system for waste carriers fails to stop fly-tipping. All businesses that transport and dispose of waste in England have to be licensed with the Environment Agency.
But there are few checks on who gets a licence and BBC Panorama found licensed firms can still be involved in the dumping of rubbish.’

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BBC News, 22nd February 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Provision of support to trafficking victims following a negative conclusive grounds decision – Garden Court Chambers

Posted February 19th, 2021 in appeals, benefits, chambers articles, expert witnesses, government departments, news, trafficking in human beings, victims by sally

‘In MN v SSHD [2020] EWCA Civ 1746 the Court of Appeal considered several linked cases brought by victims of trafficking who had received negative Conclusive Grounds decisions.’

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Garden Court Chambers, 17th February 2021

Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk

At-home early medical abortions should be made permanent, say advocacy groups – The Guardian

Posted February 19th, 2021 in abortion, charities, consultations, coronavirus, emergency powers, government departments, news by sally

‘Covid legislation in England allows patients in first 10 weeks of pregnancy to take pills at home.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Trust in law at risk if ministers bypass parliament, says ex-legal chief – The Guardian

Posted February 19th, 2021 in coronavirus, emergency powers, government departments, international law, news, parliament, rule of law by sally

‘Public trust in the law is at risk if ministers continue to rush through hundreds of new rules and legislation, bypassing parliament and leaving citizens, businesses and police in the dark, the former head of the government’s legal department has said.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

UK’s £1,000 child citizenship fee ruled unlawful by appeal court – The Guardian

Posted February 19th, 2021 in appeals, children, citizenship, fees, government departments, news by sally

‘Home Office fees of £1,000 for children to register as British citizens are unlawful, the court of appeal has upheld in a landmark ruling.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Covid: Court rejects self-employed mothers’ sexual discrimination case – BBC News

Posted February 18th, 2021 in charities, coronavirus, government departments, news, self-employment, sex discrimination, women by sally

‘The charity Pregnant Then Screwed has lost its legal challenge against the government for indirect sexual discrimination over the amount of support self-employed mothers received.’

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BBC News, 17th February 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

DWP uses excessive surveillance on suspected fraudsters, report finds – The Guardian

Posted February 15th, 2021 in benefits, charities, closed circuit television, fraud, government departments, investigatory powers, news, privacy, proportionality, spying by sally

‘Suspected benefit fraudsters in the UK are being subjected to excessive surveillance techniques such as being tailed by government officers or identified in CCTV footage, according to a report.’

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The Guardian, 14th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Judge hits out at lack of regulated placement for vulnerable, suicidal 16 year old, despite 11 High Court hearings and sending series of judgments to ministers – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 15th, 2021 in care orders, children, detention, families, family courts, government departments, housing, judges, judgments, mental health, news, suicide by sally

‘An exasperated High Court judge has sent a fourth judgment to ministers over the continuing unavailability of a regulated placement for a vulnerable 16 year old with multifaceted difficulties and at a high risk of serious self-harm or suicide.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 12th February 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Covid: HSE refuses to close workplaces that are putting employees at risk – The Guardian

Posted February 15th, 2021 in coronavirus, employment, enforcement, government departments, health & safety, news, ombudsmen by sally

‘The government’s health and safety watchdog has failed to shut down any workplaces that put employees at risk of coronavirus even though there have been over 3,500 outbreaks at work since the start of the pandemic, the Observer has discovered.’

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The Guardian, 14th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com