Category: human rights

Regina (Tigere) v Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Just For Kids Law intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted August 4th, 2015 in appeals, education, human rights, immigration, law reports, Supreme Court, universities by sally

Regina (Tigere) v Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Just For Kids Law intervening) [2015] UKSC 57; [2015] WLR (D) 342

‘The settlement criterion, which precluded persons with discretionary leave to remain in the United Kingdom from eligibility to receive student loans within the meaning of the Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011, discriminated unlawfully against a person with such leave who had lived and been educated in England for most of her life and was integrated into United Kingdom society.’

WLR Daily, 29th July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

The Something Must Be Done Bill, Calais edition – Nearly Legal

Posted August 4th, 2015 in housing, human rights, immigration, landlord & tenant, news by sally

‘The Rent Act 1957 introduced the requirement for a court order for eviction from a tenancy. That is 58 years of eviction without due process of law being unlawful. But no matter, for Something Must Be Done to deter people who have spent months on perilous journeys across continents and are currently sleeping under an old tarpaulin. Nothing is more likely to make such desperate, traumatised people turn their faces from England, pick up their tarpaulins and walk away into France than knowing they will not get the security of occupation offered by Housing Act 1988 or Protection from Eviction Act 1977.’
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Nearly Legal, 3rd August 2015

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Supreme Court: a right to a student loan? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted August 4th, 2015 in appeals, education, human rights, immigration, news, Supreme Court, universities by sally

‘Ms Tigere is 20. She arrived in the UK from Zambia when she was 6. She did very well at school. In 2013, she applied for a student loan to fund a university place.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 3rd August 2015

Source: www.out-law.com

The Right to be Forgotten and the County Court – Panopticon

Posted August 3rd, 2015 in anonymity, data protection, fraud, human rights, internet, media, news, privacy, public interest by sally

‘The right to be forgotten is beginning to generate some litigation, albeit not yet with any blaze of glory. Following on from the attempt to judicially review the ICO for refusing to try and enforce an individual’s complaint that his data rights were being breached (see here), earlier this week a claimant failed to get his right to be forgotten claim to fly before the Nottingham County Court.’

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Panopticon, 31st July 2015

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Bedroom Tax and separated families – UT again – Nearly Legal

Posted August 3rd, 2015 in appeals, benefits, families, housing, human rights, interpretation, local government, news, Supreme Court, tribunals by sally

‘The Upper Tribunal has another go at the separated families issue in CH 0062 2015-00 and this time, unsurprisingly, shuts down completely the FTT dissenting position in a Middlesborough FTT decision, while upholding and amplifying MR v North Tyneside.’

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Nearly Legal, 1st August 2015

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Ingenious film investors lose human rights challenge over upfront tax – The Guardian

Posted August 3rd, 2015 in artistic works, HM Revenue & Customs, human rights, judicial review, news, tax avoidance, taxation by sally

‘More than 150 wealthy investors in controversial film investment schemes, which HMRC says amount to tax avoidance, have lost a human rights challenge to new powers tax inspectors have been deploying to demand upfront payments.’

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The Guardian, 31st July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Man loses ‘right to be forgotten’ Google court bid – BBC News

Posted July 31st, 2015 in conspiracy, costs, data protection, EC law, fraud, human rights, injunctions, internet, media, news, privacy, public interest by sally

‘A man involved in a £51m VAT scam has lost a legal bid to have news stories about him removed from Google under the so-called “right to be forgotten”.’
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BBC News, 30th July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mothers Confined – Part 1: Over the threshold? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted July 31st, 2015 in children, families, human rights, news, prisons, sentencing, statistics, women by sally

‘Research surrounding the imprisonment of women, indeed even the imprisonment of mothers, is not new. A plethora of researchers and scholars have explored the issues surrounding women and criminal justice with passion and tenacity, arguably all of whom have contributed to the evidence-laden pathway culminating in the inspirational and influential 2006 Corston Report.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 31st July 2015

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

British forces illegally detained Afghan suspect, court of appeal rules – The Guardian

Posted July 31st, 2015 in Afghanistan, appeals, armed forces, damages, detention, government departments, human rights, international law, news, torture by sally

‘An Afghan suspect was detained illegally by British forces for almost four months and denied access to a lawyer, the court of appeal has ruled. Serdar Mohammed, who was captured by UK soldiers in April 2010, was not handed over to the Afghan security services until July that year, despite regulations requiring any transfer to take place within 96 hours. Mohammed, who was eventually released earlier this year to return to his home in Helmand province, claimed that the Afghan authorities tortured him.’

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The Guardian, 30th July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

New tribunal cases on statutory human rights considerations and “integration” – Free Movement

Posted July 30th, 2015 in human rights, immigration, news, tribunals by sally

‘The Upper Tribunal has handed down another two cases on the statutory human rights considerations introduced by the Immigration Act 2014. The relationship between Article 8, the Immigration Rules and the statutory considerations is the itch that judges cannot help but scratch, but it is primarily an academic and political issue rather than one of real substance.’
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Free Movement, 29th July 2015

Source: www.freemovement.org.uk

Regina (A and another) v Secretary of State for Health (Alliance for Choice intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted July 30th, 2015 in abortion, appeals, health, human rights, law reports, Northern Ireland by sally

Regina (A and another) v Secretary of State for Health (Alliance for Choice intervening) [2015] EWCA Civ 771; [2015] WLR (D) 335

‘It was entirely logical for the Secretary of State for Health in the exercise of his duty under section 3 of the National Health Service Act 2006 to provide a range of NHS services including abortion services throughout the United Kingdom on the basis of local residence. The Secretary of State was not obliged to exercise his discretion so as to extend free abortion services to women from Northern Ireland and failure to supply such a service was not a breach of rights under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.’

WLR Daily, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Beghal v Director of Public Prosecutions (Secretary of State for the Home Department and others intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted July 30th, 2015 in appeals, human rights, investigatory powers, law reports, Supreme Court, terrorism by sally

Beghal v Director of Public Prosecutions (Secretary of State for the Home Department and others intervening) [2015] UKSC 49; [2015] WLR (D) 330

‘The provisions in Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 conferring powers to stop, question, and detain a person at a port or border for up to nine hours— without any requirement for prior “reasonable suspecion”— for the purpose of determining whether he appeared to be a person concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism were not incompatible with articles 5, 6 or 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.’

WLR Daily, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Kiani v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

Posted July 30th, 2015 in appeals, employment tribunals, human rights, intelligence services, law reports, trials, tribunals, unfair dismissal by sally

Kiani v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2015] EWCA Civ 776; [2015] WLR (D) 325

‘The requirements of the right to a fair trial in article 6 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms depended on the context and all the circumstances of the case. In a security case an individual was not entitled to full article 6 rights if to accord him such rights would jeopardise the efficacy of the vetting regime itself. The same approach was taken under European Union law.’

WLR Daily, 21st July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Coroners must send bodies for scans rather than autopsies if religion demands they stay intact, High Court rules – The Independent

Posted July 29th, 2015 in coroners, human rights, human tissue, injunctions, judicial review, news by sally

‘Coroners must send bodies for scans or blood tests rather than carry out invasive autopsies if the deceased’s religion demands the corpse must stay intact, the High Court has ruled, in a landmark legal victory for the religious rights of Jews and Muslims.’
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The Independent, 28th July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Child Protection and Data Protection – Panopticon

Posted July 29th, 2015 in child abuse, children, data protection, human rights, local government, news, time limits by sally

‘The spectre of Jimmy Saville casts a long shadow and now it extends to data protection, the Data Protection Act 1998 being the latest august and uniformly popular institution (following the BBC, Broadmoor and Margaret Thatcher to name just some) to suffer as a result of his actions. The perennial sight of investigations and public inquiries into historic sex abuse of children in local authority, chiefly arising out of the wider ramifications of Operation Yewtree, has provided a very ready explanation for local authorities for the need to retain child protection data.’

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Panopticon, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Article 2 inquests – are they becoming more common for grieving families? – Park Square Barristers

Posted July 28th, 2015 in families, human rights, inquests, legal aid, news by sally

‘It seems that every time I watch the news or read a newspaper there is some report following an Article 2 style inquest. If Article 2 style inquests are becoming more common, is the ambit of the inquisition broadening generally? Laura Addy questions whether this prospect is why the government attempted to limit access to legal aid for families involved in inquests and may be influencing the decision to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998. As a member of Park Square Barrister’s Regulatory and Public Law Team, Laura is often instructed to attend and represent families at inquests. She considers the importance of coroner’s inquest and the role of the family of the deceased.’

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Park Square Barristers, 15th July 2015

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Supreme Court Judgment in Coventry and Ors v Lawrence and another [2015] UKSC 50 – Henderson Chambers

Posted July 27th, 2015 in civil procedure rules, costs, fees, human rights, insurance, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘The Supreme Court has handed down its Judgment in Coventry v Lawrence in which it considered the compatibility of the system for the recovery of success fees and ATE premiums under the Access to Justice Act 1999 with the European Convention on Human Rights, Articles 6 and Article 1 Protocol 1. The Court held by a majority of 5-2 (Lord Neuberger, Lord Dyson, Lord Sumption, Lord Mance and Lord Carnwarth in the majority and Lord Clarke and Lady Hale dissenting) that the system is compatible. Success fees and ATE premiums entered into under the AJA 1999 scheme will therefore remain to be recoverable by successful claimants. Whether the decision will be challenged before the ECtHR in Strasbourg and, if so,whether the European Court will take the same view as the Supreme Court remains to be seen.’

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Henderson Chambers, 24th July 2015

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Old conditional fee agreements did not breach human rights law, Supreme Court rules – OUT-LAW.com

Posted July 27th, 2015 in costs, fees, human rights, insurance, news, proportionality, Supreme Court by sally

‘A speedway track operator must pay the legal expenses of the couple who successfully sued it for noise-related nuisance after the UK’s highest court ruled that the old fee recovery regime did not breach its right to a fair trial.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 24th July 2015

Source: www.out-law.com

HRA Watch: Reform, Repeal, Replace? Sarah Lambrecht: Criticism of the European Court of Human Rights: A UK Phenomenon? – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted July 27th, 2015 in deportation, human rights, news, repeals by sally

‘The tumultuous relationship between the UK Government and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is unlikely to normalise with the Conservative Party having obtained, against all polling predictions, an absolute majority at the May 2015 UK general election. In its October 2014 policy document, the Conservatives criticise the European Court of Human Rights for developing “mission creep” and proclaim a plan for change “to restore common sense and put Britain first”. The all-encompassing solution proposed is to repeal the UK Human Rights Act and introduce a new British Bill of Rights and Responsibilities. Even though I have uttered doubts as to whether such a Bill could live up to all of its drafters’ expectations, the wide-spread political support for a proposal expressly aimed at reducing the Strasbourg Court’s influence is exceptional. In an attempt to feed the rich debate and analyses on the UKCLA blog, this post places the UK debate in a wider perspective.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 27th July 2015

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Britain told to review counter-terrorism powers by UN human rights committee – The Guardian

Posted July 24th, 2015 in detention, human rights, investigatory powers, news, privacy, terrorism, United Nations by sally

‘Britain should review its key counter-terrorism powers and revise laws on snooping by security services, a UN report has suggested.’

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The Guardian, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk