Jobseekers try to overturn law denying them benefit rebates – The Guardian

“Iain Duncan Smith and parliament have conspired to undermine the basic rights of hundreds of thousands of jobseekers by enacting retrospective emergency legislation, according to the contents of a legal filing sent to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).”

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The Guardian, 11th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Two murderers launch Supreme Court challenge for right to vote in prison – The Independent

Posted June 10th, 2013 in elections, human rights, news, prisons, Supreme Court by sally

“Two convicted murderers have taken their fight for the right to vote while in prison to the UK’s highest court.”

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The Independent, 10th June 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

UK to expect more colonial-era compensation claims – The Guardian

Posted June 10th, 2013 in colonies, compensation, human rights, Kenya, news, torture by sally

“Following news of payments over Mau Mau insurgency, more claims likely from Kenya, Cyprus and other former colonies.”

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The Guardian, 6th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Man sues over forensics live bullet conviction mix-up – BBC News

Posted June 7th, 2013 in evidence, firearms, forensic science, human rights, negligence, news by tracey

“A man wrongfully convicted of possessing ammunition after forensics staff mixed
up his £3 keyring and a live bullet is suing the government.”

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BBC News, 7th June 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Helen Fenwick: Article 8 ECHR, the ‘Feminist Article’, Women and a Conservative Bill of Rights – UK Constitutional Law Group

Posted June 6th, 2013 in bills, courts, families, human rights, news, reports, women by sally

“There has been a lot of commentary on the Report of the Bill of Rights’ Commission, and the ‘damp squib’ analysis of the Report (see Mark Elliott) as a whole is one most commentators appear to assent to (see eg Joshua Rozenberg for the Guardian here). My view in general is that the squib could reignite post-2015 if a Conservative government is elected, not in relation to the very hesitant ideas as to the possible future content of a Bill of Rights that the Report put forward, but in relation to its majority recommendation that there should be one (see further my previous post on the Commission Report here). If a BoR was to emerge under a Conservative government post-2015 I suggest that it would reflect the ideas of the Conservative nominees on the Commission which assumed a far more concrete form in the Report than the majority recommendations did (eg see here at p 192). This blog post due to its length is not intended to examine the probable nature of such a BoR based on those ideas in general, but to focus only on two aspects: the idea of curtailing the effects of an equivalent to Article 8 ECHR (right to respect for private and family life), and of requiring domestic courts to disapply Strasbourg jurisprudence under a BoR in a wider range of situations than at present under s2HRA (see Roger Masterman’s post on s2 on this blog here). In respect of the latter issue the potential impact of so doing will only be linked to selected aspects of Article 8 jurisprudence of especial actual and potential benefit to women.”

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UK Constitutional Law Group, 5th June 2013

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Human rights law on trial? – BBC Law in Action

Posted June 5th, 2013 in human rights, internet, news, pornography by sally

“Joshua Rozenberg returns for another series of Law in Action. This week, Joshua asks the president of the European Court of Human Rights, Dean Spielmann, what he makes of the fierce criticism levelled at his court by some in Britain. The short answer: not much. Also in the programme: what are we really agreeing to when we accept internet companies’ terms of service? And are pornography laws in England and Wales working?”

Listen

BBC Law in Action, 4th June 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Europe’s human rights judge warns UK over Convention threat – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 5th, 2013 in human rights, judges, news, prisons, treaties by sally

“Britain would face ‘political disaster’ and may have to leave the EU if it wants to pull out of the European Convention on Human Rights, Europe’s leading judge on the issue has warned.”

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Daily Telegraph, 4th June 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Court lifts anonymity order in David McGreavy case – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted June 3rd, 2013 in anonymity, human rights, judicial review, media, news, public interest by sally

“Reporting restrictions on proceedings concerning a life prisoner should be discharged since the public interest in allowing media organisations to publish reports outweighed the prisoner’s human rights.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 3rd June 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Abdulrahim v Council of the European Union and another – WLR Daily

Posted June 3rd, 2013 in EC law, human rights, intelligence services, law reports, lists, terrorism by sally

Abdulrahim v Council of the European Union and another (Case C-239/12P); [2013] WLR (D) 208

“Despite the removal of his name from a ‘terrorist watch list’, established by Council Regulation (EC) No 881/2002 imposing restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities associated with Usama bin Laden, the Al-Qaida network and the Taliban, to which his name had been added by Council Regulation (EC) 1330/2008, the applicant retained an interest in having the courts of the European Union recognise that he should never have been included on the list since the removal of his name did not dispose of his constitutional claims.”

WLR Daily, 28th May 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Let’s be frank: The decision in MN and KN v London Borough of Hackney – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted June 3rd, 2013 in children, disclosure, homelessness, human rights, local government, news by sally

“Sleeping rough on the streets of London is not an appealing prospect. It is all the more unappealing for anyone with two young children in the grip of an unseasonably cold winter. It was in order to avoid this fate that, in January 2012, the parents of MN and KN (the claimants in this case) approached their local authority, the London Borough of Hackney, and asked for assistance.”

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Hardwicke Chambers, 24th May 2013

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

UK needs prompt action on human rights record, UN panel warns – The Guardian

Posted June 3rd, 2013 in Afghanistan, human rights, Iraq, news, Northern Ireland, reports, torture by sally

“The British government’s human rights record since the attacks of 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq is facing ferocious criticism from a United Nations panel, which warns that prompt action is needed to ensure the country meets its obligations under international law.”

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The Guardian, 31st May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Death Penalty Legal Funding Refusal: Appeal Court Confirms Limits of Human Rights Act – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted May 30th, 2013 in appeals, death penalty, foreign jurisdictions, human rights, legal aid, news by sally

“On 22 April 2013 the Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in refusing to pay for a lawyer to assist Lindsay Sandiford as she faces the death penalty for drug offences in Indonesia. Last Wednesday, they handed down the reasons for their decision.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 29th May 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Burglars win right to keep convictions secret – Daily Telegraph

Posted May 29th, 2013 in criminal records, human rights, news, time limits, young offenders by sally

“Thousands of criminals, including burglars, will be allowed to work in hospitals, schools and care homes after senior judges ruled that criminal record checks were breaching offenders’ human rights.”

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Daily Telegraph, 29th May 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

European Court of Human Rights rejects Christians’ cases that their religious rights were violated by employers – The Independent

“Three British Christians who claimed their religious rights were violated by employers were told by European judges today that they could take their rejected cases no further.”

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The Independent, 28th May 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Laing v The Queen – WLR Daily

Posted May 28th, 2013 in appeals, human rights, law reports, Privy Council, reasons, trials by sally

Laing v The Queen [2013] UKPC 14; [2013] WLR (D) 198

Although the giving of reasons for dismissing an appeal against conviction was an important part of an appellant’s entitlement to a fair hearing of the appeal, if the conviction were otherwise sound it did not have to be quashed simply because of the failure to give reasons.

WLR Daily, 14th May 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

High court orders new approach to Iraq abuse inquiry – The Guardian

Posted May 24th, 2013 in armed forces, human rights, inquiries, Iraq, news by tracey

“The high court has called for a new approach to an inquiry into allegations that British troops committed ‘terrifying acts of brutality’ following the invasion of Iraq.”

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The Guardian, 24th May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

SS (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

Posted May 24th, 2013 in appeals, deportation, families, human rights, immigration, law reports by tracey

SS (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: [2013] EWCA Civ 550;   [2013] WLR (D)  192

“A claim under article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms made in reliance on the interests of a child with British citizenship by a foreign criminal seeking to resist deportation under section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 needed to be very strong to prevail given the pressing public interest in removal and the great weight to be attached to the policy of deporting foreign criminals by virtue of its origin in primary legislation. Only in extremely rare circumstances should a tribunal exercise an inquisitorial function on its own initiative in evaluating the interests of such a child.”

WLR Daily, 22nd May 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Closing the loophole: Care services and human rights protection – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted May 23rd, 2013 in bills, care homes, elderly, human rights, news, social services by sally

“Much of the House of Lords debate surrounding yesterday’s Second Reading of the Care and Support Bill focused on seeking solutions to complex issues around the future provision of care. Additionally, as several peers flagged, the Bill also provides a timely opportunity to clarify which bodies have legal obligations to uphold protections under the Human Rights Act. Baroness Campbell noted ‘those who receive their care not from a public authority but from a private body lack the full protection of the Human Rights Act…[This] is a loophole that must be closed.'”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 22nd May 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Abdel Hakim Belhaj torture case may be heard in secret court – The Guardian

“One of the first cases to be heard by the government’s new generation of secret courts may be a claim brought by a Libyan dissident who was kidnapped along with his pregnant wife and flown to one of Muammar Gaddafi’s prisons.”

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The Guardian, 21st May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Disarray as DPP contradicts new guidance on naming of suspects – The Independent

“Controversial plans to protect the identity of suspects arrested by police were in disarray last night after the Director of Public Prosecutions called for more ‘wriggle room’ to name suspects before they were charged.”

Full story

The Independent, 21st May 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk