“Civil rights groups have condemned the justice and security bill, despite a series of government concessions over secret courts.”
The Guardian, 29th May 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Secrecy and secret justice are rarely out of the public eye. The Queen’s speech included plans to allow secret hearings in civil claims, at a time when their use is highly controversial. The government argues they are necessary to safeguard national security. Civil liberties groups and even the Special Advocates who help administer them, regard them as a bar to real justice and fair hearings.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 22nd May 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“It appears that the Government has climbed down, in part, from some of its controversial secret justice proposals. According to the Telegraph, the Justice and Security Bill, which will be published this week, will include a provision whereby judges, not the Government, has the final say on whether a Closed Material Procedure (CMP) is used. Moreover, CMPs will be restricted to ‘national security cases’ rather than any case ‘in the public interest’.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 21st May 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“Judges will decide whether national security evidence can be heard in secret in a partial climbdown on plans to be unveiled by Kenneth Clarke this week.”
Daily Telegraph, 20th May 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“A High Court judge has raised the prospect that national security implications may necessitate the closed material procedure (CMP) in a case being brought against the Foreign Office by the son of a drone strike victim, the Telegraph reports today.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 1st May 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“Secret justice proposals may be needed in an ‘important’ case about the Government’s intelligence-sharing agreements with the US, a senior judge has suggested for the first time.”
Daily Telegraph, 30th April 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“More than 150 criminals, potentially including terrorists, have been secretly given immunity from prosecution or discounted sentences for becoming supergrasses.”
Daily Telegraph, 18th April 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“On 19 October 2011 the Government’s published its proposals to extend closed procedures, as set out in its Justice and Security Green Paper (and covered by the post on this blog).”
UK Human Rights Blog, 11th April 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“What proposals for closed hearings would mean for press freedom.”
The Guardian, 4th April 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Ken Clarke wants to allow evidence to be heard in secret where it would compromise national security. Here we explain why there is such controversy over the Government’s plan to hold some court cases and inquests behind closed doors.”
Daily Telegraph, 4th April 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“The independent reviewer of terrorism legislation has said there is a ‘small but indeterminate category of national security-related claims’ in which a closed hearing would be preferable to existing court procedures.”
The Guardian, 21st March 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Until this week, reaction to the Government’s green paper on ‘Justice and Security’ has been muted. It has taken the form of detailed and reasoned submissions and has tended to come mainly from organisations and individuals with a legal background. Writing on the UK Human Rights Blog, barrister Adam Wagner, somewhat despairingly, referred to the ‘sound of tumbleweed greeting secret civil trials proposals’.”
Legal Week, 13th March 2012
Source: www.legalweek.com
“Home Secretary Theresa May has lost three appeals to the Supreme Court by suspected Algerian terrorists over their deportation back to Algeria.”
BBC News, 7th March 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“The justice secretary, Ken Clarke, has admitted to being ‘unsettled’ by criticism from lawyers about his plans for extending secret courts.”
The Guardian, 6th March 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Extending secret hearings into civil courts will undermine effective scrutiny of government operations in the ‘war on terror’, according to prominent civil liberties activists and lawyers.”
The Guardian, 6th March 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Kenneth Clarke has attempted to quell growing concerns over proposals to hold more court hearings in secret by saying the measure will only apply to a ‘tiny’ number of civil cases in ‘very limited circumstances’.”
The Independent, 6th March 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“The UK’s reputation as a ‘free and fair democracy’ could be damaged by excessive use of secret court procedures that the government aims to introduce, Northamptonshire police has warned.”
The Guardian, 16th February 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“65 responses to the Justice and Security Green Paper consultation, which proposes introducing ‘Closed Material Procedures’ – secret trials – into civil courts, have been published on the official consultation website. According to the site there are potentially 25 more to come.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 14th February 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“A child learns early that if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it. Thankfully that principle does not apply to Government consultations and this is aptly demonstrated by the responses to the consultation into whether ‘closed material’ (secret evidence) procedures should be extended to civil trials.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 31st January 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“Government proposals to increase the number of court hearings held in secret, and in which parties can only see minimal evidence relied upon by the court, have been severely criticised by the ‘Special Advocates’ who play the central role in closed hearings.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 5th January 2012
Source: http://ukhumanrightsblog.com
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