‘Crime recorded on British railways increased by 12% last year including a rise in the number of violent and sexual offences, new figures show.’
BBC News, 5th September 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘A commuter received £27,602 from Network Rail after “possibly slipping” on pigeon poo at Paddington station. Data obtained by the BBC has revealed Network Rail has paid out nearly £1m in five years for slips, trips and falls at its stations across the UK.’
BBC News, 8th August 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘A rail firm has been fined £1m after a man died leaning out of a train window. Simon Brown, 24, was killed when he hit his head on a steel gantry on the side of the track while on the Gatwick Express in London in August 2016. In May, Govia Thameslink Railway admitted a health and safety breach because a sign saying not to lean out was not displayed clearly enough.’
BBC News, 17th July 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Chris Grayling’s embattled transport ministry faces a second legal challenge over the way the East Midlands rail franchise was awarded, from Arriva Rail, owned by Germany’s state-backed Deutsche Bahn.’
The Guardian, 12th May 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘This case somewhat starkly makes clear that where the automatic suspension of a public procurement process is preventing the putting in place of a key public service, it is very unlikely that the court will refuse to lift the suspension on American Cyanamid principles (ACPs). The case also makes clear that challengers cannot assume that commercial confidentiality will be enforced by way of private hearings in public procurement disputes. Written by Adam Heppinstall, barrister at Henderson Chambers.’
Henderson Chambers, 11th December 2018
Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk
‘Passengers dissatisfied with how train companies handle complaints can now appeal to an independent arbiter, as a new rail ombudsman service comes into force today.
The ombudsman will have binding powers over train firms should it uphold a customer complaint.’
The Guardian, 26th November 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The Law Commission for England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission have noted the UK Government’s decision not to introduce legislation to implement our 2013 joint Report on Level Crossings. Instead, administrative changes are proposed that are very much in the spirit of our recommendations.’
law Commission, 8th October 2018
Source: www.lawcom.gov.uk/
‘A sharp jump in violent and sexual offences has fuelled a 17% increase in crimes recorded on Britain’s railways, official figures show.’
Daily Telegraph, 5th October 2018
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘According to the Crop Protection Association one in ten cases of Knotweed infestation cost property owners more than £4,000, one in five cases see the value of the affected property fall and three in five cause property damage.’
Henderson Chambers, 27th July 2018
‘Common law private nuisance cases involving the invasive non-native plant, Japanese knotweed (JK), received a considerable amount of attention in the county court in 2017 and 2018. In the joined cases of Williams v Network Rail Infrastructure Limited (B20YX969) and Waistell v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd [2017] UK CC, Mr Recorder Grubb, sitting in Cardiff County Court, awarded damages to the claimants for loss of amenity on the basis that JK on the defendant’s land had diminished the value of the claimants’ land by reason of it rendering the claimants’ land less acceptable as security for mortgage lending, even in the event of the JK on the defendant’s land having been treated (see Article, Japanese knotweed nuisance in the light of Waistell and Smith v Line).’
Hardwicke Chambers, 6th August 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘Over the past few years there has been increasing awareness about the threat posed by Japanese knotweed and new measures have been introduced to combat its spread.’
No. 5 Chambers, 16th July 2018
Source: www.no5.com
‘Historic England has failed in a challenge to Milton Keynes Council over its decision to allow a development on part of a historic railway yard.’
Local Government Lawyer, 1st August 2018
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘The Gatwick Express rail service can no longer claim it can get passengers from the airport to London “in just 30 minutes” after the advertising watchdog found that more than a fifth of its services are delayed.’
The Guardian, 1st August 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd v Williams & Anor (2018) EWCA Civ 1514. Japanese knotweed nuisance cases – there are already many of these and (given the nature of the pestilential stuff) there will be more. In case you don’t know, Japanese knotweed is an invasive weed that is all but impossible to eradicate (and must be done by licensed organisations). It grows quickly through spreading underground rhizomes and can affect structures if growing within 7 metres of their foundations. It’s presence has to be disclosed on any sale of a property.’
Nearly Legal, 4th July 2018
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
‘Two recent County Court decisions have grappled with the issue of Japanese knotweed (JK) in the context of private nuisance claims between neighbouring landowners. The first was the judgment of Mr Recorder Grubb in Cardiff in respect of two separate actions with a common defendant: Williams v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd (B20YX969) and Waistell v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd (B34YJ849) (together Waistell). Still more recent was the judgment of HHJ Carr in Truro in Smith and another v Line (CTR00216) (Smith v Line), which was widely reported, albeit not entirely accurately, in the broadsheet and tabloid newspapers at the time of the hearing.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 11th May 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘St Albans City and District Council is to look at the possibility of a judicial review challenge over the introduction of a new timetable for the Thameslink train line.’
Local Government Lawyer, 12th June 2018
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘Nearly half of train firms are misleading passengers over their right to claim compensation for extra costs caused by delays, a Which survey has found.’
Daily Telegraph, 11th June 2018
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘A coroner has said there were “no missed opportunities” in the care of a mother who jumped in front of a train with her 10-year-old son.’
BBC News, 17th May 2018
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The number of sexual offences reported on Britain’s railways has more than doubled over the past five years, according to police. Across Britain’s railways, including the tube, there were 2,382 offences in 2017, compared with 1,049 reported in 2013, British Transport Police (BTP) figures show.’
The Guardian, 12th March 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The transport secretary, Chris Grayling, has been granted an injunction banning campaigners opposed to the construction of the HS2 line on an area of ancient woodland in west London from “unlawful protest” on the site.’
The Guardian, 19th February 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
© Inner Temple Library 2019