Are “squalid” prison conditions and the response to the Covid-19 pandemic breaching human rights? – UK Human Rights Blog

‘The latest reports of HM Chief Inspector of Prisons and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights lay bare the conditions in some British prisons.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 6th July 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

AI redefining what it means to be a ‘great’ lawyer – Legal Futures

‘Automation in the legal profession will most probably be “a decades-long process” but artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining what it means to be a ‘great’ lawyer.’

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Legal Futures, 6th July 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Shrewsbury hospital: ‘New and ongoing’ safety concerns revealed by NHS watchdog – The Independent

Posted July 2nd, 2020 in health & safety, hospitals, news, reports by tracey

‘Inspectors have raised “new and ongoing” patient safety concerns at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals Trust, it has emerged.’

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The Independent, 1st July 2020

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Gambling regulation has gone ‘horribly wrong’, says Lord Grade – The Guardian

Posted July 2nd, 2020 in gambling, news, reports, select committees by tracey

‘The regulation of gambling has gone “horribly wrong” and should be radically overhauled without delay, a House of Lords committee has urged. Ministers have pledged to review the 2005 Gambling Act in the face of a growing consensus among MPs and addiction experts that legislation passed under Tony Blair’s government is no longer effective. But in a wide-ranging report, a select committee led by former ITV and BBC chairman Lord Grade said sweeping changes could go forward without the need for a review.’

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The Guardian, 2nd July 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

The Grenfell Fire: Do Black Lives Actually Matter? – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted June 23rd, 2020 in fire, health & safety, inquiries, minorities, news, reports by sally

‘On the 3rd anniversary of the Grenfell fire where 72 residents (at least 34 of whom were from a BAME background) lost their lives, is the country in a better position to avoid future cladding related fires?’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 18th June 2020

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Police in England and Wales taking ‘excessive personal data’ from mobile phones – The Guardian

‘Police are extracting “excessive amounts of personal data” from the mobile phones of victims and witnesses during investigations and are in danger of discouraging the public from reporting crime, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned.’

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The Guardian, 18th June 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

MPs offer hope for lawyers locked out of Covid-19 support – Legal Futures

‘The Law Society and Bar Council have urged the government to act on a report from MPs that that would help lawyers who have fallen through the gaps of the coronavirus support schemes.’

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Legal Futures, 16th June 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Mayson calls for single regulator of all legal services – Legal Futures

Posted June 11th, 2020 in legal profession, legal services, Legal Services Board, news, reports by sally

‘All providers of legal services, whether legally qualified or not, should be registered and regulated by a single regulator, a major review has concluded.’

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Legal Futures, 11th June 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Leasehold enfranchisement – options to reduce the price – Tanfield Chambers

Posted June 4th, 2020 in enfranchisement, Law Commission, leases, news, reports, valuation by sally

‘In relation to the qualifying criteria and procedure, the Law Commission was asked to make recommendations and the report on those aspects is due in the Spring. On the question of valuation, the Law Commission’s remit was slightly different. It was required to come up with “options” to reduce the premiums payable by leaseholders, not “recommendations”. It will then be a matter for the politicians to decide which option should be adopted. The Law Commission Report (Leasehold home ownership: buying your freehold or extending your lease. Report on options to reduce the price payable (HMSO, 2020), Law Com. No. 387) on those options was published on 9 January 2020.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 26th May 2020

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

School fails in Court of Appeal bid to have Ofsted report quashed – Local Government Lawyer

Posted May 12th, 2020 in education, injunctions, judicial review, news, reports by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has dismissed a bid by a state-funded secondary school in the north of England to have an adverse Ofsted report quashed.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 11th May 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Injuncting OFSTED reports – Court of Appeal maintains heightened hurdle test – Education Blog

Posted May 12th, 2020 in education, injunctions, judicial review, news, reports by sally

‘The normal Cyanamid test for granting an interim injunction is whether there is a serious issue to be tried; if so, whether damages would be a sufficient remedy; and if not, where the balance of convenience (or balance of injustice) lies. Sometimes these stages, particularly the last two, get compressed together.’

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Education Blog, 9th May 2020

Source: education11kbw.com

Niran de Silva on the Law Commission Report on Employment Law Hearing Structures – Littleton Chambers

Posted May 7th, 2020 in employment tribunals, Law Commission, news, reports by sally

‘On 29 April 2020, the Law Commission published its report on Employment Law Hearing Structures. The Report runs to just over 200 pages and concludes with 23 recommendations to improve the Employment Tribunal’s ability to resolve disputes.’

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Littleton Chambers, 30th April 2020

Source: littletonchambers.com

Children seeing parents “distressed” by remote hearings – Legal Futures

‘Children are “coming in and out of the room” during remote family law hearings and in some cases witnessing their “distressed” parents, a major study has found.’

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Legal Futures, 7th May 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Optimism of the will, pessimism of the intellect – Nearly Legal

‘According to this Inside Housing report of a Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee meeting today (4 May), the Housing Minister Robert Jenrick announced prospective measures to avoid a deluge of eviction proceedings at the expiry of the PD51Z stay.’

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Nearly Legal, 4th May 2020

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Ministers aim to extend legally binding deadline on Prevent review – The Guardian

‘The government will attempt to push back a legally binding deadline for the completion of an independent review of Prevent, the programme that aims to stop people becoming terrorists, the Guardian understands.’

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The Guardian, 28th April 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

If ministers fail to reveal 2016 flu study they ‘will face court’ – The Guardian

‘The government faces being taken to court if it refuses to disclose the findings of an exercise confirming the UK could not cope with a flu pandemic.’

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The Guardian, 26th April 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Carol Harlow: Windrush: Lessons learned or perhaps not? – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘On 19 March, screened by the draft Corona: Defence of the Realm Bill, the long awaited Windrush: Lessons Learned Report (hereafter Lessons Learned) was published. For those who have missed out on the considerable publicity generated by the Windrush Generation scandal, a short account is in order. The Windrush Generation broadly comprises Commonwealth citizens who have indefinite leave to remain in the UK or “settled status” on the basis of having settled in the UK before 1973 when the Commonwealth Immigration Act 1971 came into force, and not since 1988 having left the UK for more than two years. Many of these elderly British citizens were unable to prove their right to live here to the satisfaction of the Home Office (perhaps because they entered the country on a parent’s passport or had lost their papers in the ensuing forty-odd years since their arrival). These unfortunate “surprised Brits” were denied healthcare, welfare benefits, pensions, lost their settled housing and long-term jobs, were taken into detention and even deported. They had become victims of the so-called “hostile environment” policy, a set of measures introduced in 2012 by Theresa May when Home Secretary with a view to making life as difficult as possible in the UK for people with no legal status to encourage them to leave. The measures were defended at the time by Theresa May, then Home Secretary, and incorporated into the Immigration Act 2014.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 6th April 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

UK has multiple social rights failings, finds Council of Europe – The Guardian

Posted March 24th, 2020 in human rights, news, reports, standards by sally

‘The UK’s low age of criminal responsibility, minimum pay rates for young teenagers and the failure to outlaw all forms of corporal punishment breach Council of Europe standards for social rights, according to its latest report.’

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The Guardian, 24th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Lambs to the slaughter’: 50 lives ruined by the Windrush scandal – The Guardian

‘As the report on the Home Office scandal is finally published, we revisit the victims’ stories.’

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The Guardian, 19th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Windrush review to call for reform of ‘reckless’ Home Office – The Guardian

‘Wholesale reform of a “reckless” and “defensive” Home Office is expected to be recommended in a hard-hitting review into the causes of the Windrush scandal when it is released by the home secretary on Thursday.’

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The Guardian, 19th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com