Minister urged to intervene over Feltham youth jail violence – The Guardian

‘Urgent intervention is needed at Feltham young offender institution, the chief inspector of prisons has warned, after a review uncovered rocketing levels of violence and self-harm.’

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The Guardian, 24th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Surge in youth prison violence sparks call to close institutions – The Guardian

Posted July 23rd, 2019 in assault, news, prisons, statistics, violence, young offenders by sally

‘Assaults in youth prisons in England and Wales have risen by almost two-thirds over the last five years, a Guardian analysis has found.’

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The Guardian, 21st July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Rise in knives and blades found at London family courts – BBC News

Posted July 22nd, 2019 in family courts, London, news, offensive weapons, statistics by sally

‘Thousands of knives and sharp objects are being confiscated annually at London family courts, with campaigners saying it showed how “desensitised” some people were to carrying weapons.’

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BBC News, 20th July 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Tenants will be given access to rogue landlord database – The Guardian

‘Campaigners have welcomed government plans to open up its rogue landlord database to prospective tenants, as part of proposals to give greater protection to renters.’

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The Guardian, 21st July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Violence rockets as police solve 40,000 fewer crimes a year in deepening ‘crisis’ – The Independent

Posted July 19th, 2019 in criminal justice, news, prosecutions, statistics by tracey

‘Violence has risen by 20 per cent in a year as the number of crimes solved plummeted by 40,000, new figures show amid warnings of a deepening “crisis” in the justice system.’

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The Independent, 18th July 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Justice secretary urges evidence-led approach to cut crime – Ministry of Justice

‘Justice Secretary David Gauke today called for an “evidence-led” approach to tackling reoffending in order to crack down on crime and reduce the number of victims.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 18th July 2019

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Home Office used ‘confused, misleading, incomplete and unsafe’ evidence to revoke visas of tens of thousands of international students, report finds – The Independent

‘Tens of thousands of international students had their visas revoked after the Home Office used “confused, misleading, incomplete and unsafe” evidence, MPs have said. The department ignored expert advice and relied on “dodgy” evidence when it accused almost 34,000 students of cheating in English language tests in 2015, according to a new report published by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on the Test of English for International Communication (Toeic).’

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The Independent, 18th July 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Armed forces: Sexual offence claims ‘not properly recorded’ – BBC News

‘At least 60 sexual offence allegations investigated by military service police in two years were not reported in official figures, the BBC has found. Figures for 2017 and 2018 did not include alleged offences such as sexual communications with children and stalking involving fear of violence.’

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BBC news, 16th July 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Gay people being subjected to forced marriages in UK, police warn amid nationwide crackdown – The Independent

‘Gay people are being subjected to forced marriages to spouses of the opposite sex by families in the UK, police have warned amid a national crackdown.’

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The Independent, 16th July 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

MoJ used failed sex offender treatment ‘unlawfully’ – BBC News

‘The Ministry of Justice acted “unlawfully” in allowing the Sex Offender Treatment Programme to continue for five years – despite initial research which suggested it wasn’t working, a government analyst has said.’

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BBC News, 16th july 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Prisoner release checks ‘put public at risk’ – chief inspector – BBC News

Posted July 10th, 2019 in health & safety, mental health, news, prisons, standards, statistics, suicide by sally

‘The safety of the public is being put at risk by thousands of prisoners being released without proper assessments, the government has been told.’

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BBC News, 9th July 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

UK ministers challenge court ruling on Saudi Arabia arms sales – The Guardian

Posted July 8th, 2019 in appeals, export controls, news, Saudi Arabia, statistics, Supreme Court, war, weapons by sally

‘Ministers have asked the courts to set aside a landmark ruling that British arms sales to Saudi Arabia are unlawful, a legal manoeuvre that prompted Jeremy Corbyn to accuse the Conservatives of prioritising military exports over civilian lives.’

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The Guardian, 8th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Inheritance tax: Rules on gifts to loved ones ‘should be simplified’ – BBC News

Posted July 8th, 2019 in inheritance tax, news, statistics, taxation by sally

‘Fewer people should have to pay tax on gifts given just before death, under proposals for a major overhaul of the inheritance tax system.’

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BBC News, 5th July 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

UK slavery network ‘had 400 victims’ – BBC News

‘Members of a gang behind the biggest modern-day slavery network ever exposed in the UK have been jailed.’

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BBC News, 5th July 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Governments and firms in 28 countries sued over climate crisis – report – The Guardian

‘Climate action lawsuits against governments and corporations have spread across 28 countries, according to a new analysis.’

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The Guardian, 4th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police face calls to end use of facial recognition software – The Guardian

‘Police are facing calls to halt the use of facial recognition software to search for suspected criminals in public after independent analysis found matches were only correct in a fifth of cases and the system was likely to break human rights laws.’

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The Guardian, 3rd July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

White students still way out ahead in race for pupillages – Legal Futures

‘White students are significantly more likely to obtain pupillage than those from BAME backgrounds, with the gap widest among those who have not achieved the highest results, new figures have shown.’

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Legal Futures, 4th July 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Inside the 21st-century British criminal underworld – The Guardian

‘There are almost 5,000 criminal gangs in the UK. But the old family firms are gone – today’s big players are multinational, diversified and tech-savvy.’

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The Guardian, 4th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Custody fights blight four in ten break ups’ – A word of caution? – Transparency Project

Posted July 3rd, 2019 in children, custody, divorce, news, statistics by sally

‘At the beginning of May various news reports claimed that the number of separating couples going to court to resolve disputes about their children was 4 times higher than previously believed. See for example the Mail Online story, Custody fights blight four in ten break ups as 50,000 former couples battle in court rooms every year reporting new figures showing almost 4 out of 10 (38%) separating couples need the assistance of the court rather than 1 in 10 (10%), revealing “a large pool of hidden misery among broken families”.’

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Transparency Project, 2nd July 2019

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

‘Councils Cannot Blame Funding For Special Educational Needs Failures’, High Court Told – Rights Info

‘A lack of funding gives councils “no excuse” for failing to meet their legal duty to children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), a court has heard.’

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Rights Info, 27th June 2019

Source: rightsinfo.org