Michael Gove’s prison policy: ‘making prisons work’ – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in news, prisons by sally

‘Michael Gove, the new Lord Chancellor and Minister of Justice, is settling in to his post. It has not been an easy start for him – there is an all-out strike by criminal lawyers, more Judicial Reviews lost in the High Court, strikes in other areas of his department and bad grammar on his desk already. And that is before any consideration is given to the main ‘task’ of his tenure – working out whether it is possible to scrap the Human Rights Act, and if so, what it can be replaced with.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 21st July 2015

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Khaleel Hussain murder case review launched in Coventry – BBC News

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in child abuse, children, murder, news by sally

‘A serious case review has been launched following the murder of a two-year-old boy from Coventry.’

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BBC News, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Developer ordered to rebuild historic pub after demolishing it without planning permission – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in construction industry, local government, news, planning by sally

‘Udhyam Amin was accused of trying to get planning permission ‘by the back door’ after pulling down the Alchemist pub in Battersea.’

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Daily Telegraph, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Lack of anti-extremist legislation hasn’t hampered watchdog, says Ofcom chief – The Guardian

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in freedom of expression, legislation, media, news, proscribed organisations, select committees, terrorism by sally

‘Ofcom chief executive Sharon White has said the regulator has not been hampered by lack of legislation in cracking down on extremist broadcasts following David Cameron said it should be given beefed-up powers to tackle the issue.’

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The Guardian, 21st July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Surveillance of MPs’ data challenged – BBC News

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in data protection, electronic mail, intelligence services, interception, investigatory powers, news, parliament, telecommunications, tribunals by sally

‘Three politicians will challenge the lawfulness of the intelligence services’ bulk interception of electronic data at a hearing later.’

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BBC News, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

New inquiry into deaths in police custody launched by Theresa May – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in death in custody, inquests, news, police by sally

‘Home Secretary says review will look at use of restraint techniques and ‘ask difficult questions’.’

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Daily Telegraph, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

The Sun launches human rights legal challenge against Metropolitan Police over phone records search – The Independent

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in freedom of expression, human rights, interception, investigatory powers, media, news, police, telecommunications by sally

‘A legal challenge against the Metropolitan Police by The Sun newspaper – where three reporters say their human rights were breached during the ‘plebgate’ affair – has started at the High Court.’

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The Independent, 20th July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

IPCC investigates Metropolitan police after teenager ‘died during pursuit’ – The Guardian

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in complaints, homicide, news, police, stop and search, young persons by sally

‘The Police watchdog is investigating Scotland Yard’s stop and searches of a teenager in the years before he died in a collision while apparently being pursued by police.’

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The Guardian, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Phone hacking: Andy Coulson to pay £150,000 legal costs – BBC News

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in costs, interception, media, news, telecommunications by sally

‘Former News of the World editor Andy Coulson has been ordered to pay £150,000 prosecution costs after his 2014 conviction for phone hacking.’
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BBC News, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Poppi Worthington: Court overturns baby’s ‘unexplained death’ verdict – The Independent

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in children, complaints, homicide, inquests, misfeasance in public office, news, police by sally

‘Poppi Iris Worthington was just 13 months old when she died in December 2012 and still, nearly three years later, the reasons why remain a secret. This is despite the efforts of several pathologists, a “fact-finding” judgment that remains unpublished, an ongoing Serious Case Review, and a failed police investigation that saw three officers accused of misconduct.’

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The Independent, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Country’s worst landlord blames tenants for property convictions – The Guardian

Posted July 23rd, 2015 in landlord & tenant, local government, news, prosecutions, victims by sally

‘A London landlord has been convicted for property offences seven times but believes she is the victim, not her tenants.’

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The Guardian, 23rd July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Paedophile Phillip Kirk who wrote a letter to Theresa May asking for sex with children to be legalised is jailed – The Independent

Posted July 22nd, 2015 in burglary, children, indecent photographs of children, internet, news, sentencing, sexual offences by sally

‘A paedophile was caught after he wrote to Home Secretary Theresa May asking for sex with children to be legalised.’

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The Independent, 20th July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Prison smoking ban could cause ‘stability issues’ – BBC News

Posted July 22nd, 2015 in news, prisons, Scotland, smoking by sally

‘Banning smoking in prisons in England and Wales could make them more unstable, the Prison Governors Association (PGA) has warned.’

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BBC News, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Grandmother spared jail after admitting killing baby son 52 years ago – The Guardian

Posted July 22nd, 2015 in infanticide, news, self-incrimination, sentencing by sally

‘A guilt-racked grandmother has been spared jail after confessing to killing her newborn son by smothering him with a cushion 52 years ago. Melody Casson suffocated 18-day-old Wayne Harper in 1963 when she was a 15 and told police at the time she accidentally rolled on top of her son when she fell asleep on the sofa.’

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The Guardian, 21st July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Cannabis growers should not face prosecution, says police chief who has stopped targeting ‘small-scale’ producers – The Independent

Posted July 22nd, 2015 in drug abuse, drug offences, drug trafficking, news, police by sally

‘Police throughout England and Wales are being urged to end the blanket criminal prosecution of all cannabis growers by a north-east police commissioner who says his force is already by-passing Home Office guidelines on cultivating the banned drug and no longer targets small-scale production.’

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The Independent, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Drone users face jail if they ‘recklessly endanger an aircraft in flight’ – The Guardian

Posted July 22nd, 2015 in airports, endangering safety of aircraft, health & safety, news, photography by sally

‘Drone pilots who “buzz” passenger jets as they take off and land at British airports have been warned they face jail if caught as the number of companies and unlicensed individuals making use of the relatively low cost flight technology continues to grow.’

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The Guardian, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Education law in the news – Education Law Blog

Posted July 21st, 2015 in bills, education, legal aid, news, regulations, universities by sally

‘There have been a few interesting education stories in the news recently.’

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Education Law Blog, 18th July 2015

Source: www.education11kbw.com

High Court orders ‘unsatisfactory’ public contract award to be set aside – OUT-LAW.com

Posted July 21st, 2015 in contracts, local government, news, public procurement by sally

‘The procurement process through which an English council awarded a contract for asbestos removal contained “a number of manifest errors” and breaches of equality and transparency requirements, and should therefore be set aside, the High Court has ruled.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 21st July 2015

Source: www.out-law.com

HRA Watch: Reform, Repeal, Replace? Elizabeth Stokes: Prisoners’ Rights in Context: What Future under a British Bill of Rights? – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted July 21st, 2015 in bills, human rights, legislation, news, prisons by sally

‘As we contemplate the potential demise of the Human Rights Act 1998 in the UK (in no small part due to the decision in Hirst (No2) and its domestic application) it is worth considering what all this means for the protection of prisoners’ human rights in our domestic sphere, and the potential of either the courts or our democratic processes to recognise them.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 20th July 2015

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org/blog

Copying for private use: to be quashed with prospective or retrospective effect? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted July 21st, 2015 in consultations, copyright, human rights, intellectual property, news by sally

‘British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and others, R(on the application of) v Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and another [2015] EWHC 1723 (Admin) – read original judgment and [2015] EWHC 2041 (Admin), 17 July 2015. On 19 June 2015, Green J ruled that an exception to copyright infringement for private use was unlawful, at common law, because of flaws in the consultation process which had preceded its enactment.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 19th July 2015

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com