Borders have been problematic throughout human history.
In Public International Law, the State is defined by three
constituent elements: a population, a territory and a governmental
organisation. A territory obviously implies the existence of borders.
Borders between States are
The Guardian 12 April - "Nicola Sturgeon (First Minister Scotland) has condemned the UK government’s
decision to refer two bills passed by Holyrood unanimously to the
supreme court as “morally repugnant” amid an outcry from MSPs." - The Guardian - Nicola Sturgeon blasts decision to refer Holyrood Bills to Supreme Court.
Does this claim withstand scrutiny? Here, I respectfully argue that it does not. It is a technical question of legal competence.
What is Scotland wishing to do?
The Scottish Parliament is seeking to incorporate into Scots Law (a) the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and (b) the Council of Europe's European Charter of Local Self-Government
The UNCRC has bound
Law and Lawyers - Coronavirus Restrictions England - Changes from 12 April 2021
In accordance with the government's Roadmap out of Lockdown, the law on coronavirus restrictions changes from Monday 12 April 2021.
The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Steps) (England) Regulations 2021 - SI 2021/364 ("Steps Regulations") - are amended to move England from the Step 1 area to the Step 2 area, so that the restrictions set out in Schedule 2 to the Steps Regulations apply in England.
The amending legislation was made by the Secretary of State for Health (Mr Matt Hancock) on Friday 9 April - The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Steps and Local Authority Enforcement Powers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 - (SI: 2021/455).
Links:
Previous post - Coronavirus Restrictions England ~ Changes from 29 March 2021.
Law and Lawyers - Coronavirus Log Part 7
Monday 5 April, the government confirmed that coronavirus restrictions would change from 12 April - Government announcement.
Cabinet Office - Coronavirus restrictions: what you can and cannot do
In a video published by The Express, a Police Officer can be heard addressing the congregation at Christ the King Polish Roman Catholic Church, Balham, South London. The officer said - "This gathering is unfortunately unlawful under the coronavirus regulations we have currently. You are not allowed to meet inside with this many people under law." The officer asks people to return home and points out the possibility of fixed penalty notices (£200) for failure to comply.
Regulations:
The relevant Regulations
A report has been published in response to both commissions. The report is published online - HERE.
There is also a Press Release - Metropolitan Police acted appropriately at the Sarah Everard vigil
Notes:
1) At the time of this event
Who qualifies for legal aid in criminal cases is set out by Ministry of Justice - HERE.
Cases in Magistrates' Courts are subject to both an Interests of Justice test AND a means test.
Cases in the Crown Court are subject to a means test. Even the individual who is acquitted may end up having to pay for defence costs. This "innocence tax" is particularly iniquitous.
The likelihood is that the Scottish National Party (SNP) will secure a majority of the seats in the parliament which will then press harder with demands for another Scottish independence referendum.
There is nothing in law to require the UK government to agree to such a referendum but, politically, such demands are likely to be difficult for the UK government to sweep aside or ignore.
Scottish Parliamentary
The building strike 1972:
In 1972, there was a national strike by the building workers’ trade unions which lasted from late June to mid-September. The strike concerned the long hours and low pay of craftsmen and labourers. The building industry was one where employment was precarious due to the "lump system" by which workers were employed on a job-by-job basis giving them little or no long term security.
Unions organised
From that date every area of England (including the territorial waters adjacent to England and the airspace above England) will be in"the Step 1 Area". A new and complex set of Regulations will apply within that Area.
From dates yet to be confirmed, areas of England (yet to be specified) will move into "the Step 2 Area". Similarly, from a further date (yet to be confirmed), areas of England will move into "the Step 3 Area".
It does
The IRAL ran a Call for Evidence from 7 September to 26 October 2020 -
Part 6 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill contains detailed clauses which amount to major amendments to the law about cautions for ADULTS.
The various factsheets which accompany the Bill say very little about this significant reform and it is probable that this aspect of the Bill may receive less parliamentary attention than its importance actually merits.
According to
This post is an overview of (a) amendments to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, (b) Clauses 100-105 which deal with the minimum term in murder and other serious cases and (c) the post notes the bill's provisions for early release of some categories of offenders.
The provisions are
This is the second of my posts looking at how the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill will alter the law relating to protests.
The bill contains considerable extensions to police powers and marks an increasingly authoritarian stance by government toward protest.
The following is an overview of the key provisions affecting public order. A previous post looked at how the Bill will alter the law on Public Nuisance - here.
Criminal Damage to Memorials:
The offence of criminal damage is defined by the Criminal Damage Act 1971.
The Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 Schedule 2 deals
The Bill covers numerous areas of law and its Second Reading debate will take place in the House of Commons on Monday 15 and Tuesday 16 March 2021. This is the first of two posts looking at Part 3 of the Bill - Public Order.
Taken as a whole, the reforms in Part 3 will make further and
considerable inroads into the ability of the citizen to protest without
actually breaking the law in some way.
Parliament - the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill
General:
Part 3 comprises Clauses 54 to 60.
Privacy International and others challenged this policy in an action before the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT). The claimants submitted that the policy was unlawful, both as a matter of domestic public law and also as contrary to Convention Rights (set out in Schedule 1 to the Human Rights Act 1998). In December 2019 the Tribunal gave judgment dismissing the claim.
The claimants appealed to the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) which gave judgment on 9 March 2021 - Privacy International and others v Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary and others [2021] EWCA Civ 330 (Davis, Haddon-Cave, Dingemans LJJ). Central to the appeal were the provisions of the Security Service Act 1989 ("the 1989 Act").
The appeal
government announcement 9 March 2021
Parliament - the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill
The Bill seeks to make provisions about:
The latest amendments are in The Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Wearing of Face Coverings in a Relevant Place and Restrictions: All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 - (SI: 2021/247).
It is explained that
R (Shamima Begum) v Secretary of State for the Home Department - [2021] UKSC 7 - (26 February 2021).
National security - constitutional arrangements:
The judgment of the Supreme Court in Shamima Begum's case reminds us (again) of the fact that national security within the UK is very much entrusted to the executive - see the court's judgment at para 56 where Lord Reed cites the speech of Lord Hoffmann in Secretary of State for the Home Department v Rehman [2001] UKHL 47 at para 50.
Lord Hoffmann said - "Under the constitution of the United Kingdom and most other countries,
decisions as to whether something is or is not in the interests of
national security are not a matter for judicial discretion. They are
entrusted to the executive."
Within government,
The Supreme Court of the UK has handed down judgment in the Shamima Begum case - see judgment dated 26 February 2021 - [2021] UKSC 7. - Lord Reed PSC, Lord Hodge DPSC, Lady Black, Lord Lloyd-Jones and Lord Sales. The judgment is unanimous.
The Supreme Court's webpage about the case is HERE and a Press Summary is available.
Earlier court decisions:
The main SIAC
