‘Police breached “fundamental rights” at a vigil for Sarah Everard and “Kill the Bill” protests earlier this year, an inquiry by MPs has found.’
BBC News, 1st July 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The Supreme Court has ruled that protests can be a “lawful excuse” to block roads, as the government pushes for new laws to limit peaceful demonstrations. Britain’s most senior judges said it was right to acquit a group of protesters who blockaded the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) arms fair in London in 2017.’
The Independent, 26th June 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Restrictions on protests in the controversial new policing bill breach human rights laws and will increase the risk of peaceful demonstrators in England and Wales being criminalised, MPs and peers have warned.’
The Guardian, 22nd June 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Several hundred people assembled in London’s Hyde Park in July 2020 to protest rules making face masks mandatory in shops and supermarkets to help control the spread of COVID-19. This was not an isolated event. Similar protests have occurred in many places around the world in reaction to the prospect of “mask mandates” – especially in the United States.’
City Law Forum, 2nd June 2021
Source: blogs.city.ac.uk
‘Lawyers have threatened to launch a first-of-its-kind legal action to introduce a “buffer zone” outside abortion clinics to stop protesters “heartlessly” targeting women seeking pregnancy terminations.’
The Independent, 18th May 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘A trial of six people over an Extinction Rebellion protest was delayed when a defendant glued himself to a table in court.’
BBC News, 10th May 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Anti-protest curbs contained in the new policing bill are disproportionate, hand subjective powers to officers and the home secretary, and violate international human rights standards, MPs and peers have been told.’
The Guardian, 28th April 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘One of the UK’s biggest police forces is refusing to back down after being accused of wrongly issuing a £10,000 fine to a nurse who was protesting over the government’s 1% pay rise for NHS workers, reigniting concern over new powers to inhibit protest.’
The Guardian, 24th April 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Amnesty International has published a stark rebuke of the UK government’s stance on human rights, saying that it is “speeding towards the cliff edge” in its policies on housing and immigration, and criticising its seeming determination to end the legal right for the public to challenge government decisions in court.’
The Guardian, 7th April 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The new legislation would crush the principle of policing by consent in the UK and stifle democratic change.’
The Guardian, 5th April 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The official policing inspectorate showed repeated bias in favour of the police and against peaceful protesters as it compiled a report which backed a government clampdown, a whistleblower has alleged. The complainant says a report on protest released in March this year was skewed in favour of the government view, with conclusions reached before evidence was gathered and assessed.’
The Guardian, 31st March 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The police inspectorate has delivered a sweeping exoneration of officers’ manhandling of women mourning the killing of Sarah Everard, instead denouncing politicians who criticised the force.’
The Guardian, 30th March 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A teacher who showed pupils an “inappropriate” cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad – sparking protests outside a school – has been suspended.’
BBC News, 25th March 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The investigator helping coordinate the official inquiry into the Metropolitan police’s handling of the Sarah Everard vigil and concerns over women’s safety is suing the Home Office for sex discrimination over claims that he has been penalised for being a “white man”, the Observer can reveal.’
The Guardian, 21st March 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A landmark government crime bill has passed its first parliamentary hurdle, even as some Conservative MPs served notice that they might subsequently support amendments to water down controversial restrictions against protests.’
The Guardian, 16th March 2021
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘”Immediate steps” aimed at improving safety for women and girls in England have been announced by Downing Street after Sarah Everard’s death. Among them is an additional £25m for better lighting and CCTV as well as a pilot scheme which would see plain-clothes officers in pubs and clubs.’
BBC News, 16th March 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Governments of whatever party seem to come up with a new “law and order” bill almost every year, and these often turn into great caravans of minor legal changes, many of which are uncontroversial. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which will be debated by MPs on Monday and Tuesday, is the latest of its kind – and it has suddenly become intensely topical because of the debate over the policing of the vigil for Sarah Everard on Saturday.’
The Independent, 15th March 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of the government’s crime and justice taskforce on Monday to discuss what more needs to be done to stamp out violence against women and girls.’
The Independent, 15th March 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Organisers of a vigil in response to the disappearance of Sarah Everard are going to the High Court after police said gatherings would be “unlawful”.’
BBC News, 12th March 2021
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
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