Asylum-Seeking Children Might Not Be Able To Reunite With Their Families After Brexit, Campaigners Warn – Rights Info

‘The Home Office is looking to end the current system which reunites asylum-seeking children with their families if a no-deal Brexit goes through.’

Full Story

Rights Info, 2nd September 2019

Source: rightsinfo.org

The line between legitimate protest and anti-social behaviour – UK Human Rights Blog

‘Public order cases involving protests have always sparked controversy, with the collision between the state’s responsibility to ensure the smooth running of civil society and the individual citizen’s right to draw attention to what they regard as a pressing moral concern.’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 30th August 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Duty of care: inadequate safety nets? – No. 5 Chambers

Posted August 29th, 2019 in detention, duty of care, hospital orders, human rights, news, self-harm, suicide by sally

‘It was recently confirmed in Fernandes de Oliveira v Portugal [2019] ECHR 106 (no.78103/14, 31 January 2019) that a state’s positive obligation under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) applies not only to compulsorily detained patients, but also to those in hospital. However, there was a disappointing caveat. The European Court on Human Rights (ECtHR) concluded that “a stricter standard of scrutiny” might be applied to patients detained “involuntarily” following judicial order (para.124). Indeed, no Article 2 violation was found. In a partly dissenting Minority Opinion (MO), Portugal’s Judge Pinto De Albuquerque and Judge Harutyunyan describe the decision scathingly as “the result of a creative exercise of judicial adjudication for an imagined country” (MO, para.16). This article analyses the case law the ECtHR failed to apply, contends that the decision is plainly wrong, and argues that no differentiation between voluntary and involuntary patients can be justified.’

Full Story

No. 5 Chambers, 6th August 2019

Source: www.no5.com

The implications of ‘bulk hacking’ – Henderson Chambers

‘Corporate Crime analysis: Matthew Richardson, barrister at Henderson Chambers, examines the concept of ‘bulk hacking’ by intelligence services and some of the legal implications, in light of the latest judicial review challenge by Liberty.’

Full Story

Henderson Chambers, 9th August 2019

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Home Office faces legal battle over Prevent reviewer – The Guardian

Posted August 29th, 2019 in conflict of interest, government departments, human rights, news, terrorism by sally

‘Human rights campaigners have threatened the Home Office with legal action over its appointment of Lord Carlile as the independent reviewer of its anti-radicalisation programme Prevent.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 29th August 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

No Deal Brexit risks reversing human rights progress in extradition law – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted August 28th, 2019 in brexit, EC law, extradition, human rights, news by sally

‘The UK Government’s vow to leave the European Union “whatever the circumstances” on the 31st October has left the UK hurtling towards a no-deal Brexit this Halloween, but what does this mean for the rights of people subject to future extradition between the UK and the EU?.’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 28th August 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Investigation prompts rapid upgrades to asylum seekers’ homes – The Guardian

‘Hundreds of asylum seekers crammed into a network of “guest houses” provided by a Home Office contractor that are overrun by cockroaches, rats and mice have seen a raft of improvements in the past few days after the Guardian exposed their dire living conditions.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 27th August 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Lip-reading CCTV will have people ‘cupping hands over their mouths’ in street, warns surveillance watchdog – Daily Telegraph

‘People will be left “cupping their hands over their mouths” in the street if new lip-reading CCTV is not reined in, the Government’s surveillance watchdog has warned. Tony Porter, the Surveillance Camera Commissioner, said in future people would have to guard their conversations from prying cameras in the same manner as football managers on live TV, unless ministers act to regulate emerging intrusive technologies.’

Full Story

Daily Telegraph, 27th August 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

How will the UK immigration system cope with no deal Brexit? – Garden Court Chambers

‘UK immigration reform is imminent. The Government’s 2018 White Paper proposals for a new immigration system appear to be here to stay and a no deal Brexit looks more likely than ever.’

Full Story

Garden Court Chambers, 22nd August 2019

Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk

Government Urged To Tackle ‘National Problem’ Of Protests Outside Abortion Clinics – Rights Info

‘Campaigners have renewed calls for the government to create “safe-zones” around abortion clinics across the country after the Court of Appeal upheld a ban on pro-life protests near a west London health centre.’

Full Story

Rights Info, 22nd August 2019

Source: rightsinfo.org

Buffer zones around abortion clinic – judgment – Law & Religion UK

‘The BBC reports that pro-life protesters have lost their legal challenge against the UK’s first buffer zone around an abortion clinic. Ealing Council implemented a 100-metre exclusion zone at the Marie Stopes centre last year after women complained of being intimidated. The Good Counsel Network, which holds vigils outside the clinic in Ealing, west London, denied harassing women. Three Court of Appeal judges dismissed the bid to overturn the ban on protests directly outside the facility.’

Full Story

Law & Religion UK, 21st August 2019

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

Monitoring of mobile phones – rights groups challenge police – The Guardian

‘The refusal by police forces to disclose whether they are exploiting covert surveillance technology to track mobile phones is to be challenged at a tribunal next week.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 20th August 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Stripping Jack Letts Of Citizenship Could Violate Human Rights Laws, Say Campaigners – Rights Info

Posted August 20th, 2019 in citizenship, human rights, news, proscribed organisations, terrorism by sally

‘Human rights groups Liberty and Amnesty International have criticised a “draconian” decision by the UK government to strip IS defector Jack Letts of his British citizenship, with one saying it could potentially be in breach of international human rights laws.’

Full Story

Rights Info, 19th August 2019

Source: rightsinfo.org

Mend law and save tragic kids? – Transparency Project

‘It’s a common mistake for journalists (and others) to refer to the Children’s Act. Pedantic family lawyers bristle at this (it’s the Children Act). But pedantry aside, this error is often a clue that something has been written without much input from a lawyer. And so it seems with the Sunday Mirror’s various campaign pieces published today about the law on protecting children from violent parents, which feature far worse mistakes than punctuation.’

Full Story

Transparency Project, 18th August 2019

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Father of Islamic State fighter fails in judicial review claim – UK Human Rights Blog

‘R (on the application of Abdullah Muhammad Rafiqul Islam) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWHC 2169 (Admin). In a case that was described as “the first such case to have come on for hearing before this court” and one that shares many similarities with the tabloid-grabbing story of Shamima Begum (discussed on the Blog here), Mr Justice Pepperall refused permission to bring judicial review proceedings on behalf of an Islamic State combatant whose citizenship had been revoked by the Home Secretary.’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 19th August 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Jihadi Jack’s parents brand Sajid Javid a ‘coward’ over revoked citizenship – BBC News

‘The parents of a UK-Canadian man who joined the Islamic State group have said former Home Secretary Sajid Javid is a “coward” for revoking his British citizenship.’

Full Story

BBC News, 18th August 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Regulator looking at use of facial recognition at King’s Cross site – The Guardian

‘Information commissioner says use of the technology must be “necessary and proportionate.”‘

Full Story

The Guardian, 12th August 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Lincolnshire man challenges police transphobia guidelines – BBC News

‘A man interviewed by police over alleged transphobic tweets is challenging police guidance on hate incidents against transgender people.’

Full Story

BBC News, 6th August 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Forthcoming JCPC challenge to same-sex marriage prohibition in Bermuda – Law & Religion UK

‘Does a law prohibiting same-sex marriage violate the right to manifest one’s religion or belief? This novel argument will soon be tested in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), where the Government of Bermuda will be appealing against successive decisions by the island’s first instance and appellate courts to strike down legislation which prohibited same-sex marriage.’

Full Story

Law & Religion UK, 30th July 2019

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

Robert Thomas and Joe Tomlinson: How Immigration Judicial Review Works – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted July 31st, 2019 in human rights, immigration, judicial review, news, reports by sally

‘Two years ago on this blog, we drew attention to the immigration judicial review system—by far the most active area of judicial review litigation and the vast majority of all judicial reviews in England and Wales. In that post, we identified why there was a pressing need for further empirical exploration of the topic: not only was there a lack of understanding of litigation patterns but, on the basis of the evidence available, it seemed there was an issue of whether disputes were being channelled appropriately to judicial review (Paul Daly’s reflections on this post are available here). Since then, we have set about trying to build the evidence base that we argued was necessary to advance understanding. We collected data on the types of immigration judicial review claims and the views and experiences of people involved in the system. Our approach to the research was to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. We then combined the data gathered through these methods to inform our analysis. Our data included case-file analysis of Upper Tribunal judicial review cases and interviews with judges, representatives, users of the system, and others. We also undertook observations. Our full findings are set out in a detailed report, which we are publishing today. In this post, we provide a summary of our key conclusions.’

Full Story

UK Constitutional Law Association, 1st July 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org