Search Results for: environmental/page/15/Freedom of information - right of access) [2015] UKUT 159 (AAC) (30 March 2015)
10 October 2011 by Melina Padron
Welcome back to the human rights roundup, a regular bulletin of all the law we haven’t quite managed to feature in full blog posts. The full list of links can be found here. You can also find our table of human rights cases here and previous roundups here.
by Melinda Padron
In the news
Hissing “Catgate” / “Catflap”
As you will probably know, the Home Secretary Theresa May has been criticised for erroneously claiming that an illegal immigrant avoided deportation because of his pet cat. The episode came to be known as “Catgate”/”Catflap”* and was widely covered both in the mainstream press and the legal blogs; our blog in particular posted four articles. Here are just some of the many articles about the incident (or related to it):
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3 June 2021 by Guest Contributor
This article was written by Harry Sanders, a content writer for the Immigration Advice Service.
Since November 2020, the Tigray region in the north of Ethiopia has been the epicentre of an awful (and hugely underreported) humanitarian disaster. War and violence have sent the region’s inhabitants fleeing over the Ethiopian border in search of asylum, while those who have not escaped are left to suffer increasingly disturbing conditions. Although the conflict was declared ‘over’ very quickly by the Ethiopian central government, abhorrent human rights abuses have continued while humanitarian access has been turned away. To understand how a nation led by a Nobel Laureate has fallen from grace on the world stage so dramatically, it is important to consider the circumstances which led to the outbreak of violence, and furthermore what it may mean for the future of Ethiopia and her people.
Ethiopia has long been a fairly fractious nation in terms of the patchwork of demographics within its borders. The Tigray region (bordering Eritrea to the north) is home not only to a majority of Tigrayan people – who account for 6.1% of Ethiopia’s population – but also myriad other ethnic groups. The majority ethnic group in Ethiopia are the Oromo, comprising 34.4% of the Ethiopian people.
Upon taking office, Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed promised to heal Ethiopia’s ethnic divide; all things told, he has been fairly true to his word, and in 2019 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for having brought an end to the 20-year old conflict with Eritrea. However, 2020 proved to be a defining chapter in Abiy Ahmed’s political career; citing social restrictions necessary to curtail the spread of COVID-19, he delayed the Ethiopian General Election from August 2020 to 5th June 2021. These actions were already disagreeable enough to some critics, though Abiy only stoked tensions further by having several of his rivals incarcerated. Most notably among these was Jawar Mohammed, who saw his ‘terror charge’ as a badge of honour and denounced PM Abiy for his blatant targeting of political opponents.
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20 October 2013 by Daniel Isenberg
Welcome back to the UK Human Rights Roundup, your regular chocolate fondu of human rights news and views. The full list of links can be found here. You can find previous roundups here. Post by Daniel Isenberg, edited and links compiled by Adam Wagner.
The issue of prisoner votes returned to the courtroom this week, with an unsurprising judgment on many fronts. Meanwhile Lord Neuberger made his views known on how access to justice forms a crucial component of the rule of law; and commentators discuss why public bodies can’t bring claims under the HRA.
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13 February 2018 by Guest Contributor
On 6th February 2018, the Court of Appeal in AM (Zimbabwe) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 64 gave authoritative guidance on how Paposhvili v Belgium (Application no. 41738/10), which was decided last year by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights, should be applied by English courts.
The issue in AM (Zimbabwe) concerned the applicable test for when removal of seriously ill people to their country of origin would raise an issue under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (prohibition on inhuman or degrading treatment). Sales LJ, giving the judgment of the Court of Appeal, decided that removal would only violate Article 3 if intense suffering or death would be imminent in the receiving state as a result of the non-availability of treatment which would have been available in the UK (AM para 38).
This ‘extended look’ analysis piece will call into question whether the Court of Appeal’s interpretation of Paposhvili into English law is correct.
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19 June 2018 by Guest Contributor
R (Parkinson) v. HM Senior Coroner for Kent and Others – read judgmentIf anyone had the lingering hope that the door to argue “system failure” in any but the most exceptional case of medical negligence remained ajar after the decision of the Grand Chamber in Lopes de Sousa, then the recent Divisional Court decision in Parkinson shows the door has been well and truly slammed shut.
Background facts
On 9th January 2011 Mrs Kathleen Parkinson died at the A & E Department of Darent Valley Hospital. She was aged 91 and dying. She had been taken to hospital by her son. On arrival in A & E she was assessed by a nurse and then by a Dr Hijazi. Dr Hijazi formed the view that she was dying, that there was no useful treatment that could be given her, and that as she was in the last moments of life, doing anything would not have been beneficial to her. Her son who, wanted her to be treated, became aggressive and eventually attempted to perform mouth to mouth resuscitation although advised against this by A and E staff. Mrs Parkinson deteriorated rapidly and died soon after arriving.
An inquest was convened and although Article 2 was kept under review throughout the inquest, the Coroner determined that it was not an Article 2 inquest. He rejected the submission that he ought to enter a verdict of gross negligence manslaughter and found that Mrs Parkinson died of natural causes and that any additional treatment that could have been provided to her in the short time she was at the Darent Valley Hospital would have been ineffective given the advanced stage of dying she was in. He refused the request to provide a report on the prevention of future deaths under paragraph 7, Schedule 5 of the Coroners’ Justice Act 2009.
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26 September 2011 by Adam Wagner
The Guardian published an editorial today arguing that court judgments should be opened up to the public. The editorial challenges the fact that BAILII, the charity which currently publishes most judgments online, is not searchable on Google.
Broadly speaking, it is good to see The Guardian taking up this somewhat esoteric but important topic. As I have argued on a number of occasions (see e.g. Making Law Accessible to the Public) the Ministry of Justice needs to do more to make “raw” law, that is judgments and legislation, accessible online. But it is important to focus on the right issues.
Case law should, ideally, be searchable on Google. BAILII explains the reason for not making it so:
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14 October 2024 by Rosalind English
Philip Morris v James Morris, Kate Shmuel and Gregory White [2024] EWHC 2554 (Ch)
These proceedings concerned the forfeiture rule under section 2(2) of the Forfeiture Act 1982 as it applies to the estates of people who travel to Switzerland for assisted dying (the 1982 Act). Mrs Myra Morris had ended her own life with the assistance of the staff at the Swiss clinic and the assistance of her husband Philip. She had been suffering from Multiple System Atrophy, a rare and degenerative neurological disorder with no known cure.
It was accepted between the parties that the role played by Philip engaged Section 2(1) of the Suicide Act 1961, which makes the assistance of suicide a criminal offence. The forfeiture rule under Section 1 of the 1982 Act precludes a person who has unlawful acted in the killing of another from acquiring a benefit from that killing. Section 2 of the 1982 Act allows for the modification of that rule if the justice of the case calls for such mercy.
Before Myra died, her solicitor assessed her as having the mental capacity to make an informed and voluntary decision to end her own life according to the Mental Capacity Act 2005. She said that she was satisfied that Myra was able to understand the decisions she was making and was under no undue influence, pressure or encouragement when she did so.
Her husband Philip sought advice from solicitors regarding his position should he accede to Myra’s wish for him to accompany her to Switzerland and he was reassured that, in the light of the DPP’s guidance on Section 2 of the Suicide Act, he would not be prosecuted, and indeed the Police Constable who interviewed Philip on his return from Switzerland told him that there was nothing to report and confirmed the position in writing.
Then there arose the question of the forfeiture rule. There are very few reported decisions on the approach the court should take on an application to modify the forfeiture rule, but the 1982 Act requires the court to have particular regard to the conduct of both the deceased and the person assisting the death when determining the justice of the case. In Dunbar v Plant [1998] Ch 412, Philips LJ explained that there were clear indications in the Act that there were circumstances in which the public interest did not require the imposition of any penal sanction, a consideration which he linked directly to the proper application of the forfeiture rule:
“Where the public interest required no penal sanction, it seems to me that strong grounds are likely to exist for relieving the person who has committed the offence from all effects of the forfeiture rule.” [para 437]
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8 December 2025 by Guest Contributor
By Kian Leong Tan
INTRODUCTION
In Buzzard-Quashie v Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police [2025] EWCA Civ 1397, the Court of Appeal has helpfully restated the law on (civil) contempt of court. The decision – arising out of a longstanding refusal by the Northamptonshire police force (“the police force”) to comply with orders from the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) and the courts to release footage from officers’ body-worn cameras (“BWV”) – also affirms the liability of a chief constable for the acts and omissions of their subordinates.
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17 June 2012 by Adam Wagner
The current Government often complains about a “democratic deficit” in the courts. It seems that “unelected judges” are making important decisions on social policy without any kind of democratic mandate, particularly in controversial human rights cases.
I agree that there is a democratic deficit in the courts. But it isn’t about elections. It is about access.
The Government seeks to solve the problem by involving Parliament more in the judicial process, the latest and most striking example being the Home Office’s attempt to codify Article 8 ECHR, the right to private and family life, in immigration cases. The Home Office wants fundamentally to alter the role of the courts, hoping that it will “shift from reviewing the proportionality of individual administrative decisions to reviewing the proportionality of the rules” (see para 39). The argument is that since judges are unaccountable, those who are accountable must be more central in the decisions they make, particularly in sensitive areas such as immigration.
This is attempt to take power away from judges. But why?
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1 December 2010 by Adam Wagner
R v Chaytor and others (Appellants) [2010] UKSC 52 – Read judgment / press summary
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by ex-MPs who argued that the courts do not have jurisdiction to try a Member of Parliament in relation to the submission of an allegedly dishonest claim for Parliamentary expenses or allowances.
The court was unanimous in its judgment. Lord Phillips (President) and Lord Rodger give the lead judgments. The Court held that neither Article 9 of the 1688 Bill of Rights nor the exclusive jurisdiction of the House of Commons poses any bar to the jurisdiction of the Crown Court to try the Appellants.
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3 May 2012 by Leanne Buckley-Thomson
Transport for London (TfL) v Griffin & Ors [2012] EWHC 1105 (QB) – Read Judgment
Transport for London (TfL) have succeeded in their High Court application for an injunction restraining Addison Lee Taxis from encouraging drivers to use London bus lanes. Mr Justice Eder ruled that the injunction would not breach Addison Lee Chairman John Griffin’s free expression rights.
This case is about traffic regulation orders (TROs) made by TfL dealing with the use of designated bus lanes. TfL’s policy is that private hire vehicles (PHVs – or mini-cabs in ordinary parlance) can only enter bus lanes to pick up or set down whereas taxis can use them as a through-route. The adopted definition of “taxi” means only Hackney Carriages qualify (reg. 4 of the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions). Failure to comply with, or acting in contravention of, TROs is an offence under s8(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.
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10 March 2025 by Jennifer Zhou
In UK News:
The Sentencing Council caused controversy with its new guidance on imposing community and custodial sentences. Previously, magistrates and judges were told they ‘should request’ a pre-sentence report (PSR) ‘whenever the court reaches the provisional view that a community order may be appropriate’ unless the court considers it unnecessary. The new guidance strengths the obligation so that courts ‘must request and consider’ a PSR ‘before forming an opinion of the sentence’ unless it considers this unnecessary. It also adds a list of offenders for whom a PSR ‘will normally be considered necessary,’ including female and transgender offenders and those from an ethnic, cultural, and/or faith minority. The guidelines’ stated aim is to give sentencers ‘the most comprehensive information available about the circumstances of the offender and the offence.’ They take effect from 1 April 2025.
The government’s Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme will be broadened to postmasters who have had their convictions overturned by the courts. From 3 June 2025, these postmasters—who are currently covered by the Post Office’s Overturned Convictions scheme—can apply for redress from the government. £1.8 billion has been pledged to compensate the victims of the Post Office scandal.
Convicted female minors will no longer be placed in Young Offender Institutions, the government has announced. This adopts a recommendation in an independent review of girls in custody, undertaken by Susannah Hancock and published earlier this month. Girls will instead be placed in settings such as Secure Children’s Homes and Secure Schools.
In International News:
A death row inmate in Louisana is challenging his method of execution in court. Jessie Hoffman Jr., who was to become the first man in the state executed by nitrogen gas, is arguing for a more ‘humane’ means of death before a Baton Rouge federal court. His legal team has argued that death by nitrogen hypoxia is a cruel and unusual punishment under the US Constitution. Additionally, they say that it infringes on his freedom to practice his religion, namely Buddhist breathing and meditation exercises.
In the Courts:
16 Just Stop Oil activists appealed against their sentences (R v Hallam and Others [2025] EWCA Crim 199). They had been variously convicted of: occupying roads leading to the Navigator oil terminal in Thurrock; throwing soup on Vincent van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’; climbing or attempting to climb gantries on the M25; and conspiracy in relation to the M25 protest. The Sunflowers offenders were convicted of criminal damage; the others were convicted of, or pled guilty to, public nuisance offences.
The court stated that the leading authority on sentencing-related issues in cases of nonviolent protests—such as conscientious motivation and deterrence—was R v Trowland [2023] EWCA Crim 919. They emphasised that conscientious motivation could be factored into the assessment of culpability, but does not prevent a finding of high culpability, and that a judge is not obliged to specify the amount by which they have reduced a custodial term to reflect conscientious motivation. They also discussed the relevance of Article 10 ECHR (freedom of expression) and Article 11 (peaceful assembly). It was held that the common law and the ECHR are in step, and the fact that the appellants’ actions constituted criminal conduct significantly weakened the protections afforded by the ECHR.
After considering the specific facts of each appellant’s case, the court quashed the sentences of 6 appellants and substituted lower ones. Roger Hallam, Just Stop Oil’s co-founder, had his 5-year sentence substituted for a 4-year one. Both ‘Sunflowers’ offenders had their appeals dismissed.
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8 November 2010 by Adam Wagner
Updated | For those looking for clues as to how the Ministry of Justice will prioritise its funding after the impending 25% budget cut, it has just released its 2011-15 business plan.
The MoJ’s ‘vision’ is certainly ambitious. Despite the cuts, there will be “better law“. This will come from a programme of “fundamental reform” which will cure the problems of “too much litigation, too many people reoffending and too much money spent on systems”.
Under the heading “Coalition Priorities”, the MoJ provides its plans for structural reform. It is not clear whether these are in order of priority:
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24 August 2015 by acwessely
Photo credit: Guardian
Alex Wessely brings you the latest Round-up.
In the news
Guantanamo Bay was back in the headlines this week, after the Obama administration responded to a legal request to free a hunger-striking detainee “entirely in secret”. Tariq Ba Odah has refused to eat voluntarily since 2007, and now weighs a “shockingly frail” 74.5 pounds (33.8kg).
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23 August 2021 by Byul Ryan-Im
In the news:
On 15 August the Taliban took control of Kabul, following the collapse of the Afghan government and its President Ashraf Ghani fleeing the country. In a news conference, a Taliban spokesman said women would be allowed to work and have rights “within the framework of Islam”. The Taliban also said it wanted women to join its government, but precise laws are as yet undefined and there have been reports of women in some areas being removed from their workplaces and told their jobs will go to men. Since the takeover, however, female presenters have returned to some television channels and “most, though not all, girls’ schools have remained open or are reopening”.
The fall of Kabul came after weeks of rapidly growing Taliban control across the nation, which followed a US-Taliban peace deal in April committing to US and NATO allies, including the UK, fully withdrawing from Afghanistan by 11 September. On 13 August the UK government announced plans to evacuate British Nationals and former British staff eligible for relocation under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP). ARAP came into effect on 1 April 2021 as a programme to relocate “current and former local staff in Afghanistan, including interpreters and their immediate families.” Home Secretary Priti Patel said she was “proud to say that the UK is fulfilling its promise to those Afghan interpreters and other locally employed staff”, and that it was “our moral obligation to recognise the risks they have faced…” Defence Secretary Ben Wallace confirmed the government would do its best to evacuate all people eligible but admitted with clear regret that “some people won’t get back”.
For those that that do make it out, their futures are far from certain as the Home Office is reportedly struggling to provide suitable accommodation for refugees. On 18 August a 5-year-old Afghan boy fell from a hotel window, less than a fortnight after arriving in the UK with his family under the ARAP programme. There had reportedly been some concerns about the safety of the hotel windows and the housing group Mears had left the hotel some months ago due to safety concerns.
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