HL 189, HC 1293 - Legislative Scrutiny: (1) Criminal Justice and Courts Bill and (2) Deregulation Bill
HL 189, HC 1293 - Legislative Scrutiny: (1) Criminal Justice and Courts Bill and (2) Deregulation Bill

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: Joint Committee on Human Rights

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2014-06-11

Total Pages: 48

ISBN-13: 0108554589

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The Joint Committee on Human Rights welcomes the provision in the Criminal Courts and Justice Bill, carried over from the last Session of this Parliament, which extends the current offence of possession of extreme pornography to include possession of pornographic images depicting rape and other non-consensual sexual penetration. The Committee considers this provision to be human rights enhancing, given the evidence of cultural harm done by such pornography, and acknowledges the strong justification provided for this proportionate restriction on individual rights. However, some of the provisions of the Bill cause concern. The Committee is disappointed that the Government has not examined the provisions of the Bill against all the relevant international standards relating to the rights of children. It urges the Government to provide further information in relation to SEN provision in secure colleges; and recommends that the Bill be amended to make explicit that secure college rules can only authorise the use of reasonable force on children as a last resort. The Committee also reports on the Deregulation Bill. It expresses its concern that application of the economic growth duty in that Bill to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) risks the possibility of that body's UN accredited 'A' status being downgraded and could put the UK in breach of its obligations under EU equality law. It recommends that this duty not be applied to the EHRC unless that body is satisfied that it can be done in a way that will not restrict its independence.

HL 49, HC 746 - Legislative Scrutiny: (1) Serious Crime Bill, (2) Criminal Justice and Courts Bill (Second Report) and (3) Armed Forces (Service Complaints and Financial Assistance Bill
HL 49, HC 746 - Legislative Scrutiny: (1) Serious Crime Bill, (2) Criminal Justice and Courts Bill (Second Report) and (3) Armed Forces (Service Complaints and Financial Assistance Bill

Author: The Stationery Office

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 64

ISBN-13: 0108557278

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Recommends amendments to the Health and Social Care Bill to ensure that private (or voluntary) sector care homes which accommodate publicly-funded residents are brought within the scope of the Human Rights Act. House of Commons papers 303 2007-08.

HL 86, HC 859 - Legislative Scrutiiny: Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill
HL 86, HC 859 - Legislative Scrutiiny: Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill

Author: The Stationery Office

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 48

ISBN-13: 0108557510

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Recommends amendments to the Health and Social Care Bill to ensure that private (or voluntary) sector care homes which accommodate publicly-funded residents are brought within the scope of the Human Rights Act. House of Commons papers 303 2007-08.

Judges on Trial
Judges on Trial

Author: Shimon Shetreet

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2013-10-24

Total Pages: 495

ISBN-13: 1107470064

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The second edition of Judges on Trial articulates the rules, assumptions and practices which shape the culture of independence of the English judiciary today. Enhanced by interviews with English judges, legal scholars and professionals, it also outlines the factors that shape the modern meaning of judicial independence. The book discusses the contemporary issues of judicial governance, judicial appointments, the standards of conduct on and off the bench, the discipline and liability of judges and the relationship between judges and the media. It is accessible to an international audience of lawyers, political scientists and judges beyond the national realm.

HL 114, HC 749 - The Next National Security Strategy
HL 114, HC 749 - The Next National Security Strategy

Author: The Stationery Office

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 67

ISBN-13: 010855774X

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The last five years have seen a range of international developments, ranging from the growth of radicalisation and fundamentalism, to growing concerns around our energy supply, and rising aggression from Russia. The NSS must be flexible enough to support contingency planning, and in this Report the Committee recommends that the Government produce a classified NSS or annex which can be used in Government departments to influence planning assumptions for a range of scenarios. In its report the Committee said that the next NSS should look hard at the UK's place within the international order, and what strategic thinking should underpin its actions over the next five years. It also needs to influence the Comprehensive Spending Review, to ensure that the Government can make fully-informed decisions on security-related spending. The next NSS should set clear objectives for the UK's future place in the world and geopolitical priorities, and inform the Strategic Defence and Security Review's assessment of the means required to achieve them.

Legislative Scrutiny
Legislative Scrutiny

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: Joint Committee on Human Rights

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2012-12-12

Total Pages: 40

ISBN-13: 9780108493898

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One of the Defamation Bill's main provisions is the introduction of a statutory defence for responsible publication in the public interest, which would put in place a checklist of factors for consideration by the court. The Committee considers the proposed defence to be inflexible and suggests an alternative formulation which would use a test of "reasonable belief that the publication was in the public interest", that it believes will provide greater clarity and flexibility. The Committee is also concerned that another proposed defence for website operators - available where they do not author content and either facilitate contact with the author or remove material where they cannot establish contact - could create a 'chilling effect' for material online. It recommends that the threshold for such material be raised from defamatory to unlawful to protect against that threat. The Committee also: calls for the Government to provide reassurance that those publishing defamatory material will be properly protected by the proposed clause establishing a "single publication rule" - if it cannot, the Committee encourages the Government to explore an alternative defence of "non-culpable republication"; recommends that the Bill be amended to ensure that corporate claimants can sue only where there is substantial financial loss incurred; and welcomes the Government's work with the Civil Justice Council to consider the legal aid regime in the area, but stresses the need for a solution to ensure that all persons, regardless of financial means, can access justice in defamation proceedings

The Politics of Judicial Independence in the UK's Changing Constitution
The Politics of Judicial Independence in the UK's Changing Constitution

Author: Graham Gee

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-03-12

Total Pages: 307

ISBN-13: 1316240533

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Judicial independence is generally understood as requiring that judges must be insulated from political life. The central claim of this work is that far from standing apart from the political realm, judicial independence is a product of it. It is defined and protected through interactions between judges and politicians. In short, judicial independence is a political achievement. This is the main conclusion of a three-year research project on the major changes introduced by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, and the consequences for judicial independence and accountability. The authors interviewed over 150 judges, politicians, civil servants and practitioners to understand the day-to-day processes of negotiation and interaction between politicians and judges. They conclude that the greatest threat to judicial independence in future may lie not from politicians actively seeking to undermine the courts, but rather from their increasing disengagement from the justice system and the judiciary.

HL 106, HC 594 - Violence Against Women and Girls
HL 106, HC 594 - Violence Against Women and Girls

Author: Great Britain. Parliament. Joint Committee on Human Rights

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 106

ISBN-13: 0108557618

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The Government's progressive work on tackling violence against women and girls abroad is not translating into its domestic policy, despite its Violence against Women and Girls Action Strategy and the Home Secretary's personal commitment to the issue. The Committee warns that failure to provide adequate refuge spaces and specialist services for victims of violence against women and girls demonstrates the difficulty for the Government in fulfilling its international obligations under the Convention when decisions over commissioning of certain services has been devolved. The Committee also expresses alarm at the prevalence of violence against women and girls across many cultures in the UK today, and heard troubling evidence from many minority groups that represent women with particular needs. The portrayal of women as victims of violence is deeply embedded in cultural stereotypes, in the depiction of women in the media and in how women are treated in the asylum system. This has to stop The Committee's recommendations include that: schools should play a greater role and include issues of violence against women and girls within the PSHE curriculum; whilst the Government has taken steps to engage with the media and with public awareness campaigns to counteract the sexualised portrayal of women, noting that the BBC declined invitations to give evidence to this inquiry, the media themselves should do more; the Government look again at the payment of universal credit to couples because of its concerns that it could put women subject to domestic violence at risk.

House of Lords - House of Commons - Joint Committee on Human Rights: The Implications for Access to Justice of the Government's Proposals to Reform Legal Aid - HL 100 - HC 766
House of Lords - House of Commons - Joint Committee on Human Rights: The Implications for Access to Justice of the Government's Proposals to Reform Legal Aid - HL 100 - HC 766

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: Joint Committee on Human Rights

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2013-12-13

Total Pages: 88

ISBN-13: 9780108551635

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The report The Implications For Access To Justice Of The Government's Proposals To Reform Legal Aid (HL100, HC 766) concludes that the government should reconsider its proposals for the reform of legal aid. The government has so far made welcome exemptions to its proposed residence test in the light of responses to its consultation, but the Committee is still not satisfied that the proposed test will not affect vulnerable groups. While accepting that it is legitimate for the government to introduce a residence test for civil legal aid and to restrict the scope of prison law funding, the Committee calls for more and broader exemptions from these proposals to avoid breaches of the fundamental right of effective access to justice in individual cases. The exceptional funding framework may not be working as intended and could therefore leave certain groups unable to access legal aid when human rights law requires it. The proposal to remove cases with

The Implications for Access to Justice of the Government's Proposals to Reform Judicial Review - HL 174, HC 868
The Implications for Access to Justice of the Government's Proposals to Reform Judicial Review - HL 174, HC 868

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: Joint Committee on Human Rights

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2014-04-30

Total Pages: 60

ISBN-13: 0108554465

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According to the report The Implications For Access To Justice Of The Government's Proposals To Reform Judicial Review HC (868), the number of judicial reviews has remained remarkably steady when the increase in the number of immigration judicial reviews (now handled by the Upper Tribunal) is disregarded. The report covers: procedural defects and substantive outcomes; legal aid for judicial review cases; interveners and costs; capping of costs (protective costs orders); alternatives to the Government's judicial review reforms; judicial review and the public sector equality duty.