December 2011

R (Bailey) v Brent: law against the cuts (and politics)

December 20, 2011

As a resident of Brent in north-west London, I’m not sure what I think about the Labour council’s planned library cuts. I’m not happy that any should be cut. I don’t want social care to be cut any more than it needs to be, either, or any of the other important things councils do. And [...]

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Lord Irvine’s speech: full text

December 15, 2011

Thanks to Paul Dillane, who directed me to the document.

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Al-Khawaja & Tahery v UK: Lord Irvine vindicated

December 15, 2011

In his lecture last night, Lord Irvine invited British judges to become more assertive in deciding human rights cases for themselves, agreeing or disagreeing with the European Court of Human Rights, as they see fit. Today’s judgment from the European Court in Al-Khawaja & Tahery v UK vindicates, at least in part, Lord Irvine’s claim [...]

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Lord Irvine: British judges should decide human rights cases for themselves

December 14, 2011

Lord Irvine tonight weighed in to the debate about Britain’s relationship with the European Court of Human Rights – and effectively accused the Supreme Court of having surrendered its intellectual independence, and shirked its judicial responsibility. His at times toughly-worded lecture to the UCL Judicial Institute and the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law [...]

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“Prior protection”: Davies and Campbell are right

December 2, 2011

Alistair Campbell blogged yesterday about his appearance and evidence to the Leveson inquiry. He had plenty to say, but I won’t repeat it – read the transcript of his evidence, and the statement he provided. What interests me especially is what he writes in that blogpost about the regime of regulation that should replace the [...]

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Lady Hale’s injudicious speech

December 2, 2011

Does Lady Hale wish she were still sitting in the House of Lords, rather than the Supreme Court? Earlier this week she gave a striking speech to the Law Centres Federation conference. She opened her remarks by saying It is not the proper role of any judge to attack Government policy yet went on to [...]

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Grieve: Contempt of Court Act “fit for purpose”

December 1, 2011

This evening the Attorney General Dominic Grieve has been speaking at City University on the subject “Contempt – a balancing act”. Here’s the draft text of his speech – it differed only slightly in delivery. In the document viewer below you’ll find my note of the most important additions and changed he made, and some [...]

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