Brexit, law and politics, and nonsense
Much has been said about yesterday’s High Court judgement about the mechanism that the government must use to trigger Article 50. Much of it is nonsense, both legally and politically. The saddest part of the judgment, for me, is paragraph 105. In it, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, says that counsel for […]
Game over for Julian Assange’s sexual offence charges? Perhaps not!
UPDATE (9 September 2015): the Crown Prosecution Service and the Ministry of Justice have been in contact with me to say that the provisions of Section 72 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 only apply to crimes committed against people aged under 18. This means that the entire premise of this blog post is wrong. […]
Can we PLEASE have some honesty from our politicians?
One of the things that you become aware of as a writer on religion is how much religious illiteracy there is in the country. But over the past few months, as my writing has veered more towards politics rather than religion, I have noticed that there is a far greater political illiteracy – particularly so when […]
The legality of invoicing a child for not turning up to a birthday party
A Twitter conversation between a BBC and ITV hack over the threat of court action for non-payment of a birthday party no-show invoice caught my attention. BBC Newsnight’s Jess Brammar wrote “PM [that’s Radio Four’s PM programme, not the Prime Minister] have just trailed a BBC legal expert analysing the child’s party invoice. *burns everything*”. ITV’s Damon […]
There ain’t nothing like a dame for tomorrow’s gay knights
It is custom and tradition that the wives of knights are called ladies. It is an honorary title: if your husband is a Sir, then you can be called a lady. And if your husband has a peerage – whether or not it is a hereditary or a life peerage – then you should be […]
Abu Qatada’s fair trial
Commentators have been quick to denounce the Home Secretary Theresa May following the aquittal of Abu Qatada on terrorism charges in Jordan. Media silk John Cooper was one of them, asking on Twitter: “Will Theresa “3 Silk” May comment on the millions of taxpayers money spent to extradite Qatada on evidence now rejected by the […]
The victim was unable to substantiate the allegation
“No action was taken because the victim was unable to substantiate the allegation” – those were the words today of a senior Metropolitan Police detective explaining why no action was taken against a man accused of sexually assaulting a 14 year old girl. The man, who was arrested at the time, is now a suspect […]
When Christians lie to abuse the truth
Recently, a couple of websites have been created to cast doubt on last year’s investigation into the shamed evangelist Tony Anthony. I had carried out an extensive investigation into Tony Anthony’s “story”, supported by a group of concerned Christians who had been carrying out their own investigation. A subsequent investigation by an independent panel nominated […]
Police Interceptors highlights mockery of justice
Watching the fly-on-the-wall documentary Police Intercepters on 5* tonight, it’s impossible not to think that the English justice system is not fit for purpose. In one case, a couple were caught cultivating cannabis in their loft with a full hydroponic kit – lighting, insulation, the works. The commentator explained that the CPS dropped charges against […]
Ex-gay ad may prove embarrassing to London Mayor Boris Johnson
London Mayor Boris Johnson may yet come to regret getting involved in the decision to pull an advert for the “ex-gay” group the Core Issues Trust after the Court of Appeal today ruled that he should be ordered to give evidence about his role in the decision. The Trust had agreed a contract with Transport […]