Judicial Independence
Ahead of Wednesday’s Budget, the Medical Defence Union (MDU) has issued an open letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer urging her to take decisive action to tackle the soaring legal costs of clinical negligence claims. In the last year alone, the NHS spent more than £800 million on legal fees relating to clinical negligence… Read more »
The Supreme Court has ruled in favour of a non-religious father and his child that the exclusively Christian teaching of Religious Education (RE) and collective worship in Northern Ireland are ‘indoctrination’. Alongside mandatory Christian collective worship and a ‘stigmatising’ right of withdrawal, this is therefore discriminatory under human rights law. This ruling will have wide-ranging… Read more »
Latest articles
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) acted unlawfully when it abandoned its investigation into alleged Saudi Arabian slush fund payments at BAE Systems, the high court has ruled. The SFO halted its corruption probe in December 2006 after pressure from the government, citing national security concerns. Tony Blair’s administration said Saudi Arabia was threatening to withdraw… Read more »
Legislation calling for tougher sentences for individuals convicted of gun crimes is being ignored by judges, a senior police officer has said. Bernard Hogan-Howe, chief constable of Merseyside police, said it was “simply wrong” for mandatory five-year sentences for possession of a firearm to be overlooked. Despite government attempts to toughen up sentencing, in 2005… Read more »
