Markus Andrews

Priti Patel has been accused of launching an assault on Britain’s democratic traditions with a crackdown on protests that would make it a crime to cause “serious annoyance or inconvenience” by taking part in a demonstration.Amid an atmosphere charged by the police use of force at a vigil for murder victim Sarah Everard on Saturday, the home secretary came under fire in the House of Commons over proposed legislation which Labour say would allow someone convicted of vandalising a statue to be sentenced to a longer jail term than a rapist.Among MPs raising concerns was ex-prime minister and former home secretary Theresa May, who said that freedom of speech was “an important right in our democracy” and warned of “potential unintended consequences” from provisions in Ms Patel’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.As MPs began a two-day debate on the controversial legislation, hundreds of protesters thronged Parliament Square outside demanding freedom of speech and better protection for women.The shadow home secretary, Nick Thomas-Symonds, told MPs that the scenes from Clapham Common should be a “red warning signal” of the dangers of draconian measures in the bill.Read more:Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayA member of Sisters Uncut, a feminist direct action group involved in the Clapham vigil, said: “The police are institutionally violent against women. Handing them more powers will increase violence against women. This bill must be stopped.”And race equality and criminal justice organisations wrote to Boris Johnson warning the prime minister that the legislation will further entrench discrimination against black and minority ethnic (Bame) communities.In a letter to Ms Patel co-ordinated by Liberty and Friends of the Earth, 245 charities, community groups and campaign organisations, ranging from Amnesty International to the Ramblers and the RSPB warned that the “draconian” legislation “represents an attack on some of the most fundamental rights of citizens, in particular those from marginalised communities”.But a string of Conservative MPs said Labour would show themselves to be soft on crime if they vote on Tuesday against the 300-page document, which was published only six days ago and contains a vast array of unrelated measures, including provisions to double maximum punishments for assaults on emergency workers and to end the release of serious sexual offenders after serving half of their sentence.Ms Patel told the Commons that the right to protest peacefully was “a cornerstone of democracy and one this government will always defend”.But she said recent years had seen a “significant change in protest tactics” which required police to be given powers to take “a more proactive approach”.Citing Extinction Rebellion protesters blocking ambulances on emergency calls and gluing themselves to rush-hour trains, she told MPs: “There is a balance to be struck between the rights of the protester and the rights of individuals to go about their daily lives.”Mr Thomas-Symonds told the Commons that “deep and profound” lessons need to be learnt from the “distressing” scenes at Clapham, where women taking part in the vigil in the face of appeals to stay home due to the coronavirus pandemic were forced to the ground by police officers and handcuffed.“The scenes from Saturday should be a red warning signal to this House that rushing through ill-judged, ill-thought out restrictions on the right to protest would be a profound mistake that would have long-lasting consequences and do great damage to our democracy,” he warned.“The right to protest is one of our proudest democratic traditions. That this government seeks to attack it is to its great shame.“Our existing laws on protest strike a careful balance between legitimate rights and the need to keep order. What our laws on protest do not do, and should never do, is seek to shield those in power from public criticism and public protest.”
Homenajes a Sarah Everard en la vigilia de Clapham CommonShow all 36 More

The expression of faith in the vaccines came as some European nations – including the Republic of Ireland – temporarily suspended use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca product after reports from Norway of a small number of vaccinated people who had developed serious blood clots.The prime minister’s official spokesman said that the UK will not follow suit, pointing to advice from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency that the AZ vaccine “remains both safe and effective”.“There is no evidence of any causal link between blood clots, and the AZ vaccine,” said the PM’s spokesman.“Blood clots occur naturally, and there’s no evidence that they are any more likely to occur following vaccination.Read more:Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekday“The Oxford/Astra Zeneca vaccine remains both safe and effective and we urge anybody asked to come forward to receive a vaccine to do so.”The spokesman said Mr Johnson, who is 56, is yet to be invited to have his jab, as vaccination teams continue to work through the 50-59 age group.But he added that the PM will have no choice over the make of vaccine he receives and will take whichever he is offered.“As soon as the prime minister is invited to come forward, he will take the vaccine,” said the spokesman.“Like anybody, he will get whatever vaccine is available to him at the point where he goes and takes it.“But he would be happy to take either.”Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon also said she will take either coronavirus vaccine “without hesitation” when she is invited.Speaking at her regular coronavirus briefing in Edinburgh on Monday, the First Minister said there had been “no current evidence” linking the inoculation to blood clots.“I personally am in the age group that will be vaccinated before mid-April, so I’m hoping to see my blue envelope appear at some point over the next couple of weeks,” said Ms Sturgeon.“As soon as I get that invitation to go to be vaccinated, I will be there without hesitation, regardless of which of the vaccines I have been offered and I would urge anybody who is getting the invitation to come and be vaccinated to get vaccinated.“It provides you, and people you love, and people that hopefully over the next weeks and months you’ll be interacting more with, with significant protection and that is really important.” More

Social justice movements from BLM to XR have released a joint statement saying they are “troubled and disturbed” over the government’s new policing bill. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, due for its second reading in parliament on Monday and Tuesday, would give new powers to the police to “tackle non-violent protests that have a significant disruptive effect on the public or on access to parliament.” It also threatens access to the countryside and the Traveller community’s way of life.Among the more than 50 signatories are: Black Lives Matter groups from across the UK, the Northern Police Monitoring Project, Extinction Rebellion UK, Labour Youth LGBT Network, RAAH UK, Labour LGBT+ Network, and many other grass-root marginalised groups.The statement, published on Monday, calls for MPs to “Kill the Bill”.The main criticisms are that they say the bill plans to:Introduce draconian new police powers to decide where, when and how citizens are allowed to protest and have their voices heard by those in powerIncrease penalties for those breaching police conditions on protests and the ease with which they can be found to have done so;Create a new trespass offence that criminalises the way of life of nomadic Gypsy and Traveller communities, while the government manifestly fails to provide adequate sites and permitted stopping places, and has implications for the public’s right to protest, access to the countryside and people experiencing homelessness.The statement says: “The rights to peacefully assemble and protest are a fundamental part of any democracy, empowering people to have their voices heard, in addition to holding the government to account.”Read more:Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayMinisters have argued that “recent changes in tactics” used by demonstrators, including people gluing themselves to buildings and vehicles or obstructing access to buildings such as Parliament, have “highlighted gaps” in the existing legislation.But signatories believe the measures proposed in the Bill undermine freedom of assembly and association which are protected under the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act. Some of the vague language in the bill has raised concerns, with protests that create “noise” or causing “serious annoyance” facing criminalisation. London’s Metropolitan Police have come under heavy criticism for the rough treatment of women as they clamped down on those who attended Clapham Common for a peaceful vigil for Sarah Everard, the 33-year-old-woman whose body was found last Wednesday.Images showed police arresting women and dragging people away from the site of the vigil. Metropolitan Police commissioner Cressida Dick has defied calls to resign, and said that what has happened makes her “more determined, not less, to lead my organisation.”The signatories believe now is not the time to increase police powers further, and are concerned about the “rushed” passage of the bill. The government has given a week between the 296-page bill’s publication and second reading.“This is no time to be rushing through poorly thought-out measures to impose disproportionate controls on free expression and the right to protest,” he claimed. “The Conservatives have brought forward a bill that is seeking to divide the country. It is a mess, which could lead to harsher penalties for damaging a statue than for attacking a woman.”A Home Office minister argued the new legislation was for “very, very different” scenarios and the “most disruptive protests”.MPs will now debate the bill in Parliament before they vote on it on Tuesday.The group’s joint statement says that “Unless Her Majesty’s Government changes its current course of action, we cannot foresee that the mounting public unrest from all sides will cease, nor that it should. Such is the nature of democracy.“This appears to be a blatant attempt to create an authoritarian police state, where the voices of ordinary people, particularly those most marginalised and disadvantaged, are silenced by state sanctioned penalties.” More

Boris Johnson has said he has “full confidence” in Cressida Dick as Metropolitan Police Commissioner, amid calls for her resignation over the heavy-handed policing of Saturday’s vigil to murdered Sarah Everard.Investigations have been launched by the Metropolitan Police and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary into Saturday’s events, when women attending the vigil on Clapham Common in south London were seen being forced to the ground and handcuffed by police. Dame Cressida will this evening attend a crisis meeting of the government’s Crime and Justice Taskforce to discuss the protection of women and girls with the PM, Home Secretary Priti Patel, justice secretary Robert Buckland and director of public prosecutions Max Hill.Calls for her resignation were led by Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, while Women’s Equality Party co-founder Catherine Mayer said her position was “untenable”.But Mr Johnson’s comments made clear she is under no immediate pressure from Downing Street to go.Read more:Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekday
Asked during a visit to Coventry if he had full confidence in the Met’s chief officer, Mr Johnson replied: “Yes, I do. And what she’s asked is … that we look at what happened on Saturday night.“The police do have a very, very difficult job. But there’s no question that the scenes that we saw were very distressing and so it is right that Tom Winsor, the inspector of constabulary, should do a full report into it.“I think people have got to have confidence in the police and Tom’s going to look at that.”Mr Johnson said he was “very concerned” at the images broadcast from Saturday’s vigil.“I think that we’ve got to recognise that the tragedy, the horrific crime that we’ve seen in the case of Sarah Everard, has triggered, has unleashed, a wave of feeling from people – from women above all – who do worry about their safety at night,” he said.Mr Johnson said that the government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, being discussed in parliament today included measures to toughen sentences for rapists and stop the early release of serious sexual and violent offenders and toughen the law on domestic violence.But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the legislation did not include anything “meaningful” on protecting women and girls, while devoting considerable effort to protecting statues against damage of the kind seen when a memorial to slave trader Edward Colston was torn down in Bristol last year.“We have got a 300-page Bill coming before Parliament, with 176 clauses of 20 schedules,” he told reporters.“It says lots of things about statues and almost nothing about protecting women and girls, and particularly dealing with violence against women and girls.”The Labour leader said what was needed was more support for those subjected to domestic violence, abuse and sexual offending, adding the Bill “doesn’t address the fact that sentencing for rape and stalking is too low”.“This is a gaping hole in the legislation, Government has got its priorities wrong, it should re-think,” he added. Asked why the beleaguered Met chief retained the PM’s confidence, Mr Johnson’s spokesman told a Westminster media briefing: “I have spoken already about the difficult job that the police have had during the pandemic and we thank them for that.“The Met and inspectorate are rightly looking into the events of Saturday now but the Commissioner continues to have the prime minister’s full confidence.”Asked what the prime minister made of the National Police Chiefs’ Council call for “clarity” on how forces should handle demonstrations during the Covid-19 pandemic, Mr Johnson’s spokesman said: “We’ve worked closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing to make sure the right guidance is in place and that police officers know what the rules are and how to enforce them.“Police have engaged members of the public throughout, they’ve explained the rules, encouraged them to follow the rules and enforced them if needed.” More

Watch live as MPs discuss controversial bill to crack down on protestsThe EU has begun legal action against the UK government following Boris Johnson’s announcement that he would change parts of the deal he signed last year to netter suit British businesses. The European Commission on Monday described the move as a “serious” violation of the agreement and has started legal proceedings against the UK with two formal letters which were sent on Monday.UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he will overhaul the UK’s armed forces, with plans to modernise the country’s defence and make the UK “match-fit.”Mr Johnson will unveil plans on Tuesday in the government’s Integrated Review of the UK’s defence and foreign relations. Meanwhile, in an attempt to reduce the number of people using their cars, Mr Johnson has launched a £3bn “bus revolution” as part of the government’s “leveling up” agenda.The strategy intends to encourage people to choose buses over cars with the promise that there will be better coordinated bus services countrywide.It was also announced that over 1,000 civil service jobs will move from London to Scotland. Of these, 500 are from the Foreign Office and will move from the capital up to East Kilbride.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayShow latest update
1615819785PM looking forward to talking with ‘EU friends’ over measures linked to Northern Ireland Boris Johnson has said that he is looking forward to discussions with the UK’s “EU friends” over what he called sensible temporary measures linked to the Northern Ireland Protocol.When asked why problems with the EU had arisen so quickly after a deal was agreed on, Mr Johnson said: “We haven’t seen the EU’s letter yet.“But I think what I would say to our friends in Brussels is very simple – the protocol is there to uphold and to guarantee, to buttress the Good Friday Agreement.“It (the protocol) should guarantee not just trade and movement north-south but east-west as well.“That’s all we’re trying to sort out with some temporary and technical measures which we think are very sensible.“But obviously we’ll look forward to our discussions with our EU friends and see where we get to.”The prime minister was on an official visit to Coventry when he was questioned on the subject. More

Brussels has launched legal action against the UK government after Boris Johnson announced he would renege on parts of the deal he signed last year.Earlier this month the UK moved to unilaterally change parts of the deal to better suit British businesses – provoking anger on the other side of the channel.Describing the move as a “serious” violation of the agreement, the European Commission on Monday fired the starting gun on legal proceedings by sending two formal letters.European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic, who leads on the issue for the bloc, said: “The EU and the UK agreed the protocol together. We are also bound to implement it together. Unilateral decisions and international law violations by the UK defeat its very purpose and undermine trust between us. “The UK must properly implement it if we are to achieve our objectives. That is why we are launching legal action today. I do hope that through the collaborative, pragmatic and constructive spirit that has prevailed in our work so far on implementing the withdrawal agreement, we can solve these issues in the joint committee without recourse to further legal means.”Read more:Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayThe UK sparked the row when it announced it was going to unilaterally extend grace periods relaxing controls on British supermarket suppliers and businesses trading in Northern Ireland – amid concerns that the terms negotiated last year would cause more food shortages if implemented as agreed.Some shops in the territory have struggled to stay stocked since 1 January when the new arrangement came in, but the situation is expected to significantly worsen when the grace periods on checks end. This was due to happen at the end of this month before the UK’s unilateral extension.The UK says changing the grace period is not a breach of the agreement and that it is necessary because the EU is not agreeing to an extension.Under the agreement signed by the prime minister, the UK could be fined for the violation, or face retaliatory trade sanctions. Asked what such sanctions could consist of, one EU official said: “That bridge we will cross if and when we reach it.”The decision by the government is the second time the UK has said it will breach the agreement in its short life: last year Mr Johnson threatened not to impose certain checks on trade required under the arrangement.The EU official said: “We’re being firm. What we see if the UK violating its international obligations for the second time in six months on the same issue.”The official said the fact there would be checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland was “crystal clear to all sides, and it was the working assumption of the talks at the time”.”We acknowledge that the UK says it wants to implement the protocol in full, but so far this is not reflected in the facts,” they said.They added: “We believe that these unilateral measures are a violation of the duty of good faith under Article 5 of the withdrawal agreement.”The UK must stop acting unilaterally and stop violating the rules that it has signed up to. “What we need to implement the protocol is mutual trust and this kind of unilateral action that we’ve see from the UK does not build trust.”
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Jonathan Sumption accused ministers of “humbug” in trying to pin responsibility on the police – arguing the Met was placed in “an impossible situation”. Both Boris Johnson and the home secretary have criticised the scenes on Saturday, when officers grabbed women, forced them to the ground and led them away in handcuffs.But Lord Sumption said: “The problem lies in the framing of the regulations – and this was a deliberate decision made by the home secretary, who objected to demonstrations or protests last year.”The former judge – a fierce critic of lockdown regulations – questioned whether the “considerable brutality” used by the police on Clapham Common was justified.However, he said: “The government’s expressions of concern about what happened seem to me to have a large element of humbug, because it is the direct result of a decision made last autumn.”In the first lockdown, there was “an exception for demonstrations and political protests”, provided rules had been agreed in advance with the police.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekday“That exception was deliberately removed at the end of last year, because the government did not want to allow political protests,” Lord Sumption told BBC Radio 4.“Now, of course, the government is mainly concerned about protests against its own policies – but the problem is you can’t have an exception for demonstrations and protests that the government likes, but not covering demonstrations and protests against the government itself.“And the real problem here is the absolute nature of these regulations which do not contain an exception for perfectly legitimate and peaceful protests.”In contrast, the German Constitutional Court had ruled that people must be allowed to gather “to make their views about political and other issues felt”, he said.The criticism came after the prime minister said “people have got to have confidence in the police”, ahead of chairing a meeting of the government’s Crime and Justice Taskforce. Meanwhile, an ex-police chief warned the public to be “really worried” about a new crackdown on protests – accusing the government of putting rights “fundamental to our democracy” at risk.The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill will expand police powers to stamp out protests that cause “serious unease” and create new penalties for people who cause “serious annoyance”.But Peter Fahy said it was wrong to “rush legislation” just because ministers are angry about the demonstrations staged by Black Lives Matter and Extinction Rebellion last summer.“We’ve learned one thing this weekend,” the ex-chief constable of Greater Manchester Police.“It’s the right to protest, the right to gather, the right to have a voice is fundamental to our democracy and particularly British democracy,” he said. More

An ex-police chief says the public should be “really worried” about a new crackdown on protests – accusing the government of putting rights “fundamental to our democracy” at risk.“It’s the right to protest, the right to gather, the right to have a voice is fundamental to our democracy and particularly British democracy,” he told Times Radio.Ahead of a vote in the Commons, Sir Peter accused the government of “putting in some really dodgy definitions which the police are supposed to make sense of”.“This weekend has shown the crucial importance of the right to protest and you’ve got to be really wary of more legislation being rushed through just because certain politicians didn’t like certain demonstrations in the summer,” he added. MPs are set to approve the legislation tomorrow – despite the uproar provoked by what civil liberties campaigners see as an assault on the right to protest and Labour opposition.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayIt comes after Priti Patel attacked the “dreadful” Black Lives Matter demonstrations that swept the country last year – at one point suggesting she did not support protests at all. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill will expand police powers to allow them to stamp out protests that cause “serious unease” and create new penalties for people who cause “serious annoyance”.Critics see it as mechanism to put the current Covid regulations – which the home secretary used to impose an outright ban on demonstrations – on a permanent footing.“You may think the events of the past few days have shown beyond doubt that the police cannot be trusted to protect our free speech rights. Well, it’s about to get worse,” said the human rights barrister Adam Wagner. The Bill has been prompted by the tactics of Extinction Rebellion, which brought central London to a standstill and, last September, blockaded major printing presses.Ministers backed away from exploring whether the organisation could be classed an organised crime group, focusing on preventing it causing similar disruption instead. But the attempt has sparked fresh controversy because of Saturday night’s ugly scenes, when officers attempted to shut down the vigil to mourn the murder of Sarah Everard.Boris Johnson said he was “deeply concerned” by the scenes of the police grabbing women, forcing them to the ground and leading them away in handcuffs.He will chair a meeting of the government’s Crime and Justice Taskforce on Monday to discuss ways to protect women and girls from violence, with under-fire Met chief Cressida Dick among the attendees.Ms Patel has asked the chief inspector of constabulary to conduct a “lessons learned” review into the police’s actions at the vigil, even as criticism grows of her new legislation. More