International Law

Al-Qaeda threat to British prisons

Posted on February 10, 2008
Al-Qaeda threat to British prisons"Prison officers are struggling to control a group of al-Qaeda terrorists who are clashing with other serious offenders in one of Britain's high-security jails.Frankland Prison, County Durham, holds an estimated 20 al-Qaeda members and sympathisers, serving long sentences for planning atrocities in the United Kingdom and abroad...

Top judges in key ruling on sharia marriage

Posted on February 10, 2008
Top judges in key ruling on sharia marriage"Three senior judges are to rule on the legality of an arranged marriage conducted in the UK under sharia law, a judgment that could have profound consequences for British Muslims.Last week, as Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, declared it was 'inevitable' that certain parts of Islamic law would be introduced into Britain, the Court of Appeal was told how a 26-year-old British Muslim with learning difficulties was married over the telephone to a woman in Bangladesh...

Conservative claims £20,000 to paint house and other sleaze

Posted on February 10, 2008
Conservative claims £20,000 to paint house and other sleaze"A senior Conservative MP claimed more than £20,000 in housing expenses last year, explaining that he had to paint his property and remove moss from the garden"."The rules also allow members to claim for television licences, council tax, parking permits, burglar alarms, security lighting, buildings insurance, maintenance, cleaners, furnishings and utility bills, as well as up to £400 on food a month...

Guantánamo detainees said to face 9/11 trial

Posted on February 10, 2008
Guantánamo detainees said to face 9/11 trial"US military prosecutors are putting the finishing touches to the first major case against Guantanamo Bay inmates suspected to have helped plot the September 11 attacks. The charges are expected to involve six detainees currently held at the Cuban detention camp, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the former senior aide to Osama bin Laden, who claims to have been the main architect of the plot"...

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Bugging could lead to killers being freed

Posted on February 10, 2008
Bugging could lead to killers being freed"Hundreds of prisoners could successfully appeal against their convictions after claims lawyers were "routinely bugged" during prison visits, it was claimed last night".

Secretary of State for buggers

Posted on February 09, 2008
Secretary of State for buggersJack Straw eavesdropping simultaneously on the 81,681 prison population

Lawyers forced to repay millions taken from sick miners? compensation

Posted on February 09, 2008
Lawyers forced to repay millions taken from sick miners? compensation"Law firms that grew rich by exploiting sick miners are to be forced to repay tens of millions of pounds that they wrongly sliced from their clients? compensation".

NIMBY Benn

Posted on February 09, 2008
NIMBY BennYou can ramble in everybody else's backyard says the Essex Boy Hilary Benn but Not In My Back Yard.

Barrister who spied on ex-wife is named

Posted on February 09, 2008
Barrister who spied on ex-wife is named"A leading barrister whose identity was protected by the courts after he was convicted of harassing his ex-wife can be named today after two High Court judges overturned a gagging order".With a criminal conviction, why is this man still a QC, part-time judge, and employed by the government as an adviser?

Thousands more prisoners may be freed early

Posted on February 09, 2008
Thousands more prisoners may be freed early"The prison population has hit a record high and spare spaces in police cells are running out fast, prompting fears that ministers will have to release thousands more prisoners early to ease over-crowding".Jails full as inmates reach record number"Dozens of prisoners were housed in court cells this week after space ran out in prisons and police stations...

Hundreds of lawyers 'bugged on prison visits'

Posted on February 09, 2008
Hundreds of lawyers 'bugged on prison visits'"The full scale of a nationwide policy to bug British jails can be disclosed today after a whistleblower revealed that hundreds of lawyers and prison visitors had been secretly recorded".Such surveillance tactics only harm"Electronic surveillance has run like a thread through this week's news, revealing a combination of ministerial ignorance and police high-handedness"...

Sharia comments trigger criticism

Posted on February 08, 2008
Sharia comments trigger criticism"The Archbishop of Canterbury has come under fire after appearing to back the adoption of some aspects of Sharia law in the UK".I was surprised upon hearing the Archbishop of Canturbury's interview, on Radio 4's The World At One, at how quiet and reasonable he sounded as he made his points...

Sleepless in Swindon - man who slept 14 minutes a night enters land of nod

Posted on February 08, 2008
Sleepless in Swindon - man who slept 14 minutes a night enters land of nod"For almost two decades, Philip Skeates woke up dog tired, even though he had just spent a good 12 hours in bed. He would get up for breakfast, then stagger back to bed until noon...

Outcry over prisoners claiming student grants

Posted on February 08, 2008
Outcry over prisoners claiming student grants"Prisoners have claimed at least £500,000 in student grants and loans for taking courses while in jail, it has been disclosed.Ministers said the payments - usually made to help university students pay for food and rent - had been made because of a loophole in the student loans system"...

LOL

Posted on February 07, 2008
LOL.Bypass option here.

CIA admits waterboarding of terror suspects

Posted on February 07, 2008
CIA admits waterboarding of terror suspects"It was a good day to bury bad news. As millions of Americans were glued to the most exciting presidential race in living memory, the Bush Administration admitted publicly for the first time that it had used the simulated drowning technique of waterboarding on terror suspects in its custody"...

The House of Cads comes tumbling down

Posted on February 06, 2008
The House of Cads comes tumbling downIn the same way that the Home Secretary and now Minister of Justice packs the Parole Board to achieve the desired result in the House of Correction, the House of Corruption has followed suit. "A committee set up to review MPs' perks and expenses is dominated by establishment figures who oppose public scrutiny of their financial affairs or are tainted by allegations of "sleaze", it has been disclosed".

The Sloane Ranger rides again: Hi ho 30 pieces of silver away

Posted on February 06, 2008
The Sloane Ranger rides again: Hi ho 30 pieces of silver awayNo longer able to live off the proceeds of crime, thanks to daddy getting his hands caught in the public purse, Henry Conway, is forced into having to earn a living.Nice touch, not your bum darling, this PR fight back: "Henry Conway has requested that his fee for this article be donated to the Elton John Aids Foundation"...

7 of 1 and 6 of the other

Posted on February 06, 2008
7 of 1 and 6 of the otherIt has long been an established principle of English law that suspects in criminal trials are judged by a jury of 12 of our peers. That is, until now. If this man is unable to add up, would you want him sitting in the jury on your trial?Never mind Dizzy Thinks, methinks he is all at sixes and sevens...

Convicted barrister wins gagging order

Posted on February 05, 2008
Convicted barrister wins gagging order"A barrister found guilty of a criminal offence has been granted anonymity by a court gagging order.The eminent barrister, who was convicted of harassing a former partner, cannot be named by the media because children are involved in the case, the court ruled"...

Wanted by the police 'subversive' Muslim MP

Posted on February 05, 2008
Wanted by the police 'subversive' Muslim MPLet me get this right. The Metropolitan Police are investigating the activities of a Muslim MP, Sadiq Khan, whom they claim is a 'subversive' and request, rather forcefully, that Thames Valley Police bug the conversation of this 'subversive' within the walls of a British penal establishment...

Who guards the guards? (3)

Posted on February 04, 2008
Who guards the guards? (3)Some bloggers will be aware of the on/off running battle between Iain Dale and Tim Ireland. And that Iain Dale's Diary has recently had a face lift to try and improve its image. But, all that glitters is not gold. For example:"Rules of EngagementIain Dale 2:19 PMRULES ON COMMENTSI welcome a healthy debate on this blog...

Who guards the guards? (2)

Posted on February 04, 2008
Who guards the guards? (2)The Tories are trying to make political capital out of this affair. I agree with David Davis that a Commons statement should be made by Jack Straw, however, why is he not calling for Commons statements from Charles Clarke and John Reid, the two former Home Secretaries who authorised the illegal bugging to take place? This might be a good time to inform David Davis, if he is not aware, and remind him if he is, that proof of posting is not proof of delivery...

Two Labour MPs bug another Labour MP

Posted on February 03, 2008
Two Labour MPs bug another Labour MPThe two Home Secretaries legally responsible in 2005 and 2006 for bugging Sadiq Khan MP are Charles Clarke MP and John Reid MP respectively.Presently, legal responsibility for prisons rests with Jack Straw, the Minister of Justice...

Police bugged Muslim MP Sadiq Khan

Posted on February 03, 2008
Police bugged Muslim MP Sadiq KhanSCOTLAND YARD?S antiterrorist squad secretly bugged a high-profile Labour Muslim MP during private meetings with one of his constituents.Sadiq Khan, now a government whip, was recorded by an electronic listening device hidden in a table during visits to the constituent in prison...

Who guards the guards?

Posted on February 03, 2008
Who guards the guards?IntroductionThe Sunday Times is part of the Dead Tree Press, within the Mainstream Media (MSM), owned by Rupert Murdoch, but maintains independent editorial control. Many bloggers are disillusioned by the MSM. I have no time for Rupert Murdoch, however, I do have a lot of time for the Insight team which yesterday brought us the story "Police bugged Muslim MP "...

Legal threats fired in blog war

Posted on February 02, 2008
Legal threats fired in blog warOn January 24th 2008, at 12.32pm, Guido Fawkes posted this, with the rather dubious claim entitled "How Guido Destroyed Hain's Ambitions in 12 Months". With the post was an accompanying political cartoon, at the bottom of which read "richandmark...

NatWest the bank robber

Posted on February 02, 2008
NatWest the bank robberThis morning I received a letter from the Social Security informing me that my Social Security benefits will change. "From 8 April 2008 your Jobseeker's Allowance will be £60.50 a week".This is good news.Especially as the letter states: "This payment of Jobseeker's Allowance is based on the amount the law says you need to live on"...

Top Tory blogger is bottom of the class

Posted on February 02, 2008
Top Tory blogger is bottom of the classI agree with Iain Dale when he states: "Idiot that I am", and he needs to go back to school for a geography lesson because he was labouring under the impression that America is part of Europe!

Trust me I'm a doctor

Posted on February 02, 2008
Trust me I'm a doctorGP drugged victims before raping them

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