We welcome the identification in the Stockholm Programme of this issue, and the Green Paper from the Commission. However, there is a real and serious risk that any new instrument will continue the trend of previous mutual recognition and assistance instruments of inadequately considering the position of the suspect, in an effort to improve efficiency. […]
Procedural safeguards in the EU
December 19, 2009
What are procedural safeguards? The term ‘procedural safeguards’ refers to the protections afforded to a defendant in the course of criminal proceedings. The European Commission Green Paper and Proposal for a Council Framework Decision on procedural safeguards adopted the phrase to refer to this aspect of criminal procedure in the area of police and judicial […]
International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)
What is the International Commission of Jurists? The ICJ is an international non-governmental organisation which promotes human rights and the rule of law. Its membership consists of sixty eminent jurists from around the world. Its new President is Mary Robinson, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and former President of the Republic of […]
The Lisbon Treaty
Why is the Lisbon Treaty necessary? The current treaty base to the European Union (EU) has developed between 1958 when the European Economic Community (EEC) was formed and the 2003 Nice Treaty. The founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) comprised of six member states. The 15 member states that approved the […]
The parole system of England and Wales
What is Parole? ‘Parole’, a word originally meaning ‘word of honour’, is used in modern-day England and Wales to describe the release of a prisoner on licence by the Parole Board while his or her sentence is still ongoing. ‘Conditional’ release occurs in circumstances where the sentence is still ongoing and the prisoner can be […]
JUSTICE Journal – Volume 6, Number 2
December 1, 2009
Contents of Volume 6 Number 2 Editorial Keeping human rights and justice on the agenda Articles Human Rights and the New British Constitution Professor Vernon Bogdanor The Decline of Legal Aid: we are not alone Roger Smith The Media and Human Rights Heather Rogers QC Mutual Legal Assistance v Mutual Recognition? Jodie Blackstock Book reviews […]
Coroners and Justice Bill
November 12, 2009
This bill received Royal Assent on 12 November 2009 and became the Coroners and Justice Act 2009. See the bill’s passage through Parliament. JUSTICE Briefing – House of Lords Report Stage (with amendments) – October 2009 Joint NGO Briefing – House of Lords Report Stage (genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity) – October 2009 Joint NGO Briefing – House of Lords Report […]
Policing and Crime Bill
This bill drew together a number of disparate policy issues on policing and crime. It received Royal Assent of 12 November 2009 and became the Policing and Crime Act 2009. See the bill’s passage though Parliament. JUSTICE Briefing – House of Lords Report Stage – October 2009 JUSTICE Briefing – House of Lords Committee Stage – […]
A New Parole System for England and Wales
October 28, 2009
This JUSTICE report is a timely contribution to the debate over the future of the parole system in England and Wales. Case-law has called into question whether the Parole Board is sufficiently independent from government, and whether it has the powers and resources necessary to make its decisions with all the relevant information and without […]
Human Rights and the New British Constitution
October 14, 2009
In the 2009 JUSTICE Tom Sargant memorial annual lecture, Professor Vernon Bogdanor concludes: … it is dangerous for a society to believe that it can leave its liberties in the hands of judges. The philosophy of rights, while it may be necessary, is not sufficient to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. We need […]