Photo by Waldemar Brandt on Unsplash The title of this Blog article is really addressed to the U.K. Government of Prime Minister Johnson. In part, we now have an answer since the announcement of the Agreement which has finally been negotiated between the European Union and the U.K. on Christmas Eve. Bear in mind that the British had full access to the European Single Market with its four fundamental freedoms – free movement of goods, people, services and capital. This will end on 31 December 2020 when the transition period expires – the period following Brexit where the U.K. co ..read more

This is a relatively short article about today’s major constitutional law development which will affect the future of the United Kingdom as a unitary state. The U.K. Supreme Court has finally ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the legislative power to hold a referendum (either a legally binding one or a purely advisory one). A link to the judgement can be found below: https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2022-0098.html This clearly represents a significant set back for supporters of independence for Scotland and the casual observer may arrive at the lazy conclusion that the ma ..read more

CITY OF GLASGOW COLLEGE LAW SYMPOSIUM, RESTORATIVE JUSTICE WEDNESDAY 2 NOVEMBER 2022 City of Glasgow College, 190 Cathedral Street, Glasgow, G4 0RF Lecture Theatre, Level One PROGRAMME 9.15am Welcome and Opening Remarks Dr Paul K Little, Chief Executive and Principal, City of Glasgow College 9.30am Keynote Presentation Keith Brown MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans 9.45am Scene setting by Sheriff David Mackie 10am In discussion – Sheriff David Mackie with Gus Grubb, Dean of Faculty Education and Humanities, City of Glasgow College 10.30am Tim Chapman Chair of the Board, European ..read more

Recently, I have been discussing with my students the creation of statutory criminal offences i.e. those created by Parliament (whether the U.K. or Scottish Parliaments). In particular, the group discussions have centred around the issue of whether the offence requires the accused to have mens rea (criminal intent or the guilty mind) when carrying out or attempting the actus reus (the wrongful act). Alternatively, the offence may be one of strict liability where mens rea is largely irrelevant. Strict liability offences include non-payment of a TV licence and some road traffic offences. In rel ..read more

Photo by Robert Ruggiero on Unsplash Last weekend (more specifically Saturday 29 January 2022) saw a really significant overall of the UK’s Highway Code which means that pedestrians and cyclists will be given far greater protection. I was originally going to entitle this Blog either Code of Silence or Code Unknown, purely on the grounds that the changes seem to have crept up without any real awareness on the part of the British public. The reason I say this is because I was listening to BBC Radio 2 during the week running up to the changes. Jeremy Vine, the host of the eponymous show, was disc ..read more

Photo of the author’s copy of Dune The latest big screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal science fiction novel, Dune, finally received its U.K. cinema release on 22 October 2021. The movie is the latest work by Canadian director, Denis Villeneuve and has been very warmly received by critics and fans. On the back of this success, the studio has just given the go ahead for Villeneuve to film Part 2 of Herbert’s novel. I’ve been a big fan of Herbert’s novel since first reading it as a teenager. I’m going to stick my neck out and also say that I still have a tremendous affection for David Ly ..read more

Photo by Kayla Maurais on Unsplash It’s Halloween today and it seems perfectly natural to be talking about witches and the supernatural. It’s a day of fun for a lot of people – young and old. That said, to call someone a witch – specifically – a woman, would likely be regarded as an example of misogyny or hatred of women. It would be intended as an insult. Several hundred years ago, in Scotland, you would not be dressing up as a witch or a warlock (the male counterpart). There was a very real fear of witches and their ability to carry out evil deeds against well doing members of the community ..read more

Photo by Daniel Monteiro on Unsplash Almost two years ago, I mentioned the English Court of Appeal’s decision in Uber BV & Ors v Aslam & Ors [2018] EWCA Civ 2748 on appeal from UKEAT/0056/17/DA), where individuals working as taxi drivers for Uber were to be classified as workers not self-employed individuals. This decision was a significant defeat for Uber, but it was hardly going to be the last word in the story and so it proved. An appeal to the U.K. Supreme Court was always going to be on the cards and, on Friday 19 February, the Justices issued their judgement (see Uber BV & Or ..read more

Photo by Dainis Graveris on Unsplash Sex or gender: which term do you prefer? Can they be used inter-changeably? These questions have now come into sharp focus as a result of an amendment to the Forensic Medical Services (Victims of Sexual Offences) (Scotland) Bill. Our understanding of the terms “sex” and “gender” may now have to evolve as a result of the debate surrounding aspects of the Bill, but before we discuss this Bill it’s worth looking at the current legal position surrounding gender recognition issues. The Equality Act 2010 Section 11(1) of the Equality Act 2010 defines a person’s ..read more

Photo by Ryan Snaadt on Unsplash Author’s note dated 11 March 2021: the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill successfully completed Stage 3 of the parliamentary process at Holyrood by 82 votes for to 32 against. It now awaits the formality of Royal Assent. Today, I was talking to a group of students about the fact that cultural factors can sometimes be a much more powerful driver towards changing society’s attitudes about certain issues. Sometimes when Governments take a very legalistic approach to societal issues e.g. equality and discrimination, they can end up being accused of overki ..read more