Voting Eligibility Prisoners Draft Bill

The European Court of Human Rights has described the UK's current blanket ban on prisoner voting as 'general, automatic and indiscriminate' and found it to be in breach of article 3 of protocol 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The ECHR requires the UK to bring forward legislative proposals to amend our current legislation to be compliant with the Convention. The Government is putting forward three options to a Committee of both Houses for full Parliamentary scrutiny. The three options are: a ban for prisoners sentenced to 4 years or more; a ban for prisoners sentenced to more than 6 months; a continued ban for all convicted prisoners. When the Joint Committee has finished its scrutiny the Government will reflect on its recommendations it will continue the legislative process by introducing a Bill.

The report Joint Committee On The Draft Voting Eligibility (Prisoners): Report (HL 103, HC 924) discuses the Government's Voting Eligibility (Prisoners): Draft Bill (see below) which was published as a result of a decision by the European Court of Human Rights, that the UK's complete prohibition on convicted prisoners voting was incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. The Joint Committee on the Bill has reached the following conclusions on points of basic principle: in a democracy the vote is a right, not a privilege and should not be removed without good reason; the vote is a presumptive, not an absolute right; the vote is also a power; there is a legitimate expectation that those convicted of the most heinous crimes should be stripped of the power embodied in the right to vote; selecting the custody threshold as the unique indicator of the type of offence that is so serious as to just

How do bills of rights influence legislative decision-making in New Zealand and the United Kingdom?

The UK's engagement with the legal protection of human rights at a European level has been, at varying stages, pioneering, sceptical and antagonistic. The UK government, media and public opinion have all at times expressed concerns about the growing influence of European human rights law, particularly in the controversial contexts of prisoner voting and deportation of suspected terrorists as well as in the context of British military action abroad. British politicians and judges have also, however, played important roles in drafting, implementing and interpreting the European Convention on Human Rights. Its incorporation into domestic law in the Human Rights Act 1998 intensified the ongoing debate about the UK's international and regional human rights commitments. Furthermore, the increasing importance of the European Union in the human rights sphere has added another layer to the relationship and highlights the complex relationship(s) between the UK government, the Westminster Parliament and judges in the UK, Strasbourg and Luxembourg. The book analyses the topical and contentious issue of the relationship between the UK and the European systems for the protection of human rights (ECHR and EU) from doctrinal, contextual and comparative perspectives and explores factors that influence the relationship of the UK and European human rights.

Unlocking Constitutional and Administrative Law provides an indispensable foundation in this core law curriculum subject, ensuring that you grasp the main concepts with ease. Containing accessible explanations in clear and precise terms that are easy to understand, it provides an excellent foundation for learning and revising Constitutional and Administrative Law. The information is clearly presented in a logical structure and the following features support learning, helping you to advance with confidence: Clear aims and objectives at the beginning of each chapter set out the skills and knowledge you will need to get to grips with the subject Key Facts summaries throughout each chapter allow you to progressively build and consolidate your knowledge Diagrams to aid memory and understanding Cases and judgments are highlighted to help you find them and add them to your notes quickly End-of-chapter summaries provide a useful checklist for each topic Frequent activities and self-test questions are included so you can put your knowledge into practice Glossary of legal terminology clarifies important definitions. This edition has been fully updated to include discussion of recent changes, issues and developments since the last edition, including an expanded section on Brexit, proposed changes to Judicial review, developments in Wales, Ireland and Scotland, recent Bills raising issues concerning the rule of law, and a new chapter on the constitutional impact of COVID-19.

A considered balance of depth, detail, context, and critique, Public Law Directions offers the most student-friendly guide to the subject; empowering students to evaluate the law, understand its practical application, and approach assessments with confidence.

Constitutions divide into those that provide for a constitutionally protected set of rights, where courts can strike down legislation, and those where rights are protected predominantly by parliament, where courts can interpret legislation to protect rights, but cannot strike down legislation. The UK's Human Rights Act 1998 is regarded as an example of a commonwealth model of rights protections. It is justified as a new form of protection of rights which promotes dialogue between the legislature and the courts - dialogue being seen not just as a better means of protecting rights, but as a new form of constitutionalism occupying a middle ground between legal and political constitutionalism. This book argues that there is no clear middle ground for dialogue to occupy, with most theories of legal and political constitutionalism combining legal and political protections, as well as providing an account of interactions between the legislature and the judiciary. Nevertheless, dialogue has a role to play. It differs from legal and political constitutionalism in terms of the assumptions on which it is based and the questions it asks. It focuses on analysing mechanisms of inter-institutional interactions, and assessing when these interactions can provide a better protection of rights, facilitate deliberation, engage citizens, and act as an effective check and balance between institutions of the constitution. This book evaluates dialogue in the UK constitution, assessing the protection of human rights through the Human Rights Act 1998, the common law, and EU law. It also evaluates court-court dialogue between the UK court, the European Court of Justice, and the European Court of Human Rights. The conclusion evaluates the implications of the proposed British Bill of Rights and the referendum decision to leave the European Union.