Rights and Liberties in the UK

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Rights and Liberties in the UK

• How secure are they ?

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A British citizenship pledge

• Iswear by almighty God that, on becoming a
  British citizen, I will be faithful and bear true
  allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, her
  heirs and successors according to law. I will
  give my loyalty to the United Kingdom and respect
  its rights and freedoms. I will uphold its
  democratic values. I will observe its laws
  faithfully and fulfil my duties and obligations
  as a British Citizen.

What does this pledge tell us about British
values ?
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Do electronic ID cards threaten our civil
liberties ?
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Civil Liberties in the UK

• Since the 1960s Parliament has passed laws to
  decriminalise homosexuality and abortion and to
  outlaw racial and sexual discrimination in the
  workplace.
• In 1998 the European Human Rights Act was
  incorporated into UK law.

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The Human Rights Act (1998)

• The European Convention on Human Rights was
  incorporated in to UK law.
• Which of these are positive and which are
  negative rights ?

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The Human Rights Act

• Right to life
• Prohibition of torture
• Prohibition of slavery
• Right to liberty and security
• Right to a fair trial
• Freedom of expression, thought and conscience
• Freedom of association and assembly
• Right to marry and found a family
• Prohibition of discrimination.

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The Human Rights Act

• Right to life (P)
• Prohibition of torture (N)
• Prohibition of slavery (N)
• Right to liberty and security (P)
• Right to a fair trial (P)
• Freedom of expression, thought and conscience (P)
• Freedom of association and assembly (P)
• Right to marry and found a family (P)
• Prohibition of discrimination. (N)

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Have anti-terrorism laws eroded civil liberties
in the UK ?
The IRA waged a terrorist campaign against the
British state in the 1970s and 80s
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The Prevention of Terrorism Act (1974)

• An emergency law to deal with the threat from a
  wave of IRA terrorist attacks in the 1970s
• Allowed police officers to detain terrorist
  suspects for 7 days without charge as opposed to
  the normal 24 hours (habeas corpus)
• The act needed to be renewed by parliament each
  year.

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2001 and after

• September 11th 2001 and the March 2004 train
  bombings in Madrid alerted western governments to
  a new security issue.
• July 7th 2005 was the deadliest ever terrorist
  attack in the UK
• The UK government has passed tough new
  anti-terrorist laws which have proved to be as
  highly controversial as those in the USA

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2001 Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act

• Passed with great speed after the 9/11 attacks in
  the USA
• Allowed the Home Secretary to detain non-British
  terrorist suspects without trial indefinitely.
• The Law Lords (highest court of appeal in UK)
  ruled in 2004 that this was illegal under the
  European Human Rights Act (1998)

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2005 Prevention of Terrorism Act

• Instead of detention without trial the Home
  Secretary can impose control orders on
  terrorist suspects
• Ban them from meeting certain people, confiscate
  their passport, computer etc, to allow electronic
  surveillance etc

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Task

• Read the articles and decide if you think the
  government has acted disproportionately in the
  face of the terrorist threat.
• Does Britain have effectivechecks and balances
  within its constitution to prevent such
  suspension of civil rights ? What are they ?

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The Law lords

• As well as a legislative function the House of
  Lords has a judicial function as the court of
  final appeal in the UK
• Nine judges usually make up the Law lords.
• In 2005 a new Supreme Court of the UK was
  established which begin work in 2009

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The European Court of Human Rights

• Where UK law is subject to European directives or
  law then cases can be heard at the European Court
  of Human Rights in Strasbourg

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Research Task

• Visit www.liberty-human-rights-org.uk
• What are the main campaign issues sponsored by
  this important UK pressure group ?