Protests are disruptive by design and extra police powers could threaten all our human rights March 16, 2021 The police crackdown on the Clapham Common vigil in memory of Sarah Everard this weekend was a stark reminder that we all need human rights to ensure that the police both protect our lives when we are threatened and respect our rights to protest when things go wrong. In recent years, human rights have been [...]
Sadiq Khan to unveil £544m plan to fund London’s Covid recovery March 16, 2021 Sadiq Khan will today announce a £544m investment in London’s jobs and high streets to help the capital recover from the coronavirus pandemic. The Mayor of London will also call on the government to match his spending plans for the city as he unveils the proposals at the inaugural London Recovery Summit. Alongside the spending [...]
Priti Patel calls for ‘balance of rights’ between protesters and individuals as she introduces protest crackdown March 15, 2021 Priti Patel has told MPs that “there is a balance to be struck” between the rights of protesters and individuals as she today introduced new legislation that will crackdown on some form of protesting. The new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, if passed into law, will give the police powers to set start and [...]
Sadiq Khan calls for more government engagement on financial services post-Brexit March 15, 2021 Sadiq Khan has called for the government to provide greater clarity for the City of London post-Brexit, with the mayor telling Rishi Sunak to “address the concerns of London’s financial and professional services sector”. Khan wrote to the chancellor today to call for the government to secure equivalence for the financial services sector, in order [...]
London minister Paul Scully on his rise to government March 15, 2021 Paul Scully seems a natural fit for London minister. While the Sutton and Cheam MP didn’t grow up in the capital, Scully was born in Warwickshire and went to school in Bedforshire, he certainly sounds like a nailed-on Londoner. His south London twang is noticeable and so is his relaxed, chatty demeanour – the antithesis [...]
Met chief Cressida Dick fighting for job as criticism grows March 15, 2021 Met Police commissioner Cressida Dick said she will not quit after a Sarah Everard vigil ended in arrests and accusations of police manhandling. Dick defended officers, saying they were in an “invidious” position when crowds grew at Clapham Common on Saturday evening. “They moved to try to explain to people, to engage with people, to [...]
Boris Johnson ‘deeply concerned’ by footage from Sarah Everard vigil March 15, 2021 Boris Johnson has said that he is “deeply concerned” after footage showed women being arrested by police officers at a vigil for 33-year-old Sarah Everard on Saturday night. The Prime Minister will today chair a meeting of the crime and justice taskforce to look at what needs to be done to make the streets safer [...]
Sadiq Khan calls for watchdog inquiry into police action at Sarah Everard vigil March 14, 2021 Sadiq Khan has said he is “not satisfied” by Met commissioner Cressida Dick’s explanation of heavy-handed police actions at Sarah Everard’s Clapham vigil last night, calling for a full investigation by two police watchdogs. The mayor of London, who has oversight of the Metropolitan Police, said he had “received assurances” from the police that the [...]
Round the bend again: TfL buckles up for crunch time in latest funding talks March 13, 2021 It’s almost like we’ve been here before. On 31 March, Transport for London will for the third time in under a year run out of money, unless it can agree a new funding deal with the government. The past two bailout packages – totalling £3.3bn – were only agreed after weeks of frantic and at [...]
Police confirm human remains belong to missing Sarah Everard March 12, 2021 The Met Police have confirmed that the human remains found in a woodland in Kent are those of 33-year-old Sarah Everard, who disappeared on 3 March. A police officer, whose job it was to guard diplomatic buildings, remains in custody in connection of Everard’s kidnapping and murder. “I can now confirm that it is the [...]