iPhone | iPad
Android
Huawei
British Prime Minister promises 'the biggest reimagining' of the NHS since it was founded 76 years ago
KT APPDOWNLOAD
UK resumes legal bid for tougher powers to police
Interior ministry says all public order legislation has to be balanced against the fundamental right to protest
Civil rights group Liberty says the new legislation gives police almost unlimited powers to shut down protests. — AFP
Britain has revived its attempt to give police wider powers to impose conditions on street protests, a decision that a civil rights group said showed a worrying disregard for the rule of law.
The group, Liberty, successfully challenged the changes to public order laws made by the country's previous Conservative government. London's High Court ruled in May that the government exceeded its powers by lowering the threshold for police to impose conditions.
The interior ministry's appeal against the ruling was delayed in July — shortly after Labour won a parliamentary election — to allow for talks with Liberty about the change.
Britain's new government this month decided to pursue the appeal which Liberty director Akiko Hart said was a disappointing decision.
A spokesperson for the interior ministry said all public order legislation had to be balanced against the fundamental right to protest.
"However, we disagree with the court's ruling in this case and have appealed their decision," the spokesperson said.
Liberty's case focused on the Public Order Act, under which police can impose conditions on a protest which could cause "serious disruption to the life of the community". The law was amended last year to allow police to impose conditions where a protest could cause "more than minor" disruption.
Liberty said the new powers gave police almost unlimited powers to shut down protests, citing the arrest in Britain of Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, who was later acquitted.
The High Court ruled the new powers were unlawful, but put the quashing of the new powers on hold pending appeal.
More news from World
Talks have so far failed to reach a deal to end the 11-month-old war
Women take on more jobs traditionally filled by men
The Tokyo-based startup aims to follow the success of US-based Intuitive Machines, which in February made the world's first private moon landing
Mission is riskiest yet for Elon Musk's SpaceX
Wealth inequality and climate change are other issues the pope may address
Biden declares federal state of emergency for Louisiana
Some schools have told students to stay home for the rest of the week, while thousands of residents of low-lying areas have been evacuated