Continuing with my Friday ‘Rive Gauche’ theme, I thought I would start this week’s edition with some more political nonsense, tinged with a soupçon of hubris.

Political diarist Iain Dale, always worth a read whatever your political proclivities, asks:

When will it end? The Telegraph has the story tonight of Conservative MP David Curry, the new chairman of the Parliamentary Standards Committee (no, really), has been accused of claiming £30,000 of taxpayers’ money to pay for a house he hasn’t set foot in for four years, after being banned by his ex wife.

Mr Curry has referred himself to the Parliamentary Commissioner. Iain Dale, states, not unreasonably…“Quite astonishing behaviour. It’s even more astonishing that Mr Curry took on the role of chairman of the Standards Committee in the first place. Did no alarm bell ring, even at the back of his head?”
Harman Faces ‘Driving Offence’ Prosecution. Sky news reports: “Cabinet minister Harriet Harman will be prosecuted for allegedly driving without due care and attention and driving while using a hand-held mobile phone, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.” Harman plans to contest the charges, but Gordon Brown gets the opportunity to trot out the well worn line that he has ‘full confidence’ in her. Given Brown’s reputation, chronicled amusingly by Guido Fawkes at every opportunity, to jinx pretty well everything he supports… this may not be welcome news to Harman.

The new president of ‘Europe’ is more likely to be mistaken for someone who directs the traffic than stops it as Blair may well have done – but in the finest tradition of the Franco-German axis which appears to dominate in Europe, we now have another ‘leader’ who has not faced a public vote in Mr Van Rompuy, who also managed to become prime minister of Belgium, I believe, without being elected to the role by the people of Belgium. BBC

While many will rejoice in the fact that Tony Blair did not get the traffic stopping role of ‘EU President’ – Britain did not miss out and another person who has never been elected to anything (it is believed) is now High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security. Labour peer Baroness Ashton will now be doing the business. Most sardonic political commentary on the matter seems to focus on the fact that after 10 years of angst and pushing through ‘a new order for Europe’, the leaders of 27 countries have finally decided against striding across the world stage and would rather have someone as president who they can get to sweep up after them at meetings. We shall, no doubt, see how it all works out… or, more likely, we won’t..because RumpyPumpy, as he is now known, inevitably, in Britain…. probably won’t be appearing in the newspapers that often.

Meanwhile… The Great Architect of everything on earth and beyond, Lord Mandelson…another person not elected to govern over us…. is about to perpetrate a disgraceful abuse of power which is better left to the others to describe. Let me point you in the direction first of a sane article on the topic of Mandelson’s grip on this country.

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Dictatorial, disastrous, dire: Mandelson must not pass

Without debate, without public consulation, without any form of mandate, Lord Mandelson – an unelected politician – is preparing to place the rights of powerful industrial concerns above those of Parliament and above ours.

The powers that he wants to create – by means of a statutory instrument, which bypasses Parliamentary debate and decision – will criminalise downloading of content without permission. They will give him or anyone he chooses the power to enforce by law any action he or his successor thinks fit, in the service of protecting copyright.

These are the opening paragraphs for an excellent analysis by Rupert Goodwins. The entire article is a must read if you are interested in this issue.

We go over now to GEEKLAWYER, who, taking time out of his busy work and twittering schedule, has an excellent (and sane) analysis of the very same issue. “Three Strikes and You’re Out” – A good read.

Despite well considered independent advice on the economics of policy decisions for the Internet from Professor Gower and various others it seems that all it takes to buy Labour policy is a bribe from a Formula One homunculus or a blow job from a rent boy on a nice yacht. Regrettably while Geeklawyer has a big mouth there some things he wont swallow, one is the member of Hartlepool; not even for something as important as this.”

And then we have Keir Starmer QC, Director of Prosecutions, in The Telegraph: Chief prosecutor backs state snooping plans Proposed new powers to track every email, phone call and website visit have been backed by the country’s top prosecutor as “vital” to fighting crime.” Telegraph

Civil liberty groups are none too pleased with this… “The DPP should also watch he doesn’t become a cheerleader for a government policy that the British people feel deeply uncomfortable about.”

Quite…

I have a podcast with Keir Starmer QC for the College of Law Inside Track series going out on Monday. It is an interesting podcast with a great deal of ground covered. I’ll post the link, as usual, on Monday.

After all this… a light touch before I go for the grand finale.

Earlier in the week I published the first episode of The Hunstman’s View – a diary of politics and ‘the human condition’ as seen through the eyes of Sir Henry ‘Baggers’ Bagshotte 8th Bt. I rather like Baggers – a man in his fifties, tory by instinct. but not, by any means, sure of the ground being developed by modern tories led by Cameron. He is not, however, a Turnip Taliban. New episodes will be published over the coming months until the run up to the election in 2010.

I was delighted to see in the comments section of The first Hunstman’s View episode a comment from Geoffrey Woollard:

“I know nothing of Ms. Truss and her troubles. Sir Henry Bagshotte, Bt., has my sympathy, however, if only for his having such an unhelpful lady wife.”

I was even more delighted to discover that Geoffrey Woollard is a real life prospective parliamentary candidate…standing on an independent ticket. I wrote to Geoffrey to ask his permission to quote him in my piece and to ask if he minded my drawing attention to his candidature. I received a very pleasant email back to the effect that I should go ahead, thanking me, and noting that all publicity is good publicity. So…I present…. Geoffrey Woollard, prospective parliamentary candidate for South East Cambridgeshire.

Geoffrey Woollard has a blog. Definitely worth a read.

I do hope that Geoffrey will keep an eye on the diary of Baggers…. Geoffrey is none to keen on Baggers’ enthusiasm for hunting. I suspect that Baggers won’t be doing a great deal of it, largely because I have absolutely no interest in hunting myself… and cannot really see how anyone can get a kick from hunting an animal to death for pleasure. Cybil, by the way… wife to Baggers 8.. will be rather more helpful than Geoffrey may realise! Bon Chance, Geoffrey. Independent tickets are good.

And finally… An Anatomy of an Injustice

Imagine a High Court judge walking down Chancery Lane on his or her way to the Royal Courts of Justice. The judge notices a carrier bag on the pavement. Being a civic minded citizen he picks the carrier bag up, opens it, and discovers a sawn off shotgun within. The judge is now ‘guilty’ of the strict liability offence of possession and subject to a minimum sentence of 5 years imprisonment – whether he phoned the police immediately or took it to a police station. Of course, it is highly likely – being a judge and all that – that the CPS may decide it is not in the public interest to prosecute or, if they do, the trial judge may well come to the entirely sensible view that the strict liability offence is mitigated by ‘exceptional circumstances’ and an absolute discharge will be given.

This, however, is not what happened in the celebrated Paul Clarke case – which provoked considerable outrage on twitter. I was outraged. Fortunately, a lawyer and writer, Jack of Kent – a leading law blogger, picked up the tale and analysed it in a measured and thoroughly researched way. I spoke to the journalist who broke the story, consulted with my friend who writes the The White Rabbit blog (Andrew Keogh, an experienced criminal barrister) and spoke at some length with Jack of Kent. I could see no point in publishing anything myself for I would rather focus attention on this case – and attention there is – through Jack of Kent’s excellent analysis.

Please do read it. it is an important analysis; important for our rule of law and important for Justice…whatever that means these days.

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