Category Archives: UK Riots in August 2011

On Thursday the 4th August Metropolitan Police shot dead a man named Mark Duggan in Tottenham, London. Over the following week a wave of violence and looting took place in London and a number of other locations.

Blue Light Commissioner

Posted on August 20, 2015 by ianchisnall

According to todays Times the Government is about to extend the role of Police and Crime Commissioners to oversee Fire & Rescue Services. Apart from any Union opposition which the article focuses on, this is a mistake for several reasons. The most fundamental … Continue reading →

Posted in Justice Issues, Parliament and Democracy, Police & Crime Commissioner, Policing, UK Riots in August 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Two blasts from the past

Posted on July 18, 2015 by ianchisnall

This week the Government has been forced to address two matters that have been bubbling away for more than a year. The High Court judgement over the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers (DRIP) Act which I wrote about extensively last … Continue reading →

Posted in Data Retention and Investigatory Powers, Justice Issues, Parliament and Democracy, Police & Crime Commissioner, Policing, UK Riots in August 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

20 months on the WC?

Posted on August 15, 2014 by ianchisnall

Political constipation is not unknown in the Home Office, but it is not something to be encouraged, particularly when other parts of the same department appear to have the Political equivalent of the runs. According to this report a request for … Continue reading →

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rarely used and rarely seen?

Posted on July 6, 2014 by ianchisnall

The anniversary of the Summer riots in 2011 is a mere month away. One of the consequences of the terrible scenes from Croydon and other parts of London along with a small number of urban settings across the UK is the … Continue reading →

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Sentences I don’t understand

Posted on July 5, 2014 by ianchisnall

The value of custodial sentences for Andy Coulson and his fellow conspirators is surely questionable. As a society that locks up far more people than most of our neighbours his punishment is something that is hard to justify in terms of the best … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Justice Issues, Phone Hacking, Policing, UK Riots in August 2011 | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

We’ve got it so we must use it!

Posted on February 16, 2014 by ianchisnall

Some of us are occasionally tempted to buy gadgets that we don’t need right now, but look shiny and new and persuade us that they will come in useful before too long. So the gadget comes home and you spend time getting … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Safety, Justice Issues, Parliament and Democracy, Policing, UK Riots in August 2011, Youth Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Three months later…….

Posted on November 9, 2011 by ianchisnall

Three months after the London disturbances, another gang came to have fun in London last night intending to create some headlines. They consumed large quantities of alcohol and appear to have had a good time. These were not the rioters of August many … Continue reading →

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How to avoid offence

Posted on September 28, 2011 by ianchisnall

In the context of a Summer of disturbances in some of our major cities we in Sussex are grateful that the copy cat actions did not reach our County boundaries. Some early indications of trouble were picked up in Crawley and … Continue reading →

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How blind is our Justice System?

Posted on September 24, 2011 by ianchisnall

Our courts have been kept busy this Summer handing out a range of punishments to those who have broken our laws in many places. It is vital for the well-being of society that we have confidence that crimes are dealt with appropriately. Sentencing … Continue reading →

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End the farce at New Scotland Yard!

Posted on August 26, 2011 by ianchisnall

As part of the famous handbag scene in Oscar Wilde’s farce, The Importance of Being Earnest, Lady Bracknell declares ‘To lose one parent, Mr. Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune. To lose both looks like carelessness.’ This same epithet … Continue reading →

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