UK Legislation Research Articles

Defining the limits of discrimination law in the United Kingdom

Even after the codification of anti-discrimination legislation in the Equality Act 2010, UK anti-discrimination law is caught in an embedded tension between principle and pragmatism. It is designed to give effect to the principles of equal treatment, non-discrimination and respect for human dignity. However, its scope and substance has often been limited by reference to pragmatic concerns, such as the need to minimize regulatory burdens and to maximize business efficiency, which sit uncomfortably with these principled underpinnings. This tension between principle and pragmatism tends to play out in particular with regard to debates about what exceptions should be carved out of the general prohibition on discrimination set out in the UK legislation. UK legislatures and courts have often been quick to adopt a ‘pragmatic orientation’ in this context. However, this approach can be difficult to reconcile with the more purposive, rights-protective, principled orientation of the European Union law and, to a lesser extent, the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Safeguarding in sport

‘Safeguarding’ is a new term, which has developed from child protection issues that resulted in UK legislation. It refers to an all-encompassing proactive approach to keeping children and vulnerable adults safe from harm or abuse. High-profile cases have raised public awareness of the importance of safeguarding and the need to report concerns. Similarly, incidents of racism on the sports field and in social media have highlighted the need to promote equality and prevent discrimination. Sport is an important agent for societal change in both cases. Sport leaders have both the opportunity and influence that may facilitate abuse. Therefore, all sports require robust safeguarding and safer recruitment policies and practices including the use of Criminal Record checks. Governing bodies are encouraging personalities to appreciate their positions as role models. As such, sport is a powerful means of engaging the public in conversations about diversity and appropriate behaviour.

The interface between general and forensic psychiatry: a historical perspective

SummaryMental disorder and criminality are separate entities but some people with a mental disorder commit criminal offences and some criminals have a mental disorder. Before 1800 there was no separate category of mentally disordered offenders (referred to as criminal lunatics until 1948) in UK legislation. The provision of facilities for mentally disordered offenders in Britain and Ireland overlapped with, but was also separate from, provision for the mentally ill generally. The interface between general and forensic psychiatry is an area of tension and of collaboration. To understand how contemporary general and forensic psychiatry interact, it is useful to have an understanding of how factors have evolved overtime.Learning Objectives•Have an understanding of the evolution of general and forensic psychiatry in the UK over the past 200 years.•Comprehend the similarities and differences between general and forensic psychiatry.•Be aware of some of the roots of conflict between general and forensic psychiatry.

The Three Rs — Opportunities for Improving Animal Welfare and the Quality of Scientific Research

In 2013, an undercover investigation by the BUAV raised serious concerns about the use, treatment and care of laboratory animals involved in regulated procedures at Imperial College, London. This led to an inquiry, set up by the college, which found deficiencies in the local ethical review process and a general lack of focus on the implementation of the Three Rs (Replacement, Refinement and Reduction). The Three Rs concept is the foundation of UK and EU legislation, but surveys of the published literature show that lack of its adoption is widespread. In spite of numerous guidelines, publications and publicity material extolling the benefits of the Three Rs to both animals and science, as well as substantial advances in the development, validation, and deployment of mechanistically-based non-animal methods, many scientists prefer to use traditional animal-based approaches. In addition, such scientists tend to pay less attention than they should to strategic planning, experimental design and the choice of appropriate statistical procedures. They are often unaware of the existence of replacement test methods to address all or some of their objectives, and are reluctant to develop and use new replacement methods. We explore some possible reasons for these shortcomings. We summarise the welfare and scientific effects of each of the Three Rs, and argue that: a) there is an urgent need for evidence to be made readily accessible to prospective licensees, which directly demonstrates the beneficial effects on animal welfare of the implementation of the Three Rs, separately and in combination, and the direct link this has with the quality of the scientific data obtained; b) a detailed systematic review of this evidence should be undertaken to augment the inadequate content of the prescribed Module 5 licensee training offered currently in the UK; c) such training (including that suggested in new EU-wide proposals) should be much more comprehensive, with stronger emphasis on the Three Rs, all parts of the syllabus should be fully examined, and there should be no exemptions from Module 5 training; and d) as the responsible Government department in the UK, the Home Office should take measures to tighten up its guidance for local ethical review, and its system of inspection of designated establishments, to obviate the justification for future undercover investigations.

The ‘Mosquito’ and the transformation of British public space

This paper explores the implications of the ‘Mosquito’ Ultrasonic Teenage Youth Deterrent device. It is used in Britain to exclude young people from public spaces despite contravening British law and European and International Human Rights legislation. The paper argues that the device is changing the relationship young people have with public spaces around them. Additionally, the paper discusses how the device has transformed the ways in which specific public space legislation is implemented and enforced to the extent that it can be viewed as a purchasable manifestation of the powers conferred upon police officers through legislative acts. The existing academic literature regarding the Mosquito is to be discussed and utilised. The device is examined against the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 and the Equality Act 2010. The paper argues that the device itself can be labelled as anti-social and contravenes several pieces of UK legislation with regard to anti-social behaviour and discrimination. Finally, the paper critically appraises the impact of combatting youth anti-social behaviour with a device which itself can be labelled as anti-social.

Work-life balance and the legal right to request flexible working arrangements

In 2003, eligible employees in the United Kingdom acquired the legal right to request flexible working arrangements. The government believes that this new right will provide parents with greater choice and support in balancing work and childcare, whilst being compatible with business efficiency. This article critically appraises this new right and examines how it is applied in relation to other UK legislation on discrimination and unfair dismissal. An overview of international studies on corporate efforts to introduce family-friendly arrangements, and an overview of governmental efforts to address the reconciliation of work and family-life is provided in this article, with a view to arguing that there is a need, in South Africa, for state policy regarding work-life balance and for further research into corporate efforts to introduce family-friendly work arrangements.

Measuring Sexual Identity in the United Kingdom

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) launched its sexual identity project in 2006, which aimed to rigorously develop, test, and implement a question measuring sexual identity on a large-scale general household survey. The project was driven by an increasing demand for data on sexual orientation to meet UK legislative requirements. Although UK legislation refers to sexual orientation, ONS focused on collecting a measure of sexual identity, which is how people see themselves at the time the interview takes place. This article summarizes the main stages of this project, which involved a review of previous studies, user engagement, focus groups, question testing, and implementation into the Integrated Household Survey (a large-scale ONS household survey). ONS subsequently conducted an evaluation of estimates and published user guidance on measuring sexual identity for use by other researchers. The article concludes with the future plans ONS has for the collection and dissemination of sexual identity estimates.

In Search of the Politics of Security

Research Highlights and Abstract This article Provides an exploration of why security politics might change the behaviour of parliaments or legislatures, bringing together theory from diverse fields; Illustrates a series of potential ways of measuring legislative behaviour; Is a systematic quantitative test for the existence of security politics in a field which relies almost exclusively on qualitative methodology; Contributes to the current debate in the field of critical security studies over the definition of the politics of security. This article takes up the recent challenge to critical security studies posed by Browning and McDonald to define the effects of ‘the politics of security’. It focuses in particular on the behaviour of legislatures during the passage of legislation relating to crime and security. Effective scrutiny of this type of policy is crucial, but legislatures are often accused of failing to provide it. However, empirical work in the area remains limited: we know little about exactly how legislatures change their behaviour at such critical junctures. This article seeks to fill this gap. It offers firstly an exploration of diverse strands of work on the notion of ‘security politics’. Secondly, it offers an empirical test based on a dataset covering UK legislation from the period 2007–2012. The results suggest the appearance of security legislation causes parliament to heighten scrutiny, raising questions about the real nature of ‘security politics’.

SEC offers relief to M&A brokers

Purpose – To explain a No-Action letter recently issued by the USA Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permitting persons who qualify as “M&A Brokers” to facilitate the sale of private companies without registering with the SEC as broker-dealers, subject to a number of restrictions. Design/methodology/approach – Explains how persons engaged in merger and acquisition activity have historically been required to register with the SEC, summarizes the conditions to the relief for the newly defined M&A Broker, explains what an M&A Broker can and cannot do, lists 10 criteria an M&A Broker must meet to obtain relief from registration, recommends policies and procedures for companies planning on taking advantage of the exemption from registration, and explains comparable UK legislation that applies to financial advisers advising on investments or arranging deals for M&A transactions. Findings – While many questions and considerations remain, including how this guidance will play out in respect of various state law regimes, the M&A Broker designation has the potential to relieve some of the burdens of registration for advisors specializing in private business combinations. Originality/value – Practical guidance from experienced securities and financial services lawyers.

The UK response to the challenge of climate change

The paper provides a background for the need to address climate change globally. In particular, it shows how the UK has addressed and is approaching the implications of climate change especially for its deemed critical infrastructure and the civil engineering profession. In addition, it sets out UK government responses, legislation background and policy decisions with regard to risk and infrastructure adaptation. It highlights some worldwide examples of climate change issues and recent severe events in the UK, such as storms, high winds, flooding, high and low temperatures and their costly consequences. Reference is made to historical and recent severe weather events and consequences leading to proposed actions for the adaptation of critical infrastructure in the transport, utilities and energy sectors. A description of current UK research programmes addressing climate change issues is included. An outline of how the UK insurance and financial sectors have built climate change into their business operations is also given.

Driving and dementia: a clinical decision pathway

ObjectiveThis study aimed to develop a pathway to bring together current UK legislation, good clinical practice and appropriate management strategies that could be applied across a range of healthcare settings.MethodsThe pathway was constructed by a multidisciplinary clinical team based in a busy Memory Assessment Service. A process of successive iteration was used to develop the pathway, with input and refinement provided via survey and small group meetings with individuals from a wide range of regional clinical networks and diverse clinical backgrounds as well as discussion with mobility centres and Forum of Mobility Centres, UK.ResultsWe present a succinct clinical pathway for patients with dementia, which provides a decision-making framework for how health professionals across a range of disciplines deal with patients with dementia who drive.ConclusionsBy integrating the latest guidance from diverse roles within older people's health services and key experts in the field, the resulting pathway reflects up-to-date policy and encompasses differing perspectives and good practice. It is potentially a generalisable pathway that can be easily adaptable for use internationally, by replacing UK legislation for local regulations. A limitation of this pathway is that it does not address the concern of mild cognitive impairment and how this condition relates to driving safety. © 2014 The Authors. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Slaughter without stunning

Bill Reilly has spent his professional life working in public health and is a past-president of the BVA. The current situation is not acceptable, says Bill Reilly AS a postgraduate veterinary public health student in the late 1970s I was appalled to witness Schecita slaughter, something I had not seen as an undergraduate. The distress, fear and pain were there for all to see (and hear) in the abattoir. Fortunately the Weinberg rotary crate in use at that time has since been outlawed in the UK (although rotation is still used in some parts of the EU), but the legacy of non-stun slaughter remains and appears to be increasing. From an animal welfare perspective this cannot be acceptable. However, we are fortunate to live in a tolerant society and respect the religious beliefs of different faiths and must reconcile animal welfare with religious freedom. It is important to differentiate between ‘religious’ and ‘non-stun’ slaughter. My concern has nothing to do with the expression of religious belief but with the practice of killing by throat cutting without pre-stunning. UK (and EU) legislation gives a derogation for non-stun slaughter for the ‘food of Jews’ and for the ‘food of Muslims’ with the overriding principle of ‘without the affliction of unnecessary suffering’. The challenge to society is to enable religious slaughter without compromising animal welfare. I do not believe that there is any scientifically robust evidence to support the contention that non-stun slaughter has the welfare of the animal at its core. I do accept that the initial religious texts reflected concern with the health and welfare of animals and were a major step forward in protection for both humans and animals. Since that time science and practice have developed that allow us to go further to protect both human health, through the …

Englishness Politicised?: Unpicking the Normative Implications of the McKay Commission

Research Highlights and Abstract This article Analyses a major shift in elite-political perceptions of the national identity of the English and current debates on Englishness. Is the first major evaluation of the arguments and implications of the McKay Commission. Gives a distinctive overview of academic and political debates about Englishness which assesses both sociological and political-science contributions and data, and argues the case for their better integration. Provides an original assessment of the implications of debates about Englishness for constitutional debates about the UK and normative arguments about national representation within the UK legislature This article draws attention to signs of an emerging consensus within British politics about the significance of recent shifts in the national identity favoured by the English. It focuses on the nature and assumptions of this emergent perspective, and critically evaluates the prevalent understanding of the ‘politicisation’ of Englishness and the different kinds of constitutional and normative argument that have become prominent in response to the resurgence of this form of identity. Drawing upon a bevy of recent social-scientific studies of the qualitative dimensions of Englishness, I make the case for a different, interpretive approach to ‘politicisation’, which reflects a richer and broader understanding of the causes and implications of the renewal of English nationhood. The article then explores the findings and underpinning arguments of one particular expression of this new consensus about the politicisation of English identity—the report published by the McKay Commission in March 2013. Attention is drawn to the particular blend of arguments that undergird its proposals for reform in relation to the West Lothian issue. Tensions between some of its main normative claims are, it is suggested, symptomatic of a deeper set of dilemmas facing the UK policy community.

Perspectives on risk management and behavioural finance

The application of Behavioural Finance to Risk Management is still in its infancy and few models have evolved as to how to apply the theories and research findings to practical day-to-day risk management problems. In fact, the very topic of this Special Issue — Is there a role for Behavioural Finance in Risk Management? — is still a moot question. In addition to commissioning the papers in this issue, the editors asked a number of respected figures in the wider risk management community to provide their insights on the topic. In particular four thought-leaders were asked for their perspectives on two specific questions: (1) Should banks and regulators include the findings of psychological/behavioural research in their risk management frameworks; and (2) In the light of new UK legislation,1 should ‘reckless’ behaviour be regulated? The responses of these experts are enlightening, but as David Hillson notes the question is not whether behaviour should be considered in risk management ‘but how?’ Hopefully the perceptive answers will trigger debate among risk management professionals as to how the theories can be applied.

Comparing the Environmental Impact of Stabilisers for Unfired Earth Construction

Buildings account for approximately one third of the total worldwide energy emissions, of which approximately a quarter can be attributed to the embodied energy of the building. Current UK legislation for low-energy homes is only concerned with operational energy. Embodied energy, and carbon, is not currently considered but over the design life of an average building is expected to make a significant contribution to the total whole life energy used. Earthen building materials contribute to reduce energy consumption in use through their passive regulation of temperature and humidity. In addition, there can also be significant embodied energy savings compared to other materials. Traditional methods of earthen construction, using locally sourced materials and manual labour require minimal energy for the transport and construction. A greater uptake of earth construction is likely to come from modern innovations such as industrialised manufacture. Extruded fired brick manufacturing processes has the potential to produce a high quality, low cost and low energy product suitable for the mainstream construction sector in both developed and developing nations. By not firing the extruded clay bricks, an embodied energy saving of 86% can be achieved, compared to fired clay, and 25% compared to concrete blocks. However, there are limitations to the structural use of unstabilised earth bricks due to the loss of strength under high moisture content conditions. The use of traditional and novel stabilisation methods can be adopted to address the concerns over strength and durability. Cement and lime are widely used in some countries, but both significantly increase material embodied energy and carbon and can inhibit passive humidity regulation. The paper presents results from a study of the embodied energy of various stabilisers used for unfired clay materials. The Global Warming Potential (GWP) is a measure of the equivalent carbon dioxide that allows for the relative weightings of damaging greenhouse gasses. Both the embodied energy and the GWP figures of various stabilisers are compared and discussed. The conclusion of the work is that there is a maximum quantity of stabiliser than should be used. Typically the quantities of stabiliser are quoted as the amount that gives the maximum strength, but this should take account of not only strength but the environmental impact of achieving the improvement.

Does legislation to prevent alcohol sales to drunk individuals work? Measuring the propensity for night-time sales to drunks in a UK city

BackgroundBy measuring alcohol retailers’ propensity to illegally sell alcohol to young people who appear highly intoxicated, we examine whether UK legislation is effective at preventing health harms resulting from drunk...

A Short Note on Scotland's Future The Internet, Broadband and Telecommunications

The Scottish Government published proposals for the administration of an independent Scotland, its case for a vote in favour of independence in September 2014 and an outline of its manifesto in the Scottish parliamentary elections in 2016. Opinion polls continue to show that only about one quarter of the electorate favouring independence. If there is a vote for independence, Scotland would become a member of the EU and comply with its acquis communitaire, join the Council of Europe, becoming a signatory to its conventions, and join the ITU, adopting its Radio Regulations. However, the provisions for broadband, Internet and telecommunications remain vague and without a timetable. There would be a junior minister within a Ministry of Culture, Communications & Digital, with a multi-sector economic regulator, a media regulator, a competition authority and a consumer protection body. Existing licences would be “honoured”. It is unclear whether the existing UK legislation will be converted into Scottish statutes or whether the EU directives will be transposed from scratch. Considerable attention is to be given to increasing services in rural areas, with calls for more fibre and 4G networks, whereas, the low levels of adoption of broadband in urban areas are ignored. Scotland will not request an ITU country code, but seek to continue to use the UK code of 44. It will not use an ISO 3166 two-letter country code top level domain, but instead dot Scot and existing UK top level domains. Significant omissions include provision for regulators of advertising and gambling. There is no mention of replacement for the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal, perhaps appeals would be heard in the courts. Much will depend on negotiations between the Scottish Government and Her Majesty’s Government in London in the period between September 2014 and independence day on 24 March 2016. A complicating factor is the UK general election in May 2015.

Legislation.gov.uk – Essential for the Law Business

AbstractLegislation on the Web gives rise to a unique set of challenges. The content has strict rules governing its structure and typographic layout. One piece of legislation can change others, often in complex ways. The text may or may not be in force and may or may not extend to a particular jurisdiction. This unique linked data service and its value proposition is discussed by Carol Tullo. This is a data source that underpins and drives the UK legislation publishing processes and the validation of secondary legislation, providing a streamlined end to end set of online legal tools for all to use.

Utilization of Glyphosate‐Containing Herbicides on Pervious Paving Systems: Laboratory‐Based Experiments to Determine Impacts on Effluent Water Quality

Pervious paving (PPS) model rigs have been used in laboratory‐based experiments to determine the impact of a glyphosate‐containing herbicide (GCH) on the ability of the PPS to retain and biodegrade pollutants. Using three concentrations of GCH (7200, 720, and 72 mg L−1) and used engine oil, it was found that hydrocarbon in the effluent increased with time, and with increasing GCH concentration. Turbidity increased and pH decreased with time, with the highest application of GCH declining by a whole pH unit to become slightly acidic. For Zn, Cu, and Pb, values for the lowest concentration of GCH, whilst slightly higher than the control mirrored its temporal trend and the highest concentration of GCH decreased with time. For the medium GCH concentration, however, Zn and Pb increased toward the end of the monitoring period. Dissolution experiments appeared to confirm speculation that the surfactant in the GCH may be forming an emulsion with the oil facilitating the release of metals associated with the oil. Particulate‐associated pollutants possibly released from the aggregate may be desorbed as the pH declined in the PPS rig. This raises concerns for receiving water quality, particularly with UK legislation encouraging the use of sustainable drainage systems and therefore PPS.

Practitioner views and experiences of deferred consent in paediatric and neonatal emergency care trials: the connect study

Background Deferred consent refers to when a patient is entered into a trial without prior consent. In 2008 UK legislation was amended to enable the use of deferred consent for paediatric emergency care trials in recognition of the practical and ethical difficulties of obtaining consent in an emergency situation. However, ambiguity about how to make the process of deferred consent acceptable to parents, children and practitioners remains. In particular, little is known about practitioners’ views and experiences of seeking deferred consent in this setting.