What is the Human Rights Act and why should I care?

Wow. An actual blog post. It's only been... nearly 2 years. Terrible stuff. For anybody that has done an LPC you will know why I maybe haven't been posting for some of that time.

In light of the election last week, and the immediate plans that seem to be in motion, everyone is discussing the Human Rights Act (HRA) and the fact that it may be repealed, under a Conservative manifesto promise.

Unless you have some legal background, it is perhaps the case that you know very little, or perhaps nothing, about the HRA. Other than someone screaming on Police Interceptors that something is "against their human rights".

So I thought I would give you a breakdown of what the legislation actually is, what it purports to do and why it is important. I will then discuss the impact of possibly repealing the legislation, and the long term effects this could have. The latter issue will of course contain a degree of conjecture but if you have any interest in the EU (and you should, especially as a referendum is promised) then keep reading.

I will try to remain as neutral as is possible, as God forbid anybody should have an opinion about the way that their lives could pan out for the next 5 years. However, you will see that I have a certain slant but hopefully you can still appreciate any facts and arguments that are put forward.

So without further ado... Let's delve in.

What is the HRA?

The HRA is a UK incorporation of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). This is as it says on the tin, European. However, it is a separate entity to the European Union (EU). For the sake of brevity in what is likely to be a long post, I will post links for you to go to further information, if you would find this of interest. I will stick to some core information. 

For more on the ECHR
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16924514

The HRA governs the relationship between the state and the citizen. So, in essence, it prevents oppresive, discriminatory or negligent elements of the state from infringing rights to your freedom, family life, a fair trial etc. The HRA can be googled quite easily and it is not a hard read, even for non lawyers. But a breakdown can be found in the graphic (right).

The "state" is any branch of public service- the government, police, state run schools... You get the picture. 

Importantly, this is not legislation that can be enforced from person to person. So, for example,  if my mother tells me I cannot marry I cannot bring a claim under the HRA, Article 12.

In addition, it should be noted that every European country is committed to the EHRC aside from Belarus. Russia and Turkey (not EU members) ARE signed up to the EHRC. 

Lastly, by having the HRA incorporated into our own law, rather than relying on the convention alone (which is all but word for word), it means that we can enforce our rights in the UK, rather than having to rely on a European Court, known as the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). By being able to bring a claim in the UK it should take less time, be cheaper and generally be more accessible. 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/what-is-the-human-rights-act-and-why-does-michael-gove-want-to-scrap-it-10240527.html 

Why should I care about the HRA?

Hopefully nobody that reads this will ever need to enforce any of the rights protected by the HRA. These are all things that we should be able to take for granted. By having this piece of law it gives us a mechanism to make the state answer for itself, and it can be done with relative ease. Don't get me wrong, litigation is never normally SIMPLE, but this certainly makes it more accessible. 

Without the HRA, depending on what the Conservatives plan to do, the UK will still be bound to the ECHR. The HRA is simply a mirror of the convention, providing us "easy access". If the HRA goes, the same rights will still be there to enforce, but you will have to enforce it directly with the ECtHR. This is much more difficult- both logistically (it sits in Strasbourg) and financially. It would also take much more time. According to some statistics, the ECtHR has a back log of around 100,000 cases at any given time. 

The risk we run here is that if the HRA is repealed, this will not be permitted by the ECHR and the UK will have to leave the Convention. If this happens, we lose any right to enforce under the current laws.

Why is repealing the HRA so concerning?

Now stay with me here, this is where the opinion comes in. But hear me through, at least for old times' sake. 

If the HRA is repealed, it is likely to be replaced with a Bill of Rights. This is not a new idea. In fact, the Conservatives have been bringing up this idea for some years. Further, it was suggested in 2010 (but blocked by the Lib Dems) but they did agree to draw up a draft of a Bill of Rights by the end of last year, which is still nowhere to be seen. 

It is very worrying that this issue has been brought to light now, before anybody (lawyers and politicians, lay people, anyone) has had a chance to see what the alternative would be. Many people are very suspicious of a Conservative government, and would perhaps think they would create a Bill of Rights that would preclude some facets of the state, or make it too expensive and difficult to ever bring a claim. This is certainly what they have done in justice generally. Legal aid has been decimated and employment claims have never been more expensive to bring, thanks to the mainly Conservative influence in the coalition. 

So in conclusion of this issue, we should be wary not to sensationalize exactly what MAY happen. The fact is, we don't know at this point. I will give the Tories their dues. Their new Bill of Rights could be a much better alternative. But we should be very suspicious about making such claims before any draft has been written and analysed. 

And are there any more far-reaching effects?

Devolution

Well I'm glad you asked. The UK as a nation has not been so unstable for many hundreds of years. With the Scottish referendum last year, and the possibility of further power being devolved to Scotland, Wales and Ireland it would in my opinion be foolish to have this particular policy being the spearhead justice policy.

Devolving power to the nations within the UK, could and would affect the constitution of the country. It should be said there is no written constitution at the moment, and it is largely implied and enforced by common law and created by historical influence.

Furthermore, with an EU referendum promised, this could also make a considerable constitutional change if the voters want out. 

What I am implying here is that now is not the time to be drafting a Bill of Rights, the country is too unstable and uncertain in its future to be able to draft one effectively. Anything drafted hastily would likely not have the longevity that would create stability the country so badly needs, at least in terms of devolution. If any kind of devolution is to be investigated, whether this is UK or EU, it would be wise to do this prior to pursuing any change to the current framework of the HRA.

International Aspects

We have already touched upon the EU, so I won't spend too long on this point. But by moving away from the ECHR this, to me, sends all the wrong messages and creates a worrying state of affairs. I realise that the ECHR and the EU are separate beings, but many of the parties signed up to these bodies overlap, and will take note of anything that happens now with the ECHR. 

We do not live in a small, parochial world anymore, The world is a big place, with international trade and travel never being more easy. The UK is by no means a poor or undeveloped country, but it certainly does not have the power and the clout that it had pre-WW2. The rise of the superpower, namely China though other countries are also making their presence known, means that we suddenly look an awfully small island with no meaningful connections. 

To me, I value our European connections very much so. They create a "block" of many important states, that together create more influence than any one country could alone. This would allow us to compete with countries like China by helping us to match their resources and size. By departing from the ECHR, potentially, we send the message that we are already withdrawing from Europe: the continent, the EU and of course the ECHR. By doing this, it could weaken any bargaining position that the UK may have had in the EU to lobby for much more important change, such as freedom of movement. In my mind, this is much more pressing than any change to the human rights framework that is already in place. 

By beginning to withdraw from "Europe", we appear to be giving a suggestion of a foregone conclusion that we have no interest in staying in any European organisation. 

Conclusion

Wow, that was some essay. If only I wrote my university essays that quickly. 

I think what I pull from this is that this pursuit of the HRA and its repeal is far too hasty. There are much more pressing problems in justice and law that should be dealt with first; such as the freedom of movement within the EU. Further, nobody seems to yet have enough information about this prospective Bill of Rights in order to warrant any action on it now. And as has been mentioned prior, this cannot be effectively drafted until the UK has gained some sort of certainty in its constitutional future.

I hope this has been of benefit to at least some of you, if indeed anybody actually reached the end! If you did, a gold star for you. Or wine... which ever you would prefer!

I leave you with one more article I found when researching this which I liked and found useful: it is also written by a fully fledged lawyer rather than a wannabe. 

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/may/11/human-rights-reform-michael-gove-justice-secretary

Any questions or anything I have included in error, please let me know in the comments and I will do my best to answer them/ rectify them.

Until next time...

Getting Stuck in a Rut

Getting stuck in a rut happens to most people. It is comforting, safe, and reliable to be in a cosy little cocoon of loveliness. People generally are adverse to change, and if you have it fairly good why should you do anything to change that?

These are some thoughts that I have had in the last week.

Now that I have a job and it is something I am enjoying and being paid a good sum of money for, I thought toward my future. 

You think you have everything planned out...

I have been certain of my plan to pursue becoming a solicitor and securing a training contract. This has been my plan since I was 16, and I have taken steps from this time to help make this goal a reality. 

But now. Now I have a job, and I don't want to have to go back to student life. As some of you will now you have to complete further education after university to qualify as a solicitor. In my case this is the LPC (Legal Practice Course) which takes one year full-time. 

And then it hit me. 

Student life.... Again. 

It is going to be very hard to go back to counting pennies after becoming fairly comfortable with a reliable income. And whilst the aim to save this year is certainly present, the reality is that the Jo Malone counter in the department store is calling out to me. First world problems, I know.

The more I thought about it the more I thought I could stay in this job for two years, rather than the originally planned one. Just disclaimer, my employers are perfectly aware of my plans and are very supportive.

And this seemed like a great idea. More time to save to put money away for expensive London prices (a season ticket alone coming at a price of over £4000 from where I live in Kent). It would also give me more office experience. 

Snap out of it!

But then I realised that if I did this then it would just be stalling. I would become Chandler from Friends who went into data processing with a dream to be a comic-strip creator (OK I am a Friends geek). It just never happens.

You get too comfortable. You forget to push yourself. You lose sight of what your long term goals are.

So I gave this some thought and came up with a few pointers for any of you who feel like you are getting stuck in a rut. This can happen to anyone in many forms. Maybe you are considering doing a masters degree for no other reason than to stay at university. Maybe you are happy just coasting along at school/college etc with the bare minimum you need. But what could you achieve if you just pushed yourself just that but more? Get out of the comfort zone.

Scary...? Most definitely. But I think completely worth it.

Tips for getting out of a rut

• Snap out of it quickly. If you start thinking that staying in the same place would be the best option (when deep down you know this isn't the case), don't ponder it too long. If you have to think about something this much, chances are you are not convinced by your decision anyway. Stick to your original plan.
• Start looking at things you can do in your future which get you excited. For example, I started looking at LPC courses and started thinking- a new student card for student discounts? Yes please!
• Keep manageable to-do lists which further you toward your end goal. Looking far into the future can be daunting. Break it down into bite size chunks by dealing with obstacles a few at a time. 

I hope these are helpful. This is certainly what got me out of my funk. But I have found a great article on Forbes during my research which I can highly recommend on this topic.http://www.forbes.com/sites/glassheel/2013/04/25/8-ways-to-dig-your-way-out-of-a-rut/

If any of you have any tips on how to get out of a rut, comment below. And as always if you have any ideas on what you would like me to talk about then please give me your thoughts. I need idea feul!

Training Days: Horrifically scarring or a skills gold-mine?

In my new job I have recently undertaken my first training day. It was... quite the experience. 

Look at these fitties. 

I had a pre-conceived idea of how training days go. And to a large extent it is what you may think- incredibly cheesy and a little humiliating. The role-plays are just the worst. But I guess each to  their own on that one. 

I guess a little background would be a good place to start.

My new job involves me answering phones (for incoming calls mainly- with some outgoing). My work involves people's  money. And if I know one thing, then it is when it comes to money people can be... Difficult. 

Difficult

This was actually the theme of the training day- dealing with difficult people. And I have never really had to deal with the public before. 

This was also my first ever training day. A lot of firsts. 

So is there any point to these training days?

The main piece of advice I can give to anyone is to make sure you go into these things with
the right frame of mind. This is especially true if it turns out your course leader is possibly reminiscent of your tax law lecturer who sat down and spoke at you for two hours straight. If you go into it thinking it will be useless, you will get absolutely nothing out of it. 

Deep meaningful quotes. Yeah...

Even if the content or the leader is not the best, try and see the wood for the trees and look for the nuggets which are genuinely useful for everyday work or even everyday life. 

It is definitely true that some of the day is likely to make your skin crawl with either humiliation or cheesiness. This could be role play, or standing in a circle and sharing ideas by throwing a ball around. If you are like me 
(and probably too British for your own good) this is the stuff of nightmares. 

But do your best to get through this. If you can try and throw yourself into it you may surprise yourself. I can't guarantee anything- but give it a go.

What did I learn?

I think to be honest the stuff I learned the most from is the stuff which involved merely sitting down and hearing a string of ideas and concepts with anecdotes to support and some team-interaction. But this is always how I have learned best. 

I think quite a lot of this stuff in courses and how applicable it is will depend on your own personality, both at work and in life. Generally, these leaders know what they are talking about. So take what they say, and adjust it to you. 

It is easy to get stuck on a tram of sticking to what you know. But sometimes taking advice from other people can improve your work skills. 

I take inspiration from lots of people, my father (who actually works in customer service- which is delightfully convenient for me), my colleagues, the internet! 

I just like this picture.
But I guess embarrassment fits in nicely.

So all in all, it is both emotionally scarring and useful. But as I have previously implied, it is what you make of it. So make sure you go into it in the right way and you are more likely to get something useful out of it. Don't let your course leader do all the work! Put in a bit of effort yourself. Chances are you are still being paid for this day!

So until next Sunday. Enjoy your week.