Stop and search scrapped after human rights ruling

The controversial stop and search anti-terrorism powers are to be scrapped after a decision of the European Court of human Rights that they violated human rights law.

According to a press release on the Home Office website, the decision will have immediate effect and is a direct response to the European Court’s decision:

Theresa May today tells Parliament that the government will change how stop and search powers under section 44 of the Terrorism Act are used, with immediate effect.

The move is in response to a decision by the European Court of Human Rights (new window), which found that the use of stop and search powers under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (new window) amounted to a violation of the right to a private life.

Human Rights Watch slams stop and search

Human Rights Watch has released a comprehensive report into the Government’s controversial anti-terrorism stop and search powers.

The report – Without Suspicion Stop and Search under the Terrorism Act 2000 – runs to 64 pages and seeks to systematically dismantle the case for area-based stop and search under  section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which allows the police to stop and search without suspicion. Responding to proposals to cut the scope of the scheme, the reports states:

… we believe that even if the law were improved——if its geographic scope were permanently narrowed or its use restricted to specialist officers——the reforms would not entirely address the risk of arbitrary use, including profiling of ethnic minorities or stops of children. It is impossible to give clear guidance to officers on the use of a power that requires no reasonable suspicion. The risk of arbitrary use also makes the power incompatible with the traditional discretion given to UK police officers in course of their duties. The use of section 44 compromises the UK’’s human rights obligations and is counterproductive.

Stop and search powers under review as European Court reject UK appeal

The European Court of Human Rights has rejected the United Kingdom’s application to appeal its decision in a recent finding that stop and search powers enacted as part of anti-terrorism legislation breached human rights law.

In January 2010 the European Court held that section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (the broad police power to stop and search without suspicion) violates the right to respect for private life guaranteed by Article 8 of the Convention on Human Rights (Gillan and Quinton v. UK 4158/05 [2010] ECHR 28 (12 January 2010)). The claimants received £500 each by way of compensation.

Home Secretary on offensive as police admit anti-terror mistakes

The Home Secretary has pledged to conduct an “urgent review” of police stop and search powers as it has been revealed that thousands of searches may have been conducted illegally.

Teresa May, the new Home Secretary, has gone on the offensive with a Guardian editorial blaming the previous Government and promising to fix the problem urgently. She says “It has been clear for a decade that the last government held our civil liberties cheap. They introduced the powers that have been abused 10 years ago, and then sat back as they were used more and more frequently.” She is reportedly “incandescent” over the report.