Police officers under investigation for discipline offences should have to hand over data from their personal mobile phones, Doreen Lawrence has said.
Police and prosecutors have been told to stop the mass collection of personal information from rape victims or face being fined by the UK’s data watchdog.
Hmmm....
The home secretary, Suella Braverman, is yet to respond to the proposals, a spokesperson for the mayor said.
Just how long does it take to write 'Go f*** yourself, Doreen' anyway?
Well, this is going to be rather interesting. Perhaps, for once, the race baiters have bitten off a bit more than they can chew. Because there's something the headlines and the rabble rousing MP have omitted...
After ambulances and fire engines struggled to get through, Number 10 said any disruption to the emergency services' work is 'unacceptable'.
The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'These sorts of protests that disrupt peoples' daily lives or, indeed, can stop our emergency services from potentially saving lives are unacceptable.
'That's why we've already toughened powers for the police, we've given them new powers to act and we are also taking further powers through the House at the moment to ensure they can go even further in preventing these individuals from disrupting peoples' lives.'
Fantastic news, but as we've seen with the Dangerous Dogs Act, beefing up the powers available is worthless when they lack the work ethic to actually use them...
...commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee that officers have to wait until protests are deemed to meet a legal threshold of causing major disruption before they can be shut down.
His officers are in touch with Transport for London, local councils and the emergency services several times per day to check the level of disruption caused. Sir Mark said: 'Over the last 11 days, all of those partners have been of a view that it doesn't cause serious disruption.'
Said, no doubt, by people sitting in cozy air-conditioned offices, and not out on the streets trying to get a fire engine, ambulance or delivery vehicle through traffic...
A group of concerned parents disrupted a performance of Drag Queen Story Hour in Britain on Tuesday, accusing the touring troupe of trying to “groom” young children.
According to its website, Drag Queen Story Hour UK says that it provides “fun and interactive kids shows with amazing and talented drag performers!”
“Drag Queen Story Hour UK wants to show the world that being different is not a bad thing, and by providing imaginative role models for children to look up to, we can change the world book by book!”
Those of us who have attended bawdy pantomimes or - in the case of male readers - stag nights with 'exotic entertainment' will look askance at that description, I suspect...
The women were escorted out of the library by security and police officers who attended the scene, and who had gathered in their dozens to stand guard at the event...
So, if you were burgled or mugged around this time in Reading and wondered where all the cops were, I'm sure you're comforted by the knowledge they were dealing with far more important matters...
A spokesman for the Reading Borough Council said that the Drag Queen Story Hour classes were “age-appropriate” adding that it was a “ticketed event and all parents attending were aware of the nature of the performance. It is regretful that some people chose not to respect parental choice.”
Gosh, parental choice! I thought local councils - especially Reading - had done away with that...
H/T: i r jackson via email
...the fascination with a bitch fight is rooted in garden variety sexism, a bid to infantilise women, erode their credibility and minimise their emotional range while amplifying their histrionics.Oh, I forgot - the obsessives who see everything through the prism of their own hobby horse have a lot of success too.
Police forces in the UK and across Europe are suffering from a growing “culture of extremism”, according to a report that warns of an increase in officers sharing racist and far-right content online.
...
In France, Belgium, Germany and Hungary former high-ranking police officers have become extreme-right mayoral and parliamentary candidates.
Could it be because they are sick and tired of seeing the pandering that goes on to feral 'communities' and have decided to do something about it?
In the UK, a series of recent cases involving the Metropolitan police have further damaged the reputation of a force long accused of being “institutionally racist”. They include officers sharing images on WhatsApp of two murdered black sisters. Another group of officers, at a central London station, were found to have joked about rape, killing black children and beating their wives.
Those officers were dealt with under existing Professional Standards guidelines. Are the authors of this report saying that the example of a few means the majority are wrong 'uns?
Because with Telford and Rochdale once again in the headlines for child abuse in certain 'communities', that's a bit dangerous, isn't it?
The report also warns that the “thin blue line” avatar and hashtag are still seen on the Twitter feeds of police officers, including a safer neighbourhood team in London, and they have been observed on the uniforms of officers in Manchester.
In the US, the thin blue line avatar and “blue lives matter” movement are associated with white nationalism, with serving and retired officers implicated in the Capitol Hill siege.
This isn't the US. It's Britain. And I didn't see the authors of this report getting out of bed to criticise the flying of Pride flags, did you Reader?
Fekete warned that the thin blue line had become a “besieged and misunderstood minority group” with a proliferation of victim narratives that represent rank-and-file officers as the aggrieved party in debates on police racism and use of force.
Because they often are! Can an 'aggrieved party' no longer speak out about what they feel aggrieved about, Fekete? Because there goes a hell of a lot of the progressive press...
The report also warns of a link between racist attitudes and operational practice, particularly in relation to predictive policing and racial profiling. Last December, concerns were raised about the Met’s Operation Pima in which 61% of individuals identified within intelligence reports as the “most prolific or violent offenders” in London were black.
Ah, once again, unfortunate reality leaps out from a dark alley waving a knife and demanding you hand over the evidence, Fekete...
Flagship plans to clean up the internet may be dropped by the Government, it emerged last night.
The Online Safety Bill had been due to go before MPs next week but has now been removed from the agenda. There will not be time for it to return to the Commons before the autumn – and it could then be ditched entirely if the new prime minister chooses to prioritise other new laws.
Oh dear, how sad, never mind...
Whitehall sources blamed Labour attempts to hold a confidence vote in the Government for the lack of time available for the Bill, which aims to introduce powers for tech giants to be hit with huge fines if they fail to keep users safe.
Ha ha ha ha! You couldn't make it up, could you?
The right people are squealing like stuck pigs, of course:
Campaigners were last night dismayed, with Andy Burrows, of child protection charity the NSPCC, saying: 'The Online Safety Bill is a crucial piece of legislation that is fundamentally about protecting children from harm and abuse that is taking place on an industrial scale on social media.
'Any delay will mean families continue to pay the price for the failure and inaction of tech firms who have allowed harm to fester rather than get their house in order.'
No, mostly, they'll pay the price for not doing any parenting....
The mum of a schoolboy who was fatally stabbed has called for 'trial juries to be diverse to avoid racial bias.'
She told how she is 'still seeking justice' after her son's killer was jailed for manslaughter.
Hmmm...oh. This case.
"I didn't get any justice. I feel so upset about it. It feels like Dea-John has been killed once more," Joan told BirminghamLive.
"Someone was chasing my son with a knife, stabbing and killing them. How can that be? Dea-John didn't do anything. He was running away for his life and how can he be a threat to him?
"I don't expect my son should go like this. I sat in the trial for six-weeks and thought I would get justice, but there was no justice."
Given he was - as almost always these days! - no angel, the only real surprise here is that he wasn't killed by someone of his own race:
Dea-John was part of a group who tried to take a bag from a 16-year-old on parkland.
But of course, the usual suspects see an opportunity:
A protest march is planned starting at Twickenham Park, on College Road, in Kingstanding, from 1pm, on Saturday, July 9.
Bishop Desmond Jaddoo:"That jury did not reflect Birmingham. The city is a black and Asian majority city."
And it's a byword for peace and brotherly love as a result, eh?
Hundreds of people gathered in London on Saturday for a vigil to remember Ashling Murphy, a primary school teacher murdered while she was on an afternoon run in Ireland last week, and call for an end to violence against women.She wasn't even killed here!
“We are here to support her family, and because we could all be in the same situation,” said Caitlin O’Shea, 31, who had joined the vigil with many of her friends.
The crowd gathered outside the Irish Centre in Camden, at 4pm, the time Murphy was attacked days before, to hear music and observe a minute’s silence. Organisers said they had only expected a handful of people, but hundreds blocked the street and spilled across a nearby junction.
Newham a bit too far for you all to go, love? Or is Camden just a place you can get some shopping done at the same time, maybe?
“We have come together in solidarity with women of Ireland and women of the world who are angry, distressed and heartbroken,” Anna Johnston, one of the vigil organisers, told the crowd.
But not, I note, women a bit closer to home.
Dr Erin Pritchard, a lecturer in disability and education, told supermarkets that the term midget was 'a form of hate speech'.
Dr Pritchard acknowledged that some people may think the change is part of 'cancel culture' but argued 'when people scream the name at you in the street, it is only right that it is removed'.
'The change should have happened years ago. It is easy for people not called the word to think its removal is wrong,' Dr Pritchard, who also appeared in Channel 4's Dating with Dwarfism, said.
She added that she had asked Amazon to remove novelty items which use the term but acknowledged it would not be possible to rename items no longer in production such as the MG Midget car or the Daihatsu Midget minivan.
No doubt removal of any mention of them will be the next demand...
And elsewhere:
The incident comes a week after a jury cleared four people of criminal damage despite the fact they did not deny pulling down the statue of slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol.
Earlier tonight, the man said the statue should have been taken down in the past. 'If this happened decades ago, I wouldn't be here would I?' he told the negotiators.
Predictably, like Pritchard, it's 'Me, me, me,,,' all the way through. Emboldened by the verdict, no doubt.
Owen King, 52, who works in marketing, was cycling past when he saw the man chipping away at the statue. He said: 'I saw all the police and I presumed he was protesting about Eric Gill and his background. Then the fire brigade were here as well. People are just wondering, 'why don't they take him off the sculpture?'
'So I think they're just waiting for him to come down. He's got this tiny little hammer and he's bashing away at the leg there. Not much is coming off and he seems to be resting a lot.'
Well, since the police stood around like they usually do, paralysed by the thought that taking action might rebound on them if the miscreant was injured (which is why neighbours' lives are disrupted for a fourth day in Coventry), he had plenty of time.
And no, he's not supported by anyone outside the unhinged:
He added: 'Someone shouted to him, 'get off it, you ugly person, an ugly person desecrating a beautiful thing'. And he shouted 'you paedo'. And then everyone was laughing at him. I think you (should) separate art from the person.'
Responding to the man's comments calling people paedophiles, he added: 'I think it's really reductive.' Moments later one woman, who was walking past the scene, shouted: 'Art should be separated from the person. You should spend your energy and time with something else. Art can be beautiful by itself.'
Why are we allowing people who don't represent the will of the majority to ride roughshod over the rest of us due to the cowardice of the state and the corporations?
Police have arrested 30 climate activists after a major bridge in central London was blocked by a sit-down protest.
Good, more for the jail cells. Hope they like porridge!
The bridge had been shut to traffic for a number of hours on Saturday by the sit-in, which initially involved up to 250 people who had marched from the Royal Courts of Justice.
Wait, 'a number of hours'..?
In the clip obtained by LBC, the animated male can be seen pleading with the eco-zealots to move out of the road on Vauxhall, London, telling them their method of protest was 'not right'. As his tone becomes more exasperated while he watches police officers stand idly by, the man repeats: 'Don't block the road! I need to get home to my child.
'I need to get home, please. You have to think about people as well.'
I guess it's not just the eco-nutters who aren't learning, it's the increasingly useless Met Police!
Gabriella Ditton, 27, an animator from Norwich, said she has been arrested six times with Insulate Britain, including once for breaking the injunction.
She said: 'I expect to go to prison at some point for at least six months because I am not going to be apologetic about this.
'I have known for a couple of years that the only thing that is going to serve us is civil resistance. I have faith in people coming together. Solutions to this crisis exist, we just need the political will to do it.'
If the police don't want to do the job they are paid for, might I suggest they just don't turn up next time? Then the working people of London can come together and show Gabriella some of that 'civil resistance' she clearly longs for...
Criminal justice solutions that were purported to address gendered violence have only made matters worse for many women.Says who? Well, Aviah Day, who is apparently a lecturer in criminology at Birkbeck, University of London. So she must know her stuff?
Sadiq Khan’s response to the Sabina Nessa case has been to revive proposals to make misogyny a hate crime, but we already have laws against harassment and assault, and they have done nothing to stem gendered violence. What’s more, the additional police powers and longer sentences that promised to tackle gendered violence have backfired spectacularly – women are being criminalised by the same measures that were introduced to protect them.
Ummm, how so?
In recent decades responses to domestic violence have favoured carceral (prison) over community solutions resulting in a rise in women being locked up.
Ah! But...surely they will only be locked up if they've done something wrong? Very wrong, since the tag 'pussy pass' exists on the blog for good reason?
My own research has found that the increased presence of police in women’s lives has made it more likely they will be arrested, through perpetrators manipulating the system...
Eh..? How are they doing that, then? Surely she couldn't mean that men are pointing out the times they were attacked, and expecting equal justice? No! Perish the thought...
...or police targeting women for unrelated matters such as immigration enforcement.
Ah, you mean 'doing their job'..?
A 2018 freedom of information request found that more than half of all police forces in England and Wales have a record of arresting domestic and sexual violence survivors who have insecure immigration status.
By 'insecure immigration status', does she really mean 'women who shouldn't be in the country at all', perchance?
Women should be allowed the right to protest against this system – a right that the “kill the bill” movement is fighting to preserve in the face of the extraordinary police powers proposed in the police, crime, sentencing and courts bill – and should fight for a transition to education and community-based solutions.
Because they've worked so well with other crimes, and with mental illness?
Only then can we end the cycle of violence.
You'll never end the cycle of violence. It's inherent in humanity. Better you spend your time educating women to check out their partner's criminal history before shacking up with him.
Human rights organisations are leading calls for an urgent investigation into the death of a Czech man who died after being restrained by police, after footage of the incident went viral on social media.
Did the Czech police reflexively cringe before the assault and apologise to all and sundry? Reader, they did not!
Eyewitnesses told the Guardian that Tomáš was arrested after attempting to stop a car being vandalised, but the Czech police and authorities have rejected this narrative. The regional police spokesman, Daniel Vítek, said the police received a complaint on Saturday, shortly before 3pm, regarding two men fighting and damaging cars on Dubská street in Teplice.
The police later tweeted a video titled “No Czech Floyd ...” to show what had preceded their intervention. The footage shows two shirtless figures running around the street, shouting and punching cars.
You can see the footage here and make up your own mind.
Czech interior minister Jan Hamáček backed the police, saying on Twitter: “The police has my full support. If someone under the influence of drugs breaks the law, they have to count on the Czech police intervening. Thanks to the work of police officers, we are one of the top 10 safest countries in the world.”
And because the man in question belonged to a community known for its lawlessness and violence, the usual suspects are whining like a 747's engines on takeoff:
Jonathan Lee from the European Roma Rights Centre believes Tomáš’s death is emblematic of the discrimination of Roma in the Czech Republic and Europe. “Police violence is the most common and visible human rights abuse Roma face across all of Europe,” he said.
Which has absolutely nothing to do with their actions, eh?
“Whether it is lack of training, negligence or wilful discrimination, Czech authorities should be held accountable after an impartial investigation is conducted,” said Lee.
But Lee, if it's truly impartial, it may conclude they have nothing to be held accountable for, couldn't it?
Penguin Random House has partnered with think tank The Runnymede Trust to promote diverse reading lists in schools.
The Lit in Colour campaign follows a recent report by Teach First, which claimed that many students will leave school having never studied a book by an author of colour or ethnic minority background.
Really..?
But...maybe there's a good reason that they should study these books?
Penguin CEO Tom Weldon outlined the need to make reading lists more inclusive and representative of the students who study the subject.
"At its best, English Literature offers young people a passport to see and understand the world through others' eyes, inspire a lifelong love of reading and a fundamental sense of belonging. Access to a diverse and representative range of books, authors and characters is key — in classrooms, school libraries and at home.”
But if a kid from the mean streets of Bethnal Green reads about Victorian England or the time of Shakespeare, they are 'reading and seeing the world through others' eyes', aren't they?
What sort of books are you recommending they read instead?
What books do you think should be on the curriculum?
We can think of many wonderful writers of colour who could be studied, but ultimately we’re not educational experts, and so don’t think it’s our place to suggest them. Moreover, it’s really important to us that at this stage of the initiative that we’re not trying to identify solutions or make recommendations before the findings of the research are published.
So...you don't know, because you're not 'educational experts'. But you are experts on books.
Aren't you? Surely you could suggest something..?
"But the reality is that our young people are still studying a mostly white, mostly male English Literature curriculum: one which neither reflects contemporary society nor inspires a generation to read outside of their classes. We are joining forces with The Runnymede Trust to support the many schools and teachers working hard to make change on the ground, and to better understand the depth and breadth of this issue.”
Ah. Say no more. You've no idea what you like, just what you don't. We see you. We see you very well.
The Gun Control Network...Oh. Of course.
...said it was concerned by the prevalence of the weapons across England and Wales, which it said are similar to those used in mass shootings around the world and are not part of shooting traditions.Traditions change.
Covered by firearm certificates, section 1 shotguns are multi-shot weapons that contain a magazine holding more than two rounds. Figures from the Home Office show there were 700 of these guns in Essex in 2019-20, a two per cent rise on the year before.Is that all? 2%?
GCN said it is concerned by the legal status of multi-shot shotguns and semi-automatic 22 Calibre rimfire rifles.Don't tell me that if you're sucessful in getting these banned you won't immediately go after Section 2 shotguns. Because everyone knows you will.
Peter Squires, professor emeritus of criminology and public policy at the University of Brighton and member of the organisation, said: "Both resemble the types of firearms used in mass shootings around the world, and by virtue of their magazine capacities and rapid-fire potential they represent the most dangerous civilian-owned guns.
"The fact that that they are few in number and little-used makes the case that they are manifestly not part of mainstream UK shooting traditions."What do you care about shooting traditions? What do you even know about them?
The British Association for Shooting and Conservation said certificates are only granted following a rigorous licensing procedure.
Firearms director Bill Harriman said: "The number of section 1 shotguns held on certificates has not increased significantly and only relates to a small proportion of the total number of legally-held shotguns in England and Wales.
“Our licensing system is among the strictest in the world but is still open to all. BASC works continuously to see the right tone struck so that participants are not disadvantaged but public safety remains acceptable.”And the government agrees.
A Home Office spokesman said: "The UK has some of the toughest gun laws in the world.
“Before anyone receives a firearms certificate, the police must be satisfied that the person is fit to possess one and they have powers to revoke certificates if there is a risk to public safety.”So sod off, hoplophobes.
Chris Snowdon, managing director of Working Partners, said: ‘Erin Hunter is not a single person but a diverse team of creatives and writers.’Well, there's diversity and then there's diversity. Clearly, this was the wrong sort.
‘The decision taken was not in direct response to the nature of Gillian’s personally expressed views.’What horrendous views does she hold, then, that require sacking? Does she want women chained to the kitchen sink? Does she think gay couples are an abomination?
It came after the writer, who has penned a popular series of books for eight-to-12-year-olds, added the hashtag #IStandWithJKRowling to her Twitter handle.Ah. Of course. She holds the only wrong opinion that matters to the mad (and tiny and totally unrepresentative) vocal trannie mob on Twitter...
After Ms Philip received sexualised abuse and deaths threats from the trans lobby, she tweeted ‘Bring it on, homophobes and lesbian-haters’ – which only inflamed the situation.Yes, how dare she do anything but cower in fear and swear never to voice her opinion ever again?
Within 24 hours, James Noble, managing editor of Working Partners, replied to the barrage of complaints saying: ‘The worlds created by Erin Hunter are meant to be inclusive for all readers and we want to let you know that Gillian Philip will no longer be writing any Erin Hunter novels.’So what have you told your audience of young readers, Chris and James?
North Devon council has been forced to apologise after it was accused of undermining the Black Lives Matter movement with a anti-dog fouling campaign.*blinks*
Posters had been spotted around the North Devon area with the slogan 'Dog Fouling Matters' as part of a campaign to encourage owners to clean up after their dogs. The council defended its actions, claiming that the slogan had been invented 18 months ago, but the posters have been taken down as a result of complaints.Of course they have. Because 'immediate and unconditional surrender' is the first move in the playbook when an Internet Karen starts squawking.
North Devon resident Yasmin Beck said: 'Unfortunately your slogan "Dog fouling matters" uses a satirical play on words which undermines the Black Lives Matter movement.'Not as much as they themselves are undermining it, sweetie.
'This poster gives a feel of pointing a laughing finger at the many people driving forwards for positive change. Take them down and loudly show your support.
'Let's get North Devon Council behind this movement, rather than looking as though they're snickering at it.'What should be the response to such high-handed, arrogant and ignorant demands? It surely shouldn't be this:
A council spokesperson responded: 'North Devon Council recognises the importance of the Black Lives Matter campaign and fully supports the movement.
'We hope that the complainant will understand that there was never any intention to cause offence, and we are happy to take feedback from the public on board, so will remove these posters and raise this with the relevant team to consider for any future campaigns.'And now you've made it even harder for other councils to stand up to these professional agitators.
...it must be said: coronavirus has not ruined the UK; it has exposed the systemic ruin already here.That would be the state that discharged coronavirus-riddled patients back to care homes to infect others? Who employs people unable to follow simple guidelines and issue fines without them being overturned? The state whose agents can't understand a simple term like 'homeless'?
The Bank forecasts that 2021 will be the year of the bounceback, the V-shaped recovery. Such a scenario seems to me utter fantasy. Pubs, cafe and theatres will shut by the score, many more businesses will run out of cash and time.I'm confused, doesn't the 'Guardian' think we spend too much money on fripperies like entertaining ourselves anyway? Won't it be happy that we may all be in our homes eating gruel?
About 350,000 tonnes are caught every year and served in restaurants from Spain to Chile and from Mexico to Australia. But many octopus fisheries are reported to be in decline, and fish farmers have turned to rearing of octopuses to try to replace these dwindling catches. Wild-caught males and females would be allowed to mate, and their fertile eggs would be grown in containers into adults to be sold to markets round the globe.
These efforts have foundered, however, because octopus larvae eat only live food – which has made feeding them difficult and expensive. Keeping young animals in water whose salinity and temperature are carefully controlled has also proved tricky.Oh, dear, This looks insurmountable.
These drawbacks have prevented octopus farms from making progress – until recently. Aquaculturists have learned that the young of some octopus species are less fussy about the food they eat and have used these species as basic stock for breeding. There have also been advances in controlling the environments in which octopuses will be raised.
As a result, several companies have said they will soon be ready to sell farmed octopuses. The Japanese seafood company Nissui is one has reported hatching octopus eggs in captivity and has predicted it will be selling market-ready octopuses next year.Hurrah! The appliance of science is wonderful, isn't it?
...the case for octopus farming is weak, according to Jacquet and her co-authors. The main markets for the animals – the US, Europe, Japan and China – are areas where people are already well-fed.
Octopuses are delicacies and do not deserve to be the focus of intensive farming.What the hell has 'deserving' got to do with it?
At present, these farms are still at the development stage, said Peter Godfrey-Smith of Sydney University, a contributor to the paper.
“That means campaigners and activists don’t have products or outlets to target. But when universities and research institutions consider supporting these projects – and that is beginning to happen now – it will make sense to object. Why should research money be used to support a project that will inevitably have so many welfare and environmental problems once it is scaled up?”Ah. Of course. Progressives. Which, these days, is defined as 'people who want mankind to never, ever progress.
If you can read this, you’re privileged compared to the 15% of Britons who aren’t functionally literate, and so should think twice before making snotty assumptions about people who don’t follow the news.I mean, one that can easily be overcome for free, by simple learning....
