Charlie Alford

Hillsborough Law marks a huge achievement for accountability but political will is crucial for it to work

Post author:Maddison Wheeldon
Post published:15 July 2026
Post last modified:15 July 2026

The Public Office (Accountability) Bill passed its third reading in the House of Commons on Tuesday 14 July, and is now moving through the next stages of the legislative process. Also referred to as the Hillsborough Law, it will drastically improve the ability of ordinary people to get justice and accountability from those in power. In short, its purpose is to ensure the government is accountable for its actions and the very real human impact those actions can have, drawing its nickname from the Hillsborough disaster. Despite multiple attempts in the courts, none of the police officers or the former chief…

FIFA’s new ‘Mistaken Identity’ law — at the World Cup

Post author:Jamal Awar
Post published:12 July 2026
Post last modified:12 July 2026

The new ‘Mistaken Identity’ rule, introduced by FIFA for the 2026 World Cup, has now been put into practice. Swiss forward Breel Embolo became the first player to be sent off as a direct result of this refereeing amendment, marking a potential turning point in how VAR technology is utilized. During the quarter-final match between Switzerland and Argentina, Portuguese referee João Pinheiro initially issued a yellow card to Argentine midfielder Leandro Paredes, believing he had committed a foul against Embolo. However, a VAR review revealed that the situation was the opposite: the Swiss forward had actually attempted to deceive the referee…

EU approves law to prosecute anyone who shares video from Russia’s RT

Post author:Skwawkbox
Post published:5 July 2026
Post last modified:5 July 2026

The European Union (EU)’s ‘Court of Justice’ has authorised the criminal prosecution of anyone who publicly shares videos by Russia‘s RT. The ultra-Orwellian move makes no distinction whether what the video says is true. It makes no exemption for journalists. EU citizens can be jailed for, as well-known commentator Arnaud Bertrand notes, sharing an RT video saying the sky is blue: Think about the absurdity of it: if RT publishes a video saying the sky is blue and you share it on a publicly accessible website in the EU, you’d fall within the scope of this ruling, making you liable to criminal…

Filton judge issues new contempt proceedings for informing jury of law

Post author:Skwawkbox
Post published:23 June 2026
Post last modified:24 June 2026

Jeremy Johnson is the security services-linked judge who sentenced four ‘Filton 25’ activists as terrorists for trying to prevent mass murder. He is also the judge who tried to convict Rajiv Menon KC, one of the defence lawyers, for contempt of court. The appeal court had upheld Menon’s appeal, on procedural grounds, against the first charge Johnson brought, but also said Johnson could award himself the right to try again if he ticked the right boxes. And he is trying again. He has even decided he can bring the case as ‘summary proceedings”, despite there being no urgency. The case will…

Reform just tried (and failed) to get the Good Law Project’s suit against it thrown out

Post author:Grace
Post published:19 June 2026
Post last modified:19 June 2026

Today, 19 June, the High Court comprehensively ruled against Reform UK’s bid to throw out the Good Law Project’s (GLP) legal action against it. Back in 2024, before the general election, the GLP challenged all political parties to come clean about the data they held on members of the voting public. The action — backed by thousands of supporters — was part of the non-profit legal organisation’s #stoptargetingme campaign. Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) it’s a legal requirement for political parties to list and/or delete personal data when requested. And, with the GLP’s help, 1746 people did just…

Starmer’s ‘child protection’ law is an assault on press freedoms

Post author:Skwawkbox
Post published:18 June 2026
Post last modified:18 June 2026

Keir Starmer’s new ban on under-16s using social media — just as with the supposed ‘Online Safety Act’ (OSA) — does nothing to protect children. In fact, it will harm many and put others at risk as they try dangerous routes to bypass the ban. Furthermore, it will have an enormous chilling effect on meaningful journalism. It will also chill resistance to the authoritarian state he is building for fascist Reform to inherit. Starmer wages war on journalism How does the ban wage war on journalism? Because it is designed to make anonymity impossible and works hand in hand with Starmer’s…

Report: Israel is ‘above the law’ and Gaza is testing Britain’s democracy

Post author:Maddison Wheeldon
Post published:15 June 2026
Post last modified:16 June 2026

A new report by Mona Deely — CEO of Reform Initiative for Transparent Economies (RITE) — lays bare how support for Israel’s settler-colonial aggression in Palestine depends on disregard for international law by Israel and its allies. Deely, also a UK-certified lawyer, presents a detailed account of how unconditional support for states engaged in genocide is compromising systems. Moreover, she underscores the acceleration of this beneath state-of-the art surveillance systems. In addition, she highlights the marriage of convenience with Big Tech. The military support, legal interference, and lobbying across international institutions underpinning these alliances provide Zionist Israel with a political safety…