Postcard From The Staterooms: Ashes to Ashes but not dust to dust….

As we waited last night for England to go 3-1 up in The Ashes there were some amusing jokes about our cousins from OZ...who don’t enjoy losing at anything, but particularly not cricket against England.  “What do you call an Aussie with a bottle of champagne at The Ashes?…. A waiter”….”What do you call an Aussie holding The Urn? …… An undertaker”…and so it went on…

I shall miss the ‘allnighters’ and the pleasure this year was definitely enhanced by being able to watch/listen and tweet with others on twitter.

hu·bris

[hyoo-bris, hoo-]

–noun

excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance.

There are dangers and pride does often come before a fall as is well demonstrated by Nick Clegg, Deputy Prime Minister of The United Kingdom….now enjoying a 7% poll for support for his Lib-Dem party and the general opprobium of a very mixed group of people throughout the country. A question put on Any Questions tonight was interesting…..”Are control orders being repealed because of necessity or to bolster the standing of Nick Clegg.”

For my part, control orders as they presently stand are a blight on our legal system but we are not privy to the real needs of the security services and I don’t have any immediate answer to the problem of detaining known terrorists without compromising security service sources or methods in court through prosecutions.  The UK Human Rights blog considers: Control orders: what are they and why do they matter?

‘Virtual house arrest’ to go but control orders for terrorists will stay

The Guardian: Nick Clegg admits that government will retain restrictions for terror suspects who cannot be prosecuted in British courts

From MP to HMP

David Chaytor, former MP….or now prisoner No1223456789…  has gone down for 18 months , sentenced by Mr Justice Saunders after pleading guilty to three charges of false accounting in relation to his Parliamentary expenses. The UK Human Rights blog observes… “Three other men – Elliot Morley, James Devine and Lord Hanningfield (Paul White) – are still awaiting trial for similar offences under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 (false accounting), and will take little solace from the sentencing.”

If they do not plead guilty….they may well go down for longer if convicted.

What can David Chaytor expect now he has been sentenced?

Guardian: Editor of prisoners’ newspaper ConVerse, Mark Leech, gives a taste of what life will be like inside for the former MP

But… will he find GOD?  Will a book be coming out in time for Christmas next year?

I understand that other files have been sent to the DPP and it may be that some MPs who overdid the flipping and raiding of the John Lewis catalogue were lucky not to face the same fate.

Hat Tip to fellow tweeter @Taxbod for drawing attention to this classic from Peter Cook….

Peter Cook’s biased judge sketch (complete)

Watch the movie… it is still a wonderful piece of satire….. superb

Would the fountain of your mind were clear again, that I might water an ass at it.

Troilus and Cressida

I rather liked this internet gizmo from 1996….a Shakespearian *Insult generator*

While avoiding specifics, Nick Clegg makes the right sounds on libel reform

The Guardian: Lib Dem leader’s promise to publish a draft defamation bill shows recognition that free speech has been curtailed in the UK

There is no doubt that libel law does need to be reformed… but as Nick Clegg appears to have reprised The Ancient mariner and shot the albatross… I suspect that he is not the best person to front this…I would be most interested to hear from libel lawyers on this…… and you won’t get an email from me referring you to Pressdram v Arkell. (David Allen Green in his Jack of Kent blog explains the reference to Pressdram v Arkell if you are not aware of the meaning.)

Delighted to see that RollonFriday has returned after the great British shut down over Christmas and is leading the 24 hour rolling news carnival with…

Law firm bans pooing at work, it’s claimed

A law firm in Leeds has been accused of banning its staff from doing number twos at work after a pipe burst in the recent cold snap.

And excellent news…. which may well keep me busy for a while in 2011…

MoJ to extend Freedom of Information Act

The Law Society Gazette reports….. “More public bodies are to be opened up to public scrutiny under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI), the Ministry of Justice announced today.

The MoJ said it will extend the scope of the FOI to make it easier for people to find and use information about the public bodies they rely on. Bodies such as the Association of Chief Police Officers, the Financial Services Ombudsman and higher education admissions body UCAS are to be brought within the scope of the FOI, as are companies wholly owned by public authorities.”

FINALLY… if you are not prognosticated out…..this from the Law Society Gazette

Prominent legal figures give their predictions for 2011

And..that is enough from me….

Best, as always

Charon