Legal limbo, uni strikes, deportation victory, and banning fire-and-rehire: just some of what got spiked this week.

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10. The National Union of Journalists has urged media organisations and writers to respond to a Home Office consultation on changing the existing official secrets and espionage laws.

In the consultation entitled: “Legislation to counter state threats” the authorities set out their intention to create new offences and “improve” the ability of the state to protect official data.

These proposals also cover the Official Secrets Acts of 1911, 1920, 1939 and 1989 and they intend to make changes to the law affecting journalists and their sources (known technically as the unauthorised disclosure of official material and its onward disclosure).

The NUJ first launched a campaign opposing the Law Commissions proposals to reform official secrets legislation in 2017, arguing at the time for the introduction of a public interest defence in law for journalists. The 2017 proposals were then shelved, and a new and updated report was published in September 2020. The latest Home Office consultation builds on the previous proposals.

Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, said: “The most recent example of official secrets legislation being used in an attempt to threaten and silence journalists was the case of Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey who were forced to spend two years fighting a press freedom battle arising from their investigative and award-winning film No Stone Unturned. Trevor and Barry were arrested in Belfast in August 2018 and their homes and offices were raided. In May 2019, Belfast appeal court judges quashed the warrants for their arrests.

“The NUJ has been keeping a watching brief on the government’s agenda since the first set of proposals came out in 2017 and we are now re-launching our campaigning efforts to defend journalists and journalism that operates in the public interest.

“We remain fundamentally opposed to any moves by the state that would make it harder to report on national security or poses harsher penalties for journalists, their sources and whistle-blowers.”

9. Over 20 MPs representing all four nations of the UK have written to Trade Secretary Liz Truss demanding proper parliamentary scrutiny of the trade agreement with Australia, amid concerns that the deal could put farmers around the country out of business.

In a letter coordinated by pro-internationalist campaign group Best for Britain, the MPs warn that “no one wants to see our farming communities in Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland undermined for the sake of a politically expedient trade deal.”

The letter has broad cross-nation and cross-party support, with signatures from Conservative MPs Roger Gale and Dan Poulter, Labour MP Hilary Benn, DUP MP Paul Girvan and SNP MP Philippa Whitford. The MPs warn that offering a tariff-free, zero quota access to the UK agricultural market risks undercutting UK farmers, adding that “the importing of products derived from conditions, agricultural practices and hormone treatments banned in the UK is not acceptable.”  

The letter calls for Parliament to be given the ability scrutinise the finalised text of the agreement before it is signed and ratified, warning that “the deal must command the support of all four nations of the UK.” It also demands that detailed impact assessments are carried out looking at how the deal will affect regions and nations of the UK and sectors such as farming.

It comes after recent polling by Best for Britain found over six in ten people believe that protecting British farmers should take priority over new trade deals with countries such as Australia. Support for farmers was found among a majority of both Leavers and Remainers, voters of all parties, across all age groups and in all nations and regions of the UK.

8. Outsourcing firm Serco’s annual profit forecast has been upgraded for the second time, to £200m, as a result of test and trace contracts.

Angela Rayner MP, Labour’s Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said: “Under the Conservatives, taxpayers’ money has been handed out to line the pockets of big outsourcing companies in return for failure after failure.

“The public will be able to compare the failed Test and Trace – run for private profit, with the vaccine roll out – run by our NHS in the public interest, and ask why Serco and other outsourcing companies are being rewarded for their failure.

“Labour will insource our public services so they are run for the public, not private profit.”

7. The Unite union has endorsed Labour MP Barry Gardiner’s parliamentary bill to end fire and rehire.

Unite’s general secretary, Len McCluskey, called the practice, in which employers sack their workers only to rehire them on lower pay and worse conditions, “a disease that’s ripping through our workplaces”.

Barry Gardiner MP presented his bill on Wednesday for the first time in Parliament as a Private Members Bill, having come second in the ballot of backbenchers to have the chance to create new legislation.

Opposition to fire and rehire has surfaced within the government under pressure from trade unions and opposition MPs.

Paul Scully MP, parliamentary-under-secretary of state for business, said the government “will tackle” fire and rehire, which he condemned as “bully-boy tactics”, but has failed to bring forward a law to stop it.

Jacob Rees-Mogg MP, leader of the House of Commons, called fire and rehire threats “wrong” and a “bad practice”, adding companies should know “better than behave in this way”.

Endorsing Barry Gardiner’s bill on behalf of Unite, general secretary Len McCluskey said: “Fire and rehire’ is ripping through our workplaces like a disease.

“Weak law lets bad bosses force through brutal changes to contracts, sometimes taking thousands of pounds off wages that families need to get by.

“It’s a disgraceful practice that’s outlawed in much of Europe and should be here.”

6. The future of private renting in Scotland must include a stronger voice for tenant’s unions, the Scottish Greens have said this Renters’ Rights Week.

The party’s co-leader Patrick Harvie raised the issue in the Scottish Parliament after the gradual lifting of restrictions has started evictions again and exposed in the insecurity of the private rented sector.

Despite this, there is no representation of tenants on the Scottish Government’s Private Rented Sector Resilience Group.

Commenting, Patrick Harvie said: “Renting in Scotland is expensive and insecure, something that has been exposed by the pandemic. The interests of landlords have been put first while Scotland still lags behind many continental European countries in tenants’ rights.

“It is unacceptable that there is no voice of tenants on The Private Rented Sector Resilience Group at a time when tenants’ unions like Living Rent have been playing a critical role in protecting tenants from abuse of power by irresponsible landlords.

“As the Scottish Government drafts a Rented Sector Strategy, it should take inspiration from countries like Sweden where tenants’ unions are commonplace, influential and very much part of the sector. This is why the Scottish Greens believe they should play an active role in shaping the future for renting.”

5. An influential group of MPs has highlighted a £14bn gap in funding for the UK’s contribution to the EU’s Horizon Europe research funding programme in a new report published today.

Questions had been raised by the Committee to Amanda Solloway, the Minister responsible for Horizon, in May over how the UK will fund its continued participation after Brexit.

Her estimates revealed in the latest European Scrutiny Committee’s report predict the up-front cost of the pan-European fund to the Treasury to be £15bn over the seven-year programme. The programme will then invest the majority of this back into UK science projects.

But the report found that just £1bn of this has so far been committed following correspondence with Ms Solloway. She failed to address this point to the Committee, stating only that the source of funding for future annual contributions will be determined at the Spending Review.

After leaving the European Union, the Government decided to remain part of the Horizon Europe programme to continue a high degree of scientific cooperation. Outside the EU, this means paying contributions as a ‘third country’ rather than through contributions to the EU budget as a member.

It may spark concerns that the UK could be about to renege on its plans for scientific cooperation with the EU.

4. UN human rights experts have expressed ‘extremely alarm’ at reports of alleged forcible ‘organ harvesting’ targeting minorities, including Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, Tibetans, Muslims and Christians, in detention in China.

The experts said they have received credible information that detainees from ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities may be forcibly subjected to blood tests and organ examinations such as ultrasound and x-rays, without their informed consent; while other prisoners are not required to undergo such examinations. The results of the examinations are reportedly registered in a database of living organ sources that facilitates organ allocation.

“Forced organ harvesting in China appears to be targeting specific ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities held in detention, often without being explained the reasons for arrest or given arrest warrants, at different locations,” they said. “We are deeply concerned by reports of discriminatory treatment of the prisoners or detainees based on their ethnicity and religion or belief.

“According to the allegations received, the most common organs removed from the prisoners are reportedly hearts, kidneys, livers, corneas and, less commonly, parts of livers. This form of trafficking with a medical nature allegedly involves health sector professionals, including surgeons, anaesthetists and other medical specialists.”

UN human rights experts have previously raised the issue with the Chinese Government in 2006 and 2007.

The findings come after the UK government rejected a series of Business Committee recommendations to prevent Xinjiang slave labour in UK supply chains.

Nusrat Ghani MP (Conservative MP for Wealden and lead BEIS Committee member for the forced labour in UK value chains inquiry) said it was ‘deeply disheartening’: “Given the horrifying evidence of abuses, it beggars belief the government is dragging its feet in bringing forward the tough action needed.”

3. Campaigners have celebrated news that the Home Office has dropped the deportation case against a 22-year-old autistic man.

Osime Brown was facing deportation after being sentenced to five years in prison for stealing a friend’s phone. Along with autism, Brown has been diagnosed with depression and PTSD as well as suffering from a heart condition.

His mother, Joan Martin, has been campaigning relentlessly to have his deportation case dropped, being of the belief that he will not survive alone in Jamaica – a country he has not visited since he was four years old.

Lib Dem Jamie Stone MP, who launched a parliamentary motion in support of Mr Brown, commented: “I hope the Home Office learns from this. From the care to the prison system as a young, black, autistic man, Osime has faced hardship throughout his life. This deportation could have ended his life. 

“There were countless people and organisations fighting for this outcome, including Autistic Inclusive Meets – an organisation which enables autistic individuals to participate in society and enjoy life. Their contribution to this case has been invaluable.

“Thanks to tireless campaigning from his mother, Joan, his friends, family, charities, and my own colleagues from the House of Commons, Osime will now get to stay at home where he belongs, surrounded by people who love and care for him. I congratulate everyone involved in bringing about this happy result.”

2. Staff at the University of Leicester have down tools in the first of three continuous days of strike action as they fight against 26 compulsory redundancies.

The university faces three consecutive days of strikes, starting this Wednesday. The strikes come after around 70% of staff who voted in an industrial ballot said yes to strike action to stop the sackings. University of Leicester vice-chancellor Nishan Canagarajah has since handed the 26 staff their redundancy notices, and they are set to lose their jobs from Tuesday 3 August.

Over 70 senior Leicester staff and professors have written to University of Leicester’s executive board setting out concerns that some staff have been targeted for redundancy because of the intellectual approaches of their research, which they say is a serious threat to academic freedom.

A marking and assessment boycott by university staff has also now entered its second month. The marking boycott and strike action are both taking place during the crucial end of year examination period, meaning disruption for the university will be especially severe.

The University and College Union (UCU) has additionally hit Leicester with the ultimate sanction of a global boycott, meaning the union is asking its members, other trade unions,  and the international academic community to boycott the university. This includes not speaking at events, accepting invitations to give lectures, or applying for jobs at Leicester. Since the global boycott began last month at least 19 events have been cancelled, indefinitely postponed, or moved elsewhere.

Professor Canagarajah had originally to planned to cut 60 jobs from 145 staff placed at risk of redundancy in January 2021 as part of his strategic plan ‘Shaping for Excellence’. Since then, at least 115 staff have left the university, many having been pressured into taking ‘voluntary’ redundancy, the union says. Almost 60 more have been forced into alternative roles, many of which are on worse contracts.

Five academic departments have been impacted by the job losses. These include business; maths; informatics; neuroscience, psychology & behaviour; and English. The university previously sacked over 100 precariously employed tutors and lost over 50 staff to voluntary redundancy in 2020.

1. Potentially hundreds of thousands of EU citizens could be left in legal limbo on July 1^st, following the end of the EU Settled Status scheme, a new academic report by UK in a Changing Europe finds.

The EU Settled Status scheme allows EU nationals (and those from Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) and some family members to apply for ‘settled status’ or, if they have less than five years residence, ‘pre-settled status’.

The report, The EU Settlement Scheme, finds the scheme, by far the largest immigration administrative exercise ever undertaken by the Home Office, (perhaps one of the largest in the world) has been hugely successful. More than five million people have applied – far more than expected; this includes non-EU family members, who also have applied in large numbers.

The government’s intention has been to grant status, and refusals have, to date, been low (about 2%). The vast majority of applications have been approved quickly.

However, findings from the report show there will be tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of people who, while entitled to apply, will find themselves without a legal immigration status on 1st July 2021.

Those who have not applied by the deadline, and who do not have a good reason for making a late application, will immediately and irreversibly lose their rights of residence, will be considered ‘undocumented’ and become subject to the ‘hostile environment’ and the risk of removal.

There will inevitably be a rush to apply in the final few days of the scheme, but some will not make it. There will also be people who made an application on time but have not received a decision by 30 June 2021.

In those cases, if applicants cannot demonstrate they have a ‘right to reside’, they will lose their rights immediately, even if their application is valid. This is likely to impact most severely upon vulnerable applicants with complicated cases. Given delays in processing applications this difference in treatment could become quite significant.

Josiah Mortimer is co-editor of Left Foot Forward.

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