Judge rules David Gauke was wrong to push Parole Board chair out of his job

Wrongly forced to quit: Former Parole Board chair Nick Hardwick.

This is further evidence to add to the mountain we already have, demonstrating the corruption inherent in any Conservative government.

The simple fact is that they think they can do anything they like.

A high court judge has ruled it was unacceptable for the justice secretary to pressurise the Parole Board chair Nick Hardwick into resigning, and that the board lacks independence from the government.

Hardwick resigned in March when David Gauke told him that his position was untenable following the Parole Board’s decision to release serial sex offender John Worboys.

The case was brought by Paul Wakenshaw, a British prisoner, who argued that although the Parole Board was a de facto court under both common law and the European convention on human rights, Hardwick’s removal proved it lacked the independence of a true court.

He said it was constitutionally improper for the justice secretary to have requested that the head of a judicial body resign without any procedure being followed to determine whether there were grounds for his removal. Wakenshaw also sought an order postponing the recruitment of a new chair, for which interviews are scheduled to take place this month.

On Tuesday Mr Justice Mostyn granted Wakenshaw permission to judicially review the independence of the board on the grounds there was a lack of security of tenure for Parole Board members (including the chair) – as evidenced by the circumstances in which Hardwick offered his resignation.

The judge also said that if the justice secretary decided to remove a member of the Parole Board, there was no mechanism to ensure it was a fair decision.

Source: Justice secretary wrong to push Parole Board chair to quit, judge rules | Society | The Guardian

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No Comments

  1. Dave Rowlands August 11, 2018 at 11:23 am - Reply

    “they think they can do anything they like”, they do, quite often without any comeback for their actions. How does the ordinary voter prevent this?

  2. Ultraviolet August 11, 2018 at 2:13 pm - Reply

    And that is Gauke’s second run-in with the courts this month. A couple of weeks ago, the court ruled against him over legal aid cuts. The judgement contained this memorable line to describe the MoJ’s arguments in court:

    “It is difficult to express in language of appropriate moderation why we consider these arguments without merit.”

    I think that is legalese for “What a load of b@ll@x”.

    https://www.blackstonechambers.com/news/divisional-court-strikes-down-irrational-and-unfairly-made-decision-cut-criminal-legal-aid/

  3. hanspann August 11, 2018 at 8:01 pm - Reply

    I have the dubious pleasure of having him as my MP. Nasty piece of work who smarms his way into the good graces of many reasonable and decent locals :(

  4. Dez August 12, 2018 at 3:18 pm - Reply

    Such boorish public school type corrupt behaviour deserves a Cons knighthood for services rendered against plebs………

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