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Reposted by Graham Smith

bleary @bleary.off-the-records.com · 1d

If anyone needs me I will be in the museum, lying down next to the bog bodies.

Did people really memorize phone numbers before cell phones, or is that just a movie thing?
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I was watching some old shows from the 90s and noticed people would just dial numbers from memory - like they'd call their friends or family without looking anything up.
Made me wonder if that was actually normal back then? Did people genuinely have all their important numbers memorized, or did most folks keep a little address book or written list nearby?

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 1d

Neither take makes a lot of sense, tbh.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 1d

Tickled to see that the legal and evidential issues around serving official notices by email remain much the same as when we tech lawyers started to grapple with them a quarter of a century (or more) ago.

Colin Yeo @colinyeo.bsky.social · 1d

New from FM: Court of Appeal finds it arguable that student did not receive Home Office email cancelling his leave | Sonia Lenegan

Court of Appeal finds it arguable that student did not receive Home Office email cancelling his leave - Free Movement

The Court of Appeal has overturned a refusal of permission by the Upper Tribunal in a judicial review claim where the appellant disputed receipt of an email

freemovement.org.uk

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Reposted by Graham Smith

Online Safety Act Network @osanetwork.bsky.social · 1d

🆕 Our latest #onlinesafety newsletter is out today. Parliament may have been on recess but it's hardly been quiet elsewhere. Catch up with all the latest news, research and commentary below and don't forget to subscribe to receive the next one direct. ⬇️

mailchi.mp/51eb43a1895c...

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

An element also of the location underlining the political nature of the speech? If the protest had been elsewhere there might have been more debate about whether the protest was about the Turkish regime, and hence whether it attracted the high level of Art 10 protection for political speech.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

That said, I didn’t think it was very helpful to combine the para 33(1) and (2) limbs together when appling the principles to the facts. But eg the para 36 observations seemed very influenced by Art 10 and to go at least partly to whether the conduct was disorderly.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

‘Within sight of’, agreed. It would be relevant to what is meant by alarm etc, and also to the interpretation of ‘disorderly’.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

And of course the Online Safety Act illegality duties imposed on platforms are seriously problematic from a freedom of speech point of view. www.cyberleagle.com/2025/09/the-...

The Online Safety Act: guardian of free speech?

A blogpost headed “The Online Safety Act: A First Amendment for the UK” lacks nothing in shock value. The one thing that we might have th...

www.cyberleagle.com

Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

The S.179 OSA ‘false communications‘ offence that he mentions has been around in various versions for many years, but only now with the panic about mis/disinformation has it come to prominence. Visual history of S.127, S.179 and related offences here.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

But he’s not wrong about S.127 Communications Act. The problem is what to put in its place. The Online Safety Bill did originally have a replacement ‘harmful communications‘ offence as suggested by the Law Commission, but that was dropped when it was realised how problematic it was.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 3d

But all interpreted in the light of Art 10: “…we apply all the legal matters we have set out already in this judgement: This was clearly political speech or conduct, insulting conduct is not sufficient, and we should be careful not to read down the words we are considering.“

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 4d

It's hardly a test of principle for them, is it? Wait until someone burns a Bible or a Union Jack.

Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 4d

Or a Union Jack.

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Reposted by Graham Smith

Mark Wallace @wallaceme.bsky.social · 4d

Thank goodness. We have no blasphemy law in this country any longer, nor should we. I dislike book burning instinctively, but plenty of things I might dislike are nonetheless rightly legal. Mr Coskun should never have been convicted for an act of free expression. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Man who burned Quran outside Turkish consulate wins appeal - BBC News

Hamit Coskun's freedom of expression includes the right to express views that offend, a judge rules.

www.bbc.co.uk

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Reposted by Graham Smith

Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 4d

Judgment here. www.judiciary.uk/judgments/re...

Rex -v- Hamit Coskun - Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Southwark Crown Court Judgment on appeal 10 October 2025 Before: Mr Justice BennathanMs T Guest JPandMr D Graves JP Between: Rex -v- Hamit Coskun

www.judiciary.uk

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 4d

Judgment here. www.judiciary.uk/judgments/re...

Rex -v- Hamit Coskun - Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Southwark Crown Court Judgment on appeal 10 October 2025 Before: Mr Justice BennathanMs T Guest JPandMr D Graves JP Between: Rex -v- Hamit Coskun

www.judiciary.uk

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Reposted by Graham Smith

Colin Yeo @colinyeo.bsky.social · 6d

Properly and appropriately searing criticism of Jenrick by @stephenkb.bsky.social in his newsletter this morning. Jenrick is obsessed with skin colour as a supposed signal of integration. There's a word for people like that.
ep.ft.com/permalink/em...

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 6d

And for the unsung history of private legal action against polluters. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Saving Our Streams

Roger Bate explains the history of an unusual and remarkably effective 'environmental' organisation - the Anglers' Conservation Association (ACA). Founded in 1

papers.ssrn.com

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 6d

Re-reads the Pride of Derby case… www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

River Wye pollution prompts UK's largest environmental lawsuit

Livestock and water companies are accused of “extensive” pollution in the Wye, Lugg and Usk rivers.

www.bbc.co.uk

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 7d

Beware politicians with lists.

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Reposted by Graham Smith

Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 7d

Jenrick now proposing sacking judges he doesn't like. I can just about remember when Conservatives cared about things like the rule of law.

George Mann @sgfmann.bsky.social · 7d

The Daily Telegraph: MI5 kept in dark in China spy trial fiasco #TomorrowsPapersToday

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 8d

Things that Art 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights does not say.

Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 8d

17. Everyone has the right to freedom of a prescribed quantity of opinion and expression at a designated time and place.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 8d

17. Everyone has the right to freedom of a prescribed quantity of opinion and expression at a designated time and place.

Reposted by Graham Smith

Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 8d

Quite amusing that the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 is listed in the Appendix to the Wolfson Report as a domestic statute covering human rights ground. It wouldn't exist at all but for a series of Strasbourg judgments and the ECHR.

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Graham Smith @cyberleagle.bsky.social · 8d

Quite amusing that the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 is listed in the Appendix to the Wolfson Report as a domestic statute covering human rights ground. It wouldn't exist at all but for a series of Strasbourg judgments and the ECHR.

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