The Latest Housing Law News Regulating Social Landlords: the Housing Bill presently before Parliament will create a new "regulator" in the social housing sector – "OFTenant". Progress on establishing that organisation is outlined in a letter Kate Barker has sent to all stakeholders. For a copy of her letter click here. Housing Bill: the next […]
EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE Fixed-term workers Impact v Ireland European Court of Justice, Case C268/06Clause 4 of the framework agreement on fixed-term work (put into effect by Council Directive 1999/70/EC) must be interpreted as meaning that "employment conditions" encompasses conditions relating to pay and to pensions which depend on the employment relationship, but not to […]
Legislation The Asylum and Immigration Tribunal (Fast Track Procedure) (Amendment) Rules 2008 No. 1089 (L. 8) Rule 4 introduce new powers for combined hearings for related Appellants, empower the Tribunal to consider an appeal without a hearing where the person giving notice of appeal fails to include with the notice of appeal the notice of […]
The Latest Housing Law News Tolerated trespassers: are on the way out at last! The latest version of the Housing Bill 2008 includes at clauses 298 and schedule 10 the provisions necessary to abolish them. For a copy of the Bill click here . The changes follow a consultation exercise the results of which have […]
Caselaw Odelola v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2008] EWCA Civ 308 The Immigration Rules are not delegated or subordinate legislation and therefore were not subject to the Interpretation Act 1978. Therefore the Home Office was entitled to apply the Immigration Rules in force at the time that it considered an immigration application […]
News Home Secretary Jacqui Smith announced that launch of the country’s new UK Border Agency on the 3rd April 2008. The new Agency, established as a shadow agency of the Home Office, is intended to protect our borders, control migration for the benefit of the country, prevent border tax fraud, smuggling and immigration crime and […]
LEGISLATION SI 2008 No 977 with effect from 7th April 2008, amends the Criminal Justice Act 1991 to expand the early release scheme so as to enable foreign national prisoners to be removed from prison, and hence the UK, at an earlier point in their sentence Immigration rule change [HC 420] from 7th April 2008 […]
The Last Week in Housing Law On 28 March 2008 the Government published Statutory Homelessness in England: The Experience of Families and 16-17 Year Olds – Homelessness Research Summary Number 7, 2008. The summary presents the findings of a major survey of homeless families and 16-17 year olds. The survey investigated the characteristics of homeless […]
The Last Week in Housing Law On 17 March 2008 the House of Lords passed an amendment to the Children & Young Persons Bill the effect of which is to create a statutory duty on the Borders & Immigration Agency to safeguard and promote the welfare of children (particularly homeless unaccompanied asylum seekers) who pass […]
We seek two barristers to join our excellent and thriving Housing Team.
News 1400 Iraqis are to have their support withdrawn following notification by the Home Office that they no longer qualify on the basis that there is ‘no safe route of return’. The announcement, reported by the Guardian this week, is a further statement from the government that it believes that Iraq is a safe place […]
The Last Week in Housing Law On 10 March 2008 the Government published the latest information on local housing authorities’ activities under homelessness legislation.The figures cover the last quarter of 2007 for English local authorities. The data includes the number of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty during the quarter, and the number […]
EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE Sex Discrimination Mayr v Bäckerei und Konditorei Gerhard Flöckner While women undergoing IVF treatment, who have had their ova fertilised but not yet implanted, are not ‘pregnant’ and are therefore not protected from dismissal under the EC Pregnant Workers Directive, if a woman is dismissed for reasons related to such IVF […]
News New Border Agency The birth of the new UK Border Agency (UKBA) was announced by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. The UK Border Agency will bring together the work of the Border and Immigration Agency, UK Visas and parts of HM Revenue and Customs at the border, who will work closely with the police and […]
Issue 87 – 10 March 2008 (Published on Monday, 10 March, 2008) Housing News On 6 March 2008 the Government published the latest research on the impact of Home Information Packs in areas in which they were piloted. The researchers found that 58 per cent of buyers would have liked the opportunity to have seen […]
National Identity Card Scheme The Home Office announced last week its plans for rolling a national identity scheme. The scheme will begin in November this year with introduction of identity cards for non-EEA foreign nationals. Fingerprints will be collected from foreign nationals before they are issued with a card, which will show the details of […]
An application before the High Court for habeas corpus was upheld by Mr Justice King on 4th March 2008.
Housing News On 29 February 2008 the Civil Justice Council issued a draft pre-action protocol for mortgage arrears possession claims. The protocol is intended to ensure that before proceedings are commenced all reasonable steps have been taken to avoid the necessity for litigation. Responses to the draft are sought by 23 May 2008. For a […]
News Points system The new points system was launched on 29 February 2008. According to the BIA website, the key elements of the system are: it combines more than 80 pre-existing work and study routes in to the United Kingdom into five tiers (highly skilled individuals; skilled workers with a job offer; low skilled workers […]
EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE Disability Discrimination Coleman v Attridge Law (Case C-303/06) Ms Coleman cares for her disabled son. When she sought to take time off to care for him, she was called ‘lazy’ by her employer and was accused of attempting to manipulate her working conditions. She brought claims under the Disability Discrimination Act […]
