Support Our Work Mailing list About / Contact

NI: Northern Ireland: Parole delay unlawful

01 September 1995

Support our work: become a Friend of Statewatch from as little as £1/€1 per month.

Home Secretary Michael Howard acted unlawfully in delaying the parole hearings of five long-serving IRA prisoners, the High Court ruled in September. The five men - Brendan Dowd, Paul Norney, Sean Kinsella, Stephen Nordone and Noel Gibson - completed their 20-year "tariffs" in July (the time recommended by the sentencing judge) and should have been referred to the Parole Board immediately for consideration of whether they still represented a danger to the public, which would be the only legal ground to keep them in prison. Instead, the Home Secretary simply delayed their referral, which he had no power to do. Mr Justice Dyson said that this was manifestly unjust, and flouted principles of common law and the European Convention on Human Rights. Independent 29.9.95.

Our work is only possible with your support.
Become a Friend of Statewatch from as little as £1/€1 per month.

 Previous article

Law - in brief (2)

Next article 

Montgomery memorandum cast shadow over Swiss neutrality

 

Spotted an error? If you've spotted a problem with this page, just click once to let us know.

Report error

Statewatch does not have a corporate view, nor does it seek to create one, the views expressed are those of the author. Statewatch is not responsible for the content of external websites and inclusion of a link does not constitute an endorsement. Registered UK charity number: 1154784. Registered UK company number: 08480724. Registered company name: The Libertarian Research & Education Trust. Registered office: MayDay Rooms, 88 Fleet Street, London EC4Y 1DH. © Statewatch ISSN 1756-851X. Personal usage as private individuals "fair dealing" is allowed. We also welcome links to material on our site. Usage by those working for organisations is allowed only if the organisation holds an appropriate licence from the relevant reprographic rights organisation (eg: Copyright Licensing Agency in the UK) with such usage being subject to the terms and conditions of that licence and to local copyright law.

About | Contact | Privacy Policy