On Tuesday, the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill passed its second vote in the House of Commons (329 to 263). The Conservative Party voted for the bill, with only two abstaining. Labour initially planned to abstain, however, the violence at the Sarah Everard vigil meant they voted against it. The bill is now in the Committee stage.
This act is highly controversial for a number of reasons. Firstly, it increases police power against protesting. The power involves control over the length of protests, maximum noise levels, and prosecution of activists for various vague offences; the most notable being “serious annoyance”. The bill directly impacts citizens' right to protest, and is believed to be designed to tackle protests like 2019's Extinction Rebellion protests.
Additionally, the bill also increases sentences for violent criminals, tougher penalties for attacks on police officers, and changes to sexual offences legislation. It also increases the maximum sentence for defacing a statue to 10 years, which has been severely criticised.
This has been described by many as “authoritarian”, especially after the policing at Sarah Everard’s vigil last Saturday. The bill is a direct attack on the civil liberties and freedom to protest, and therefore speech, of British people, and shows the Conservative government’s descent into an increased populist way of governing.
Written by Anna Male
Artwork by Zara Masood
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