As we discussed, Downing Street actually gave a comment on the Duchess of Sussex’s second legal victory. Downing Street means Boris Johnson, although it was just BoJo’s spokesperson who commented, which is still pretty bonkers. Meghan won her summary judgment in February because the case was cut-and-dry. The Mail lost their appeal last week because even after Kensington Palace (Prince William and Jason Knauf) turned over evidence to damage Meghan, the issues of the case were still cut-and-dry: the Mail could not prove that Meghan wrote her letter to her father with the intention of it becoming public. That’s it in a nutshell. The Mail could also not prove that it was in the public’s interest to publish much of Meghan’s letter to her father where all she was doing was talking about how toxic and gross he is. That’s not a matter of state. That’s not a matter of corruption or malfeasance. So… true story, the British peeps are so salty about Meghan winning again, they’re going to CHANGE THE LAW.

Dominic Raab has said he wants to “correct” the drift towards the principle of free speech being outweighed by protection of privacy. The justice secretary’s intervention comes just days after Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, won an appeal court battle over a newspaper’s publication of extracts of a letter to her father. Court of appeal judges ruled that the duchess had a “reasonable expectation of privacy” in the contents of the letter which were “personal, private and not matters of legitimate public interest”.

But critics have accused the courts of creating extensive privacy rights which were never legislated for in parliament, by their far-reaching interpretation of the right to private and family life enshrined in the European Convention of Human Rights and translated into UK law through the Human Rights Act.

Speaking to Times Radio on Sunday, Mr Raab did not directly reference the duchess’s case, but made clear he believes the balance has slipped too far in favour of the ability of rich individuals to protect their secrets. He indicated that his planned overhaul of the Human Rights Act could shift Britain away from “continental-style privacy laws” developed by judges rather than parliament.

“We do in this country have a tradition which emphasises and prioritises free speech and open debate,” said the deputy prime minister. “I think that’s something which is pro freedom that we’ll look at.”

Citing British philosophers John Locke, John Stuart Mill and Isaiah Berlin, Mr Raab said: “In the politics of this country, we’ve had a heavier emphasis on free speech, transparency, accountability for politicians, for people in positions of influence. We don’t have the continental-style privacy law protections. If we were going to go down that route, it should have been decided by elected politicians.” He added: “I think that’s a good example of the kind of balance that we can strike with our own home-grown approach to this, rather than the over-reliance on a continental model, which is effectively what the Human Rights Act has left us with. What I want to see is stronger respect for the democratic prerogatives of parliament to legislate in those areas.

“So it’s about getting the balance right. But certainly, I think the drift towards continental-style privacy laws, innovated in the courtroom not by elected lawmakers in the House of Commons, is something that we can and should correct.”

[From The Independent]

Come on, it’s a little bit funny. They were bested by a clever American woman of color and they’re truly going to change their laws so it never happens again!! It’s pathetic, yes, but it’s also hilarious. It’s like no one in the entire Tory/royal establishment understands how this could splash back on them in a million different ways. You know who else bullied the British press, arguing human rights and privacy? Prince William. He made those arguments when he was trying to keep publications from reporting on his affair with Rose Hanbury. Meghan has these short-sighted morons so worked up, they’re going to rewrite their laws to “punish” Meghan and they’ll end up hurting themselves even more.

The rule of law is the last defence against unaccountable political power, as we have seen during Brexit and the Coronavirus pandemic. And that's exactly why the Johnson Government is coming next for judicial review and the Human Rights Act. None of this is normal. pic.twitter.com/dM5kMTANMH

— Hardeep Matharu (@Hardeep_Matharu) December 5, 2021

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, NYT.

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By: Kaiser
Title: Salt Island is so mad at Duchess Meghan, they plan to rewrite their laws
Sourced From: www.celebitchy.com/744350/salt_island_is_so_mad_at_duchess_meghan_they_plan_to_rewrite_their_laws/
Published Date: Mon, 06 Dec 2021 14:30:26 +0000

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