Category: Legal

Camden Council Cracks Down on Public Urination…reports Asian Lite News

Camden Council is taking bold action to tackle the issue of public urination in the borough, especially in areas around Holborn and Covent Garden, with new measures to improve cleanliness and safety. The council is teaming up with the police to increase evening and night-time patrols, issuing warnings and £120 fines to individuals caught urinating on the streets. 

In addition to these patrols, Camden has introduced anti-pee paint in targeted hotspot areas. This special coating causes urine to splash back at the person, sending a clear and unpleasant message to potential offenders. To further raise awareness, posters will be displayed in key locations throughout the borough, reminding people that the streets are not public toilets and providing directions to the nearest public restrooms. 

Councillor Pat Callaghan, Cabinet Member for Safer Communities, emphasized the impact of this behavior on the community, stating, “Not only is this behaviour unpleasant and unsightly, but it also creates a hostile environment for others in the area.” She highlighted Camden’s ongoing efforts to work with the police to ensure that offenders face consequences for their actions. 

Councillor Adam Harrison, Cabinet Member for Planning and a Sustainable Camden, added, “We want our borough to be a clean and welcoming place for everyone. On average, we spend £100,000 each year washing pavements, which could be better used elsewhere if we tackle this problem.” 

The council is also making efforts to improve public toilet facilities throughout Camden, ensuring they are accessible and well-maintained for residents and visitors alike. Members of the public are encouraged to report incidents of public urination via the Love Clean Streets website or app. 

These new measures are part of Camden’s broader effort to address cleanliness and public nuisance issues, including new initiatives to combat fly-tipping and littering across the borough. 

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It will now prove an early test for Labour’s new employment rights enforcer, which the government has promised as part of its workers’ rights package….reports Asian Lite News

Nearly 200 care providers have been given government licences to bring foreign nurses to the UK despite having previously violated labour laws, according to a study that highlights widespread employment problems in the social care sector. 

The report by the Work Rights Centre shows 177 companies in England have been given licences to sponsor carers, even while publicly available information shows them to have violated workers’ protections in the past. 

The study gives further evidence of major gaps in the government’s oversight of its foreign carer regime, under which hundreds of thousands of nurses and carers have travelled to Britain for work, only for many to experience exploitation and poor working conditions. 

It will now prove an early test for Labour’s new employment rights enforcer, which the government has promised as part of its workers’ rights package. 

Dora-Olivia Vicol, chief executive of the Work Rights Centre, said: “Our research finds that breaches of employment rights are endemic in the care sector. This cannot come as a surprise to the Home Office, which granted licences to companies with a history labour violations. For those who have been exploited, the fear of retaliation from their sponsor employer is enough to force them into silence. On top of this, working conditions are barely tolerable, with work schedules either all-consuming and exhausting, or so sparse that they do not provide enough income to make ends meet.” 

The previous government turned to foreign workers to plug huge job gaps in the social care sector in the wake of the pandemic, with 350,000 foreign carers travelling to work in Britain last year alone. Foreign carers have reported employers threatening them with deportation if they speak out about their experiences, with some forced to take irregular work on the side to pay the bills. 

Experts say the government has exercised little oversight of the system, allowing some care companies to continue bringing workers from abroad despite clear evidence they are mistreating people. The Work Rights Centre study shows at least 1 in every 14 companies with a licence to sponsor foreign workers has previously violated employment regulations, whether by offering substandard care, paying less than the minimum wage or breaching health and safety rules. 

The organisation also spoke to 92 different carers and found nearly two-thirds reported health and safety breaches, bullying or discrimination at work. Over half also said they were given unsustainable working hours, for example being asked to be on duty for as long as 100 hours a week despite only seeing clients for a fraction of that time. 

Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, promised an investigation into the sector before Labour came to power, but has not said anything about holding one since the election. A government spokesperson said: “We are deeply concerned by reports of unethical practices within the adult social care sector, and we will continue to act where evidence of abuse is found. 

“The government recognises the scale of reforms needed to make the adult social care sector attractive, to support workforce growth and improve the retention of the domestic workforce. However, the sector also needs to help ensure international recruitment in the care system is both ethical and sustainable.” 

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Just 3,595 fines were issued in the previous 12 months, the year before National Highways switched to a new provider to manage payments there. …reports Asian Lite News

Millions in incorrect fines were mistakenly handed to drivers over a major route in the UK in 12 months, according to a new investigation. 

Figures obtained by the PA news agency show National Highways cancelled 59,007 fines at the Dartford Crossing, which connects Thurrock in Essex with Dartford in Kent. These penalty charge notices amount to £4.1m combined at the point of issue, as each cost £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days. 

Just 3,595 fines were issued in the previous 12 months, the year before National Highways switched to a new provider to manage payments there. Dr Jenny Dunne, 64, was charged 34 times in the seven months to late April for crossings she didn’t make, partly because a car with a number plate similar to hers – with a 3 instead of a 1 – was incorrectly identified. 

“I had no idea what was happening. At the beginning I got quite upset,” she said. “I thought my number plate had been cloned so I contacted the police. It turned out the cameras were faulty. It’s taken an awful lot of my time and wasted a lot of my energy.” 

A National Highways spokesman said it has apologised to Dr Dunne since discovering an article was being written. Private firm Conduent was awarded a £150m contract by National Highways to manage crossing payments from 28 July last year. 

After then, there were reports of drivers fined or charged when a vehicle with a similar plate used the crossing. National Highways said it has “resolved the issues”. 

Crossings made between 6am and 10pm are chargeable and the fees – known as the Dart Charge – must be paid by midnight the day after the crossing. Fines are given to those who do not pay, with automatic number plate recognition cameras detecting vehicles on the crossing. 

More than 55 million journeys are made on the crossing each year, with about two million fines processed for non-payment, and the Dartford Crossing connects with the M25, one of the busiest motorways in Europe. National Highways said there were “technical issues with the transition to the new service providers”. 

“We understand that anything associated with finances can be stressful, and we apologise for the inconvenience that these customers have faced,” the group said. “In the minority of circumstances where PCNs are issued in error, the charge will be cancelled as soon as a customer contacts us to let us know.” 

The organisation also claimed they have “resolved” the issues and “seen the errors reduce to less than 1% of all PCNs issued”. 

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It aims to make the UK the first country in the world to eradicate smoking by raising the age at which people can buy cigarettes by one year every year until no one can legally do so…reports Asian Lite News

Smoking is to be banned outside schools and hospitals in England as part of a crackdown on one of the UK’s biggest killers and the country’s most common cause of cancer.

But the government has dropped plans to outlaw smoking outside pubs and restaurants, prompting health campaigners to complain about “vested interests” covertly influencing policy.

The health secretary, Wes Streeting, said it was a “sensible package to tackle what is still one of Britain’s biggest killers … but also to clamp down on the scourge of use of vaping”.

He said he had listened to the hospitality industry’s concerns about smoking outside venues. “To be fair to the hospitality industry, they’ve taken a real battering in recent years – I don’t think it’s in anyone’s interest for us to worsen that situation,” he said.

“So we listened to what the hospitality industry said and therefore we’re not proposing to go ahead with an outdoor hospitality ban at this stage.” The extension of the existing ban on smoking indoors to some outdoor settings is contained in the delayed tobacco and vapes bill, which will finally be laid before parliament on Tuesday.

It aims to make the UK the first country in the world to eradicate smoking by raising the age at which people can buy cigarettes by one year every year until no one can legally do so.

The legislation will also ban the advertising of vapes, and sponsorship by vaping companies, amid alarm over a rise in the number of children and other young people taking up the habit. It will restrict the flavours, packaging and marketing of vapes, which critics say are used to lure under-18s into using them.

The hospitality trade welcomed the government’s decision to drop plans to prohibit smoking outside pubs, cafes and restaurants and said it would help prevent pubs closing and jobs disappearing.

“Had this restriction been introduced it would have led to many pubs shutting their doors and jobs being lost and so we welcome the government’s change of heart and proportionate approach,” said Emma McClarkin, the chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association.
Kate Nicholls, the boss of UK Hospitality, said the mooted ban had caused “angst among hospitality businesses”, which worried that it would increase costs and drive away customers.

Caroline Cerny, the deputy chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, voiced frustration that the bill had been watered down after behind-the-scenes lobbying by commercial interests.

Health organisations will keep pushing ministers, and also the devolved administrations, to forbid smoking outside hospitality venues, by stressing the harm secondhand smoke can do.

“We welcome the government taking overarching powers to limit exposure to secondhand smoke outdoors and that they intend to move quickly in areas with the most consensus,” she said.

“Given that people working [in] and visiting hospitality settings are exposed to secondhand smoke, we’re sure both the government and the hospitality sector will want to see smoking restrictions applied here too.
“This is the start of an important ‘national debate’ which should be shaped out in the open by health evidence and public opinion, not behind closed doors by industry with vested interests.

We will continue to push for ambitious legislation that will protect as many people as possible.”
Streeting told Times Radio that he understood there would be criticism of the balance the government had struck. The health secretary himself is known to favour a wider ban.

“There’ll be people who I suspect will say we’ve got the balance wrong and that we were wrong to listen to concerns of hospitality. That is a legitimate argument, it is a debate we’ve had inside government about where we draw the line, how you get the choices and the trade-offs right,” he said.
Asked if people who go to a pub garden were choosing to take the risk, he replied: “Yes, and we could have gone further in terms of saying, ‘Well, in that case, we’re going to clamp down on outdoor hospitality spaces,’ but we had to also weigh up the current pressures on that sector.”
The bill will give ministers the power to ban smoking in certain outdoor areas, subject to a public consultation, with places where children and vulnerable people gather the main focus. Playgrounds and locations outside schools and hospitals are likely to be the first settings in which it will be enforced.
New York City and Melbourne already operate smoke-free outdoor settings. The authorities in Greater Manchester have previously shown interest in banning lighting up in key locations in the city centre, such as Piccadilly Gardens, St Peter’s Square and near the town hall.
Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for England, who is thought to have argued for the widest possible outdoor smoking ban, said the UK finally becoming “smoke-free” would lead to fewer stillbirths and cases of asthma in children, as well as reductions in cancer, strokes, heart disease and dementia.
“Secondhand smoke causes harm, including to children, pregnant women and medically vulnerable people, so reducing this is important. If vulnerable people can smell smoke, they are inhaling it,” he said.

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The CMA called on the business to make changes and agree to commitments to ensure its compliance with consumer protection law…reports Asian Lite News

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened an investigation into Emma over concerns that some of its online sales practices – such as discounts and urgency claims, including countdown timers and high demand prompts – may mislead consumers.         

The CMA called on the business to make changes and agree to commitments – known as ‘undertakings’ – to ensure its compliance with consumer protection law and ensure shoppers get a fair deal.

Emma has failed to take the necessary action to address all of the CMA’s concerns relating to the use of reference pricing. As a result, the CMA has now launched court action.

George Lusty, the CMA’s Interim Executive Director for Consumer Protection and Markets said, “We have given Emma sufficient opportunity to alter the way it does business to address our concerns. They have failed to make all the changes that we require, which is why we’ve progressed to court action. We are concerned that when sales tactics such as discounts and countdown clocks are used in a misleading way, they can pressure shoppers into making quick purchases and spending more than they otherwise would, for fear of missing out.”

Emma can still agree to change its practices by consenting to an order or giving undertakings to the court ahead of the case being heard. It is for the court to determine a date for the hearing.

The CMA is monitoring sales practice across the sector and this action is part of an ongoing programme of consumer enforcement work focused on so-called ‘Online Choice Architecture’. This aims to tackle potentially harmful online selling practices, including pressure selling tactics such as urgent time limited claims.

Under this programme, the CMA has secured formal changes to the business practices of Simba Sleep. These included ensuring that any ‘was’ price is genuine – in other words, that a sufficient volume of product was sold at that price before using it as a ‘was’ price.

From April 2025 the CMA expects to have the power to decide itself whether consumer law has been broken, and to fine companies up to 10% of their global turnover, if appropriate. Firms will have the right to appeal the CMA’s decision to the courts.

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Defra said businesses would have until 1 June next year “to sell any remaining stock they hold and prepare for the ban coming into force”…reports Asian Lite News

Disposable vapes will be banned from sale in England next summer, the government has confirmed. From June 2025 it will be illegal to sell single-use vapes, in a move designed to combat environmental damage and their widespread use by children.

The legislation had been laid out in parliament, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed on Wednesday. The department said it had worked closely with devolved governments on the ban and would “align coming into force dates”.

Defra said businesses would have until 1 June next year “to sell any remaining stock they hold and prepare for the ban coming into force”.

The circular economy minister, Mary Creagh, said throwaway vapes were “extremely wasteful and blight our towns and cities”. She added: “That is why we are banning single-use vapes as we end this nation’s throwaway culture. This is the first step on the road to a circular economy, where we use resources for longer, reduce waste, accelerate the path to net zero and create thousands of jobs across the country.”

The vaping lobby has argued that the bill will fuel parallel market sales of disposable vapes.

John Dunne, the director general of the UK Vaping Industry Association, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday: “One of the major concerns, at least with the last version of the bill that I saw prior to the new government coming in, [it] didn’t include, for instance, a ban on the importation of the products that they’re going to ban for sale. So in my view, that’s just going to fuel a black market.”

Dunne said vapers would buy products online from overseas and that the parallel market in vapes was already one “that the authorities can’t really keep up with”. Rishi Sunak’s government tabled the legislation on the issue but it ran out of time in the previous parliament.

The tobacco and vapes bill would prevent anyone born from 2009 from legally smoking by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can be bought. It also aimed to impose restrictions on the sale and marketing of vapes to children. Last year, it was estimated that almost 5m single-use vapes were either littered or thrown away in general waste every week in the UK – almost four times as much as the previous year.

Defra said vape usage in England had grown by more than 400% between 2012 and 2023, with 9.1% of the British public now buying and using the products. The health minister Andrew Gwynne said: “It’s deeply worrying that a quarter of 11- to 15-year-olds used a vape last year and we know disposables are the product of choice for the majority of kids vaping today. Banning disposable vapes will not only protect the environment, but importantly reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people.

“The government will also introduce the tobacco and vapes bill – the biggest public health intervention in a generation – which will protect young people from becoming hooked on nicotine and pave the way for a smoke-free UK.”

No 10 blocking outdoor smoking ban

Downing Street is blocking moves to include a ban on smoking outdoors in the upcoming Tobacco and Vapes bill amid fierce opposition by the hospitality trade. No 10 officials privately believe that banning people from lighting up in pub gardens is “an unserious” policy and is not backed by good evidence showing that it harms non-smokers.

Differences of opinion in government about an outdoor ban, and uncertainty about the potential risks of pressing ahead with it, lie behind the delayed publication of its long-promised landmark bill. It will make the UK the world’s first country to progressively raise the age at which people can buy tobacco until no one can do so legally.

Keir Starmer has insisted that he is ready to face down critics of his drive to eradicate smoking because action is needed to reduce the 80,000 annual death toll from Britain’s biggest killer.

But No 10 was said to be “spooked” by strongly worded warnings that job losses and pub closures will result if smoking in some outdoor settings is outlawed, despite the prime minister’s repeated insistence that “nanny state” jibes will not stop him taking robust action to improve public health.

“It is an unserious policy. Nobody really believes smoking outdoors is a major health problem,” one Downing Street official said. The trade body UKHospitality said the ban threatens “serious economic harm to hospitality venues” and would hit nightclubs, hotels, cafes and restaurants as well as pubs.

The British Beer and Pub Association said the plan was “deeply concerning and difficult to understand” and “yet another blow to the viability of our nation’s vital community assets”. Ending smokers’ ability to go outside a pub to have a cigarette, for example in a beer garden, “would have a devastating impact on pubs already struggling” with rising costs, it claimed.

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