Wynne Chambers > Law Reform

Wynne Chambers has been involved in indicating, in as realistic and as constructive a manner as possible, where legal reform is most required in the context of securing the general public's ECHR Article 9 (as enshrined in the Human Rights Act 1998) 'freedom of religion' human rights:

   Criminal Law:

Representations were made in October 2002 to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences regarding the creation of a new offence of incitement to religious discrimination and the amendment of the existing law of blasphemy so that it would apply to all bona fide religions, including Islam, and not just Christianity:

Date	Title	Format
October 2002	Religious Offences in England and Wales - Minutes of Evidence
October 2002	Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences.
October 2002	Oral Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences (1)
October 2002	Oral Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences (2)
October 2002	Oral Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences (3)
October 2002	Oral Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences (4)
October 2002	Further Submissions made to the House of Lords Select Committee on Religious Offences.
December 2003	The Select Committee's Report and the Home Office's Response.

 
   Civil Law:

Up until the 2nd December 2003, there was no legal protection from or compensation for discrimination on the grounds of religion. As regards religious discrimination in the work place, the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 now offer some protection. In every other sphere of life, discrimination on the grounds of religion, remains legally permitted, officially condoned and existentially practised, especially in the media, however morally reprehensible this may be. The following articles and papers have been concerned with introducing a little justice into this unacceptable state of affairs:

Date	Title	Format
October 2013	An Insight into Shari'a Councils Paper prepared for Law Society Family Law Section annual conference held at the Law Society, London on 29 October 2013
May 2011	Britain's Religious Courts: Marriage, Divorce and Civil Law Response delivered at Cardiff University Centre for Law and Religion ( http://www.law.cf.ac.uk/clr/research/cohesion.html ) on 18 May 2011
September 2005	Applying Islamic Fiqh in UK Arbitration Law. Paper prepared for the Arbitration Conference held at the Regents Park Mosque on 11 September 2005
February 2004	Briefing on the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003.
July 2002	Recommendations for the Forthcoming Religious Discrimination Legislation. AML Conference on Religious Discrimination
June 2000	Copy of speech prepared for Lord Ahmed Nazir of Rotherham. Adapted slightly and delivered on 7th June 2000 - see House of Lords Hansard, Vol. 613, No. 99, pp.1189-1193
December 1999	Religious Discrimination and the Law. Paper prepared for Commission on British Muslims Seminar 0n Religious Discrimination

 
   Human Rights:

It has been asserted that the Human Rights Act 1998 purports to have brought human rights home. Until these rights have been secured, however - by providing adequate remedies where they have been violated (including adequate compensation when loss or injury has been sustained as a result of such violations) - they remain no more than empty promises, no matter how eloquently and sincerely they have been phrased. The following articles and papers have been concerned with translating theory into practice:

Date	Title	Format
July 2008	Shari'a and English Law Paper prepared for the Shari'a: a Way of Life Conference held at the Regents Park Mosque on 20th July 2008
May 2007	Thinking Outside the Box: the Shari'a of Islam including recent proposals made to the Law Commission First published on the internet by the Association of Muslim Lawyers in April 2007
January 2007	Islamic Law for Family Lawyers First published on the internet by Family Law Week in January 2007
September 2006	Accommodating the Islamic Dissolution of Marriage within English Law. Paper prepared for the Dissolution of Marriage Conference held at the Regents Park Mosque on 10th September 2006
March 2004	Muslims in Europe and Human Rights. Paper prepared for Union of Muslim Organisations of UK & Eire 31st Winter Conference
February 2004	Incorporating Muslim Personal Law into UK Domestic Law. Paper prepared for Association of Muslim Social Scientists 5th Annual Conference, on Fiqh Today
March 2004	Speaking of Legalities. published in Q-News, Mar 2004, Muharram 1425, No. 354
January 2002	Wearing Hijab - Opinion.

 
   Brexit:

In our brave new post-Brexit world, there are calls for the Human Rights Act 1998 to be replaced by a British Bill of Rights based on "common sense" which will provide less human rights protection than at present and which distances itself from the additional human rights protection enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Time alone will tell what new legislation is promulgated and how long it will last before being changed. "Que sera, sera … whatever will be, will be."

God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can,
and wisdom to know the difference.