Phil Armitage
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philiparmitage.bsky.social
Phil Armitage
@philiparmitage.bsky.social
Public and Administrative Lawyer, JUSTICE. https://justice.org.uk/person/phil-armitage/ www.linkedin.com/in/philip-armitage-158373a7
Reposted by Phil Armitage
JUSTICE and 40+ other experts today urge the govt to remove the power to imprison people for their own protection while they await trial.

Prisons are not places of care, and this practice worsens issues such as homeless, addiction & mental health crises.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
Lammy urged to end ‘scandal’ of people imprisoned for own protection
Exclusive: Removing courts’ power would help vulnerable adults and children and ‘free up jail spaces’, experts say, in wake of recent manhunts to find missing prisoners released by mistake
www.independent.co.uk
November 11, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
JUSTICE is hiring!

We’re recruiting for two paid internships, offering hands-on experience working alongside our policy team on important law reform, research and drafting work.

📅 3 months (full-time or part-time)
📍 UK wide

Read more & apply: bit.ly/3JCjElq
Careers | JUSTICE | Legal Charity Jobs
Join our mission to reform the legal system. Explore current job openings and career opportunities at JUSTICE.
bit.ly
November 4, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Leaving the ECHR won't stop people risking their lives through Channel crossings but it WOULD harm the rights of both migrants in the UK & our wider communities.

On 75th Anniversary of ECHR, we call on politicians to stop scapegoating & defend human rights.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
Leaving the ECHR won’t stop the boats, 300 organisations warn in rallying cry
Prime minister Keir Starmer urged to make positive case for ECHR after Kemi Badenoch pledged a Tory government would leave the treaty
www.independent.co.uk
November 3, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
📰 In this week’s Monday Mail, I reflect on the European Convention on Human Rights; what it does, why it's important, and why it must be protected.

Read here: prod.cdn.everyaction.com/emails/van/L...
November 3, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
A day ahead of its 75th anniversary, nearly 300 UK-based organisations have spoken out in defence of the European Convention on Human Rights👇

🔗 www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli... via @the-independent.com

#ECHR #OurRightsAndFreedoms #ECHR75
Leaving the ECHR won’t stop the boats, 300 organisations warn in rallying cry
Prime minister Keir Starmer urged to make positive case for ECHR after Kemi Badenoch pledged a Tory government would leave the treaty
www.independent.co.uk
November 3, 2025 at 9:41 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
I’m sure they didn’t mean to eliminate the woman in this image.
October 13, 2025 at 12:35 AM
Really important article from @robertbuckland.bsky.social:
"Above all, it would betray a tradition of liberty under the law that Britain itself helped to shape"
Robert Buckland: Leaving the ECHR would be a grave mistake | Conservative Home
Withdrawal from the ECHR would upset the delicate political balance in Northern Ireland, compromise our extradition and security arrangements, and damage our moral authority abroad. Above all, it woul...
conservativehome.com
October 6, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Half-baked tales of rulings turning on chicken nuggets are no basis for cutting Britain adrift. My Times piece on the Tories’ policy of leaving the ECHR based on spurious claims. www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...
Leaving the ECHR won’t fix illegal migration
Half-baked tales of rulings turning on chicken nuggets are no basis for cutting Britain adrift
www.thetimes.com
October 6, 2025 at 7:00 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
I was going to go to synagogue today, but I’m honestly too shaken now - I’ll pray at home

But I just checked my email to see the details of where I was meant to go, and remembered there was a whole document they sent me on safety and security if I visited

This is life for Jewish people in the UK
October 2, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
You don’t actually have to both sides this. The Jewish community in the UK is not the Israeli government. You can just condemn the murder of two British Jews killed in their place of worship and you don’t have to say a single other thing.
October 2, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
This morning at #LabourConference, JUSTICE and APPEAL led a roundtable on compensating victims of miscarriages of justice, hosted by @bjcsolicitors.bsky.social

With @alexdaviesjones.bsky.social and @kimjohnsonmp.bsky.social, we discussed reforming a regime forcing victims to prove innocence.
September 30, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
For human rights scholars and court-watchers, here's a thread of some forthcoming ECHR/HRA in the UK Supreme Court's docket for the upcoming legal year (2025-26).

I think there are (at least) six cases worth keeping an eye on.
September 30, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
I'm getting really really fed up at constant reassertion that welfare spending is "out of control" when it is the same as the average for the past few decades.

One reason disability benefit costs have risen is because core support has fallen.
September 30, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
The Home Office's appeal against this ruling has been refused

The judges threw it out in minutes, without hearing arguments from the man's lawyers, telling them "we don’t need to trouble you" after questioning Home Office barrister in an increasingly surreal exchange
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/w...
Asylum Seeker Wins Bid to Delay Deportation Under U.K.-France Treaty
www.nytimes.com
September 23, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Important read. Refugees caught in a bureaucratic nightmare. Nothing to do for months or years. Cooking in the bathroom instead of eating constant chips and chicken nuggets. Forced to take taxis no matter the length of the journey, long or short.
September 23, 2025 at 10:17 AM
Worth sharing the Govts position from the debate that:

"...the private provision of core children’s social care services would be considered to be within scope of the Human Rights Act."

If you have any examples that raise doubts about this, please get in touch.
Around 80% of children's homes are run by for-profit companies, but there is uncertainty if the Human Rights Act always applies to them. This week Peers debated this and we provided a detailed briefing. [1/3]
September 22, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
We welcome the Govts position that human rights law should apply to outsourced children's care. But recent legal developments suggest this may be at risk and a law change is required to provide certainty for children in care. [3/3]
September 19, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Human rights law lets children (& their families) hold providers directly accountable for rights breaches & improve public services. The Human Rights Act is a crucial safeguard & should apply to all children, no matter how their care is provided. [2/3]
September 19, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Around 80% of children's homes are run by for-profit companies, but there is uncertainty if the Human Rights Act always applies to them. This week Peers debated this and we provided a detailed briefing. [1/3]
September 19, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Professor Conor Gearty KC (Hon), a towering figure in the human rights field and a long-standing JUSTICE member.

His legacy will shape the pursuit of justice for years to come.

justice.org.uk/blogs/in-mem...
In Memory of Conor Gearty KC (Hon) | JUSTICE | UK Legal Reform Charity
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Professor Conor Gearty KC (Hon)
justice.org.uk
September 17, 2025 at 11:05 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
Too often, families who lose people to public disasters like Hillsborough and Grenfell face defensiveness, not answers.

But the Public Office (Accountability) Bill is a vital step towards truth, accountability & justice.

Read more: bit.ly/41Zn1ZV
| JUSTICE | UK Legal Reform Charity
bit.ly
September 19, 2025 at 8:02 AM
Worth reading this thread for some background to yesterday's hearing
The High Court hearing was the most chaotic one I've personally been at since the first Rwanda challenges in 2022

It started at 4pm and the media was notified at 3.37pm. One of the core decisions for the claimant - on "reasonable grounds" for a modern slavery referral - wasn't given until 6.50pm
September 17, 2025 at 9:39 AM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
The High Court hearing was the most chaotic one I've personally been at since the first Rwanda challenges in 2022

It started at 4pm and the media was notified at 3.37pm. One of the core decisions for the claimant - on "reasonable grounds" for a modern slavery referral - wasn't given until 6.50pm
September 16, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Reposted by Phil Armitage
📢 We’re hiring! JUSTICE is looking for an Interim Trusts & Foundations Fundraiser (15-month mat cover).

A great opportunity to lead on grant fundraising, for a friendly team & vital cause. Deadline: midday, Mon 22 Sept.

Learn more and apply: justice.org.uk/job-opportun...
Interim Trust and Foundation Fundraiser | JUSTICE | UK Legal Reform Charity
justice.org.uk
September 4, 2025 at 10:33 AM