Thread by @QuakerDissent

What’s actually happening today on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill? And what does it mean? Here’s a thread about:
1.The key parts of the legislation
2.What happens next
Thread below! #PoliceBill #PolicingBill #ProtestIsNotACrime

Today is the final day of Report. That means that the House of Lords has discussed the Bill (last Nov/Dec) and now they’re voting on which bits should be included. Part 3 has been left until now because the government inserted 18+ pages of new amendments at the last minute.

Part 3 is clauses 56-62. It allows the police to impose new restrictions on non-violent protests, such as to limit the noise they can make and any serious disruption they may possible cause to others.

If an individual breaks these conditions (ie, shouts too loud, or is the 101st person to join a protest limited to 100 people) then they are in breach of the law and can be fined — even if they didn’t know what the restrictions were.

Furthermore, “serious disruption” is not carefully defined, and the Secretary of State can change the definition. (It was completely undefined, and now the govt has suggested a very loose definition which is as good as no definition.)

Just before Christmas the government put down new amendments. These include new offences of locking on (even just linking arms or holding on), obstructing key infrastructure or transport works (such as HS2), stop and search without suspicion, serious disruption prevention orders.

The prevention orders are essentially protest banning orders. If an individual has been charged twice with a protest related offence (such as linking arms, or being the 101st person at a protest limited to 100 people), they can be banned for attending protests.

They can also be banned from inciting others to protest — so, tweeting about it.

So what happens next? Today the House of Lords vote on Part 3 of the Bill. After this there will be one more (minor) stage in the Lords, and then it goes back to the Commons. But what are some of the actual amendments?

Noise: amendments 115, 123, 124, 125. These are good amendments which curb most of the new restrictions on noise. Hopefully Peers will vote FOR these amendments.

“Not Stand Part”, aka take out the whole section: amendments 122, 132, 133, 134, 135, 140, 147. These are good amendments which would remove all of Part 3.

Realistically, I don’t think enough Peers will vote for them — although they really should be voted for!

Locking on: amendments 148, 149. These are the ones about holding on to something as a protest, or carrying equipment to lock on. This is things like chaining yourself to trees or gates, or even linking arms. I hope these bad amendments are voted DOWN.

Suspicionless stop and search: 155, 156, 157, 158. These bad amendments allow police to search for protest equipment without any reason to suspect you. They should be voted DOWN.

Serious disruption prevention orders: 159. In my view, these are the worst of a terrible set. It is effectively an individual banning order which doesn’t actually need anyone to have been convicted — just charged. Do something protesty twice and be banned from protest. Vote DOWN

Then what happens after that? The Bill has Third Reading in the Lords (only minor new bits which haven’t been considered can be changed) then goes to Ping Pong. That’s where MPs compare the draft of the Bill as amended by Peers to the draft they passed last year.

If the House of Lords votes for amendments on noise (which I hope they do) then MPs can reject the amendments. It would go back and forth, (hence “ping pong”) and one side would eventually concede. That’s because that’s a change from the draft MPs passed.

BUT if Peers vote down the new govt amendments on locking on, stop and search, or protest orders, then MPs can’t put them back in. That’s because those amendments have only ever existed in the Lords — they weren’t in the draft passed by the Commons.

I’ll be tweeting tonight what happens in the House of Lords. It’s likely to be a long night.

#PolicingBill #ProtestIsNotACrime

I’m tweeting tonight on this thread. #ProtestIsNotACrime #PolicingBill

https://twitter.com/PoliceBillAll/status/1483107445979426819