Tag Archives: Libel reform

Libel Reform – smells like victory

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Stephen

For those few resilient readers who have weathered the year-long storm of open access posts at Reciprocal Space and still look in here occasionally for reports of the libel reform campaign, there is good news. Within days I should be … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Year

Posted on December 30, 2012 by Stephen

The Christmas holiday has unmoored me. End of year exhaustion segued into a bout of ‘flu that knocked me onto my back, where I lay and ached, semi-detached by illness and medication as around me my family made preparations for … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Open Access, Science & Politics, Scientific Life | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

“You can’t read this book” but you should

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Stephen

Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games spread a warm glow through liberal hearts. His imaginative sweep over British history and culture, which managed to be both reverent and irreverent, was filled with a human chaos that constituted a nicely … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged , , | 22 Comments

A Bill to Amend the Law of Defamation

Posted on May 20, 2012 by Stephen

The libel reform campaign has yielded a spring crop: a bill to amend the law of defamation was introduced to parliament in the Queen’s Speech on May 10th. This means that legislation to amend the lax libel laws of England and … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged | 4 Comments

Libel Reform: the endgame?

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Stephen

It has been a long and winding road but tonight the journey towards libel reform in England and Wales paused in the historic Great Hall of the Inner Temple to take stock. The wheels are turning and the machine of government … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform | Tagged | 5 Comments

Alive to the prospects for libel reform

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Stephen

The campaign for libel reform has been grinding away for several years now but there was still a buzz of expectation as we gathered in Committee Room 10 in the House of Commons last Wednesday evening. By 6 pm the … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged | 13 Comments

Let’s democratise the bejesus out of libel reform

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Stephen

This week the Guardian made the astonishing revelation that a man who is heir to the throne by an accident of birth and who is the representative on Earth of precisely no-one has been enjoying the right of veto over … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged , , , | 32 Comments

Libel Reform: steps forward

Posted on October 19, 2011 by Stephen

Today sees the publication of a very important report on libel reform. The report is from the Parliamentary Joint Scrutiny Committee, which has been considering the government’s draft defamation bill in the light of oral and written evidence from interested … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Libel Reform – where are we?

Posted on June 26, 2011 by Stephen

Regular readers of this blog will be probably be aware of the ongoing campaign to reform the libel laws of England and Wales. These laws have pernicious effects in many aspects of public life — including science and medicine. They … Continue reading →

Posted in Libel Reform, Science, Science & Politics | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

You may not be interested in this but this is interested in you

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Stephen

I was banging on last week about how scientists should use words rather than guns during public engagement. Words are safer — and often more effective. But they are not completely safe. In fact, they can sometimes be rather dangerous, … Continue reading →

Posted in Science & Politics | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments