header-logo header-logo

Above the law? Reflections on the Met Police decision not to prosecute Margaret Ferrier MP

21 October 2020 / Professor Dennis J Baker
Issue: 7907 / Categories: Opinion , Covid-19 , Criminal
printer mail-detail
29891
Is there a crime of wilfully exposing others to potentially lethal diseases? Professor Dennis J Baker reflects on the Met Police decision not to prosecute Margaret Ferrier MP

The focus of this comment is on what charges might be brought against those who deliberately and unjustifiably expose other members of the public to contagious diseases during a pandemic. This is an acutely important issue, because not only does such conduct expose others to the risk of death or serious illness, it has the potential to increase pressure on an already overextended NHS.

According to reports by the BBC, Ferrier tested for coronavirus on Saturday 26 September 2020. She had COVID-19 symptoms and thus had reason to believe she was COVID-19 positive, but attended church on Sunday 27 September 2020. Without waiting for her test results, on Monday she travelled from Scotland to London by train. After arriving in London and passing through busy train stations she attended parliament

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—Andrew Savage

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—Andrew Savage

Firm expands London disputes practice with senior partner hire

Druces—Lisa Cardy

Druces—Lisa Cardy

Senior associate promotion strengthens real estate offering

Charles Russell Speechlys—Robert Lundie Smith

Charles Russell Speechlys—Robert Lundie Smith

Leading patent litigator joins intellectual property team

NEWS
Writing in NLJ this week, Sophie Ashcroft and Miranda Joseph of Stevens & Bolton dissect the Privy Council’s landmark ruling in Jardine Strategic Ltd v Oasis Investments II Master Fund Ltd (No 2), which abolishes the long-standing 'shareholder rule'
In NLJ this week, Sailesh Mehta and Theo Burges of Red Lion Chambers examine the government’s first-ever 'Afghan leak' super-injunction—used to block reporting of data exposing Afghans who aided UK forces and over 100 British officials. Unlike celebrity privacy cases, this injunction centred on national security. Its use, the authors argue, signals the rise of a vast new body of national security law spanning civil, criminal, and media domains
In NLJ this week, Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre marks Pro Bono Week by urging lawyers to recognise the emotional toll of pro bono work
Can a lease legally last only days—or even hours? Professor Mark Pawlowski of the University of Greenwich explores the question in this week's NLJ
RFC Seraing v FIFA, in which the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) reaffirmed that awards by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) may be reviewed by EU courts on public-policy grounds, is under examination in this week's NLJ by Dr Estelle Ivanova of Valloni Attorneys at Law, Zurich
back-to-top-scroll