civil liberties

NIS provides information on current and historic legal cases heard in the English courts which relate to British nuclear weapons production and deployment. We also offer links to related material and organisations and have a separate section containing articles and papers relating to legal challenges over the Iraq war.

Nuclear Information Service

Ibex House
85 Southampton Street
Reading
RG1 2QU
United Kingdom

Tel / fax: 0118 327 7489
email: office(at)nuclearinfo.org

Forthcoming events

Nuclear Awareness Group

Rt Rev Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading

'Rethinking Trident and the International Campaign for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons'

7.00 pm, Wednesday 9 June 2010

Reading International Solidarity Centre, 35-39 London Street, Reading, RG1 4PS

latest on Peter Burt's blog

A street survey shows that 61% of local people are opposed to AWE's Project Pegasus.
Council accused of sneaking through nuclear plans during Christmas rush.
Aldermaston's £500 million new uranium project - read our special briefing.
New AWE emergency plan highlights chilling consequences of a nuclear accident
Emergency services could not cope with Southampton nuclear submarine accident
Nuclear submarine waste bound for AWE?
MOD Stops Live Nuclear Work at AWE due to preasure from NII over safety risks..
2008 Annual Report released by NIS.
A New Film Exposes Deadly Cargo on British Roads..

AWE Bylaws Legal Challenge
2008-10-22 13:16
A Judicial Review Appeal of the High Court decision on AWE Bylaws in March 2008 is to be heard in the High Court of the Royal Courts of Justice, The Strand, London on Wednesday, 26th November 2008.
District Judge dismisses Aldermaston SOCPA case
2008-08-20 14:00
Ministry of Defence takes 17 months to prepare a case doomed to failure.

In Newbury Magistrates Court, a District Judge dismissed a case of trespass on a nuclear licensed site against an Aldermaston peace campaigner. The prosecution under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act(SOCPA), failed to criminalise lawful protest.
Juliet McBride was arrested inside the perimeter fence at the Atomic Weapons Establishment in March 2007, during a no Trident replacement protest. ... more
AWE Byelaws Appeal
2008-03-19 18:28
NIS supported a legal challenge brought by Kay Tabernacle from Aldermaston Women’s Peace Camp (AWPC) on the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) decision to introduce byelaws which deny AWPC their right to freedom of assembly at the 22-year-old monthly camp. Following a 2008 hearing, a byelaw against putting anything on AWE’s fence was quashed but the women’s case lost on the Byelaws against camping and is to be appealed. ... more
AWE Aldermaston Bylaws Judicial Review
2008-02-01 00:00
Women from Aldermaston Women's Peace Camp gathered with banners outside the High Court on the Strand at 09.30 before going into court to listen intently to the proceedings. ... more
AWE Aldermaston: legal challenge to denial of the right to freedom of assembly
2008-01-22 00:00
A legal challenge to byelaws at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) Aldermaston will be brought by Public Interest Lawyers on behalf of a member of the Aldermaston Women’s Peace Camp (AWPC) at the High Court in London on 1 February 2008. The claimant is seeking a judicial review of the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) decision to introduce byelaws which deny AWPC their right to freedom of assembly at the 22-year-old monthly camp. ... more
THE RIGHT TO PROTEST UNDER UK LAW: A Civil Liberty in Decline?
2007-03-25 23:00
This Peacerights study aims to provide an overview of the nature and the current condition of the ‘right to protest’ as it might be said to exist under UK law as well as consider possible strategies for developing this right. Two key enquiries provide the focus for the Study. First, to what degree can an individual be said under UK law to have a human ‘right’ on a normative level to protest on an issue? Second, where, how and why are practices adopted by Police forces in the UK affecting the rights of individuals to protest? ... more