Simon Cox Profile picture
migration & equality, law & politics | barrister | he/him | @doughtystreet ex @osfjustice | views mine not doughty street | frequent gifer
LittleGravitas 🇺🇦 🌻 🇪🇺 💙 #FBPE Profile picture Jay Jernigan Profile picture 2 subscribed
Oct 4, 2018 5 tweets 2 min read
Areopagitica was Milton’s call for rational, evidence-based debate - to ensure Parliament acts wisely. My kinsman abuses it for nationalist rhetoric theguardian.com/politics/2018/… Areopagitica was Milton’s argument against Government censorship, at height of English civil war. It’s themes are Liberty & Truth. dartmouth.edu/~milton/readin… >
Sep 18, 2018 14 tweets 3 min read
No-deal Brexit threatens pensions & benefits of 100s of 1000s of UK & EU27 citz who aren't citizens of where they live. Thread 1/ EU law guarantees EU citz equal treatment & portability of old age pensions, child benefits & many disability benefits. UK cant discriminate against UK pension holders who live elsewhere in EU. Nor can EU27 stop pensions for their citizens in UK . 2/
Sep 18, 2018 5 tweets 2 min read
UK media can’t deal with a news story where what British voters want doesn’t matter much for what they get. > Good eg of liberal media denialism @guardian @jessicaelgot “UK can just decide to cancel A50 - but does it want to??”

No - real news is “EU probably wont even let UK do that...” >
Sep 13, 2018 10 tweets 2 min read
Europe’s strong line against Orbán is a historic moment for democratic unity. Especially for conservatives. #Hungary

A celebratory thread. 1/ Orbán’s Party - Fidesz - is a long-standing member of @EPP , Europe’s main alliance of conservative parties. So is Angela Merkel’s CDU. 2/
Sep 13, 2018 17 tweets 4 min read
Why did UK Tories oppose EU broad-based action to defend #Hungary’s democracy? Thread 1/ #Orbán’s popular - but corrupt & racist - regime was charged before Europe’s directly elected Parliament with undermining Hungary’s democracy theguardian.com/commentisfree/… 2/
Sep 13, 2018 7 tweets 2 min read
Fascinating info from field study on #migrantworkers in #Italy ‘s farms.

In Ragusa, Romanians (new to sector) get worse wages than Tunisians (long connections, unionized)! > Farmwork is increasingly women’s work in Italy. Asylum-seeking mothers with humanitarian permits work on farms - because having children mean employers won’t take them for domestic work.
Sep 4, 2018 4 tweets 1 min read
Theory:

- British nationalists feel let down by EU: that it didn’t advance their economic interests against those of RotW. They didn’t believe UK can lead EU.

- EU27’s nationalists don’t believe their own state would do better against RotW, as long as they lead EU. Autocratic-populism is, in UK, primarily a *localised* threat

In EU, it’s a *global* threat to the international legal order that’s promoted peaceful resolution of disputes since WWII.
Aug 29, 2018 18 tweets 6 min read
#Poland: Gov using Constitutional Court (Gov-controlled?) to block Supreme Court from suspending law giving Gov control of judiciary. Thoughts from EU law PoV 1/17 There are two legal challenges underway vs Poland Gov’s attempt to capture the judiciary: 1. PL Supreme Ct case 2. @EU_Commission infringement vs Poland. But this hasn’t been filed with CJEU yet 2/
Aug 25, 2018 4 tweets 2 min read
Corbyn’s biographer @alexnunns doesn’t get how racist othering works. That’s not ironic, just bad. @alexnunns when a white English man says “these Zionists, who may have lived here all their life, don’t understand English irony” he’s saying “they’re technically English, not really English like me”.

And the people with anti-Semitic leanings hear “Jews aren’t really English”
Aug 3, 2018 9 tweets 2 min read
EU Court LM judgment on Poland rule of law is major advance & opens door to widespread refusals of extradition. Thread. 1/9 The excellent @Verfassungsblog had a pessimistic read of last week’s judgment. I don’t agree 2/
Jul 22, 2018 25 tweets 4 min read
Money for his appeal may not help Tommy Robinson to do politics. So long as democratic voices speak out when judgment comes next week. 1/24 On 21 July, England’s Court of Appeal Criminal Division heard “Tommy Robinson’s” appeal. @Barristerblog covered the hearing well here barristerblogger.com/2018/07/21/a-b… 2/
Jul 16, 2018 5 tweets 1 min read
US Repub & UK Tory mainstream have so much in common today. Both throw under the bus the fundamental interests their parties exists to defend, in order to keep their jobs. 1/ If mainstream Tories united, they could save British capitalism from Brexit disaster. But only a few stand up to media & Nazi threats to do so: too afraid of losing their seats. 2/
Jul 12, 2018 4 tweets 2 min read
Today’s Brexit White Paper: usual misleading line that Irish citz after Brexit have rights to live in UK because of Common Travel Area.

Only if they came from Ireland... The @GypsyTravellerM paper written by @BernardRyan1 & me explained this to UK Gov. travellermovement.org.uk/wp-content/upl… >
Jul 11, 2018 10 tweets 2 min read
Farage, Phillips & now this by Christopher Howse. Telegraph trying to legitimise violence against UK’s democratic institutions: Parliament, courts & rule of law. Only rationale to claim “treason” is to justify violence. They know there’ll be no *institutional* response to treason: prosecution by the Attorney-General or a Parliamentary vote. If they had law or a popular majority on their side, they wouldn’t need to claim treason. 2/
Jul 7, 2018 19 tweets 3 min read
Home Office plan for EU citz resident at Brexit is radical - in a good way. Largest one-off grant of indefinite leave in UK immigration history.

My analysis in a thread 1/ Plan was issued 21 Jun - I’ve just got around to reading it. Full text is here > gov.uk/government/pub… 2/
Jul 6, 2018 4 tweets 1 min read
Brexit/legal tweeps: I read this as increasing UK Gov options to ask CJEU for rulings - but taking that power away from courts. You? > Statement says UK Gov & EU will have resolution mech (like Jt Cttee) which can ask for CJEU rulings. So if UK Gov & EU can’t agree, they can make a ref >
Jul 2, 2018 21 tweets 3 min read
Free movement of EU citz & their families has been *most* important barrier to serous social & economic harm that immigration controllers can do. Thread 1/ First: some basic background points.

Every known state immigration policy discriminates on grounds of nationality. States use visas / entry rules as part of intra-state deals & trade.

UK has *always* done this. 2/
Jul 2, 2018 8 tweets 2 min read
Public opinion on Brexit won’t change unless leaders change their position. Quick thread 1/ IMO Hard Brexit has 3 popular constituencies:
-UK doesn’t need EU
- EU will back down
- Let’s go with EUref majority 2/
Jun 28, 2018 15 tweets 4 min read
EU Court’s Adv-Gen opinion on #Poland #FairTrial case is out. Thread to follow curia.europa.eu/juris/document… Irish High Court was asked by Polish Gov to extradite Mr Celmer under EU law for trial on drug charges. Irish judge ruled Poland’s Gov has seriously undermined rule of law by taking political control over judges (agreeing with Euro Commission) 2/
Jun 13, 2018 21 tweets 4 min read
Such an impressive speech by #Malaysia ‘s leader @anwaribrahim at @DoughtyStIntl tonight. > Recently released from more than 3 years in prison, the climax of 20 years of persecution, Anwar was by turn principled, passionate, and genuinely amusing. >
Apr 21, 2018 17 tweets 4 min read
couldn’t find a leader who *wants* #HostileEnviroment. Just @DPJHodges - “it’s what people want, but politicians hate it”

Tragic commentary. Thread 1/ ignores political leadership & public learning from experience. He’s wrong about politicians & public opinions. And he’s not doing his job. 2/