Press Releases & Updates 2004

The five strong panel of judges (Lord Cullen, Lady Cosgrove, Lord McLean, Lord McFadyen and Lord Sutherland) is expected to give a landmark ruling, with the aim of clarifying this confused area of Scottish law.

Today the judges heard QC Gordon Jackson on behalf of Margaret Jones and QC Maggie Scott on behalf of Jane Tallents.

Margaret is appealing against her conviction for taking part in a blockade of Faslane, the Trident nuclear weapon submarine base on the Clyde. Gordon Jackson argued that it should be a requirement for a conviction that there should be evidence at trial from someone who was present at the incident in question and could either testify that they had been alarmed or that they had seen someone who was alarmed. If this were the case, sitting down in the roadway at a peaceful and well-planned demonstration would not be a crime.

Jane was found guilty of breaching the peace after demonstrating against Trident in the Scottish Parliament in 2001. Maggie Scott argued that it was clear that Jane’s action had not caused alarm to ordinary people nor threatened a disturbance. Referring to Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights she said that Jane’s arrest was an interference with her right to freedom of expression. When Lord Sutherland said that people also had rights not to be interrupted she replied: “This is a burden one has to bear in a democracy.”

It is expected that Gaynor Barrett’s case will be argued tomorrow. Gaynor’s breach of the peace conviction was for a blockade of the warhead depot at Coulport in 1999.

A message of support to the anti-nuclear appellants came from Green MEP Caroline Lucas. Caroline said: “It is extraordinarily ironic that people can be charged with breaching the peace for peacefully demonstrating, whilst nuclear weapons threaten everyone’s peace and safety. Having been arrested for demonstrating against Trident at Faslane myself, the importance of today’s cases cannot be overstated: the right to peaceful protest must be upheld.

The hearing continues.

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