Charity threatens legal action over appointment of Lord Carlile as independent reviewer of Prevent
A human rights charity has threatened a legal challenge over the Government’s appointment of Lord Carlile of Berriew as the independent reviewer of the Prevent programme that is intended to safeguard vulnerable people from being drawn into terrorism.
Rights Watch (UK), advised by law firm Leigh Day, has sent a letter before action. It claims that the decision to appoint Lord Carlile earlier this month was unlawful because, in so doing, the Secretary of State had acted contrary to the requirement under section 20(8) of the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 (the 2019 Act) for an independent review of the Prevent Strategy.
The charity argues that a review of Prevent with Lord Carlile at the helm “cannot be truly independent, because Lord Carlile oversaw the government's first review of Prevent in 2011, and has been a member of the Prevent Oversight Board in recent years”.
In the letter before action sent on 20 August 2019, Rights Watch UK argue that that Lord Carlile cannot be considered independent or capable of conducting a truly rigorous assessment of Prevent, as he was on public record expressing his clear support for the Prevent strategy and criticised those who oppose it.
This is the second letter before action sent by the charity to the Government; its first challenged the Government’s failure to publicly consult on the appointment or advertise the role.
Rights Watch UK said it had now asked the Government to provide further information regarding the details of the decision-making process and what considerations were given to the equality implications of the decision to appoint Lord Carlile. “If no satisfactory response is provided, the group intend to issue judicial review proceedings.”
Carolin Ott from Leigh Day said: “Our client is quite rightly concerned that the government’s appointment for Independent reviewer of Prevent seems to be anything but independent. Not only did Lord Carlile oversee the 2011 review of Prevent, but he also held a role on the Prevent Oversight Board, an internal oversight body charged with “driving delivery” of Prevent.
“Of further concern is the fact that he is on the public record expressing his support for Prevent, and argued in Parliament against the very establishment of the review, even conceding that he is “biased towards” Prevent. It is very difficult to see how he can be described as independent, and our client argues that it is therefore inappropriate for him to carry out the review of this controversial strategy.”
The Home Office said it had received the letter from Rights Watch UK in relation to the Independent Review of Prevent and would respond in due course.
When announcing Lord Carlile's appointment, Security Minister Brandon Lewis said: “Lord Carlile brings a wealth of experience and skills to this role. As the former Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, he showed independence and rigour and I am pleased he has agreed to lead this review.
“We are continually improving and evolving the Prevent programme, and I look forward to seeing Lord Carlile’s recommendations on how we can learn more about what works and where we need to improve.”
