Three men stabbed in park attack
Three young men were stabbed during an incident in Glasgow on Saturday.
Police were called to the Greenfield Park football pitches in Duror Street at around 8.20pm after three men were attacked.
The males, two aged 21 and one aged 19, were attacked by a group of men in the car park near the pitches.
Emergency services attended and the three men were taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary to be treated for stab wounds.
Detective Inspector Stephen Greenshields said: "This has been an unprovoked attack on a group of young people which could have left them dead.
"The injuries inflicted were severe and extremely serious.
"It is unacceptable that people think they can behave in such a way and think they will get away with it.
"Let me assure you, they will not. A team of officers is working to establish the identities of the men responsible for this crime.”
A move to dilute human rights laws in the UK would undermine Northern Ireland’s historic peace agreement, academics have warned.
Amending the provisions of the Human Rights Act risks upsetting the delicate constitutional balance achieved in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement (also called the Belfast Agreement), experts from Queen’s University claim.
The concerns of the academics from the Human Rights Centre at Queen’s in Belfast are outlined in a submission to the UK government’s recently commissioned review of the Human Rights Act.
The Act translates the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into domestic UK law. The government announced a review of the Act and how it is functioning in December amid long-standing calls from Eurosceptics to significantly redraft or ditch it.
Former Court of Appeal judge Sir Peter Gross is leading the independent examination of how the Act is being interpreted in UK courts.
Professor Christopher Mccrudden, one of the authors of the Queen’s submission, said: “We consider the current review into the Human Rights Act to be neither welcome nor timely. We see no need to diminish in any way the protections that the Human Rights Act (HRA) currently offers to the people of Northern Ireland. Any move that would be widely viewed as undermining the Belfast/ Good Friday Agreement and its strong commitment to the advancement and protection of human rights would be highly regrettable.”
The academics state the UK’S continued ratification of the ECHR is a “significant part” of
the Good Friday Agreement. They highlight that the accord contains an important section on the protection of human rights and equality.
“A crucial element of these guarantees is the effective delivery of ECHR rights in Northern Ireland domestic law,” the submission states. “The HRA is seen in part as the mechanism that delivered on the Agreement’s promises in this respect. The HRA therefore has a constitutional function in Northern Ireland that is unique in the UK. Tinkering with it risks upsetting a delicate constitutional balance.”
The submission argues the Act plays an important role in policing in Northern Ireland and in the handling of the legacy of the Troubles.
It notes the human rights and equality provisions of the Agreement are underpinned by an international treaty
between Ireland and the UK, adding: “Any significant modification of the HRA in Northern Ireland that leads to a diminution of rights will attract international attention and concern.”
It said the reaction, particularly from influential US politicians, to the UK’S threat to override elements of the Brexit Withdrawal Deal through provisions of its Internal Market Bill should serve as a “salutary warning of the potential political fall-out, not least in the United States, to any weakening of the HRA”.
The academics warn that Northern Ireland’s constitutional settlement could be “collateral damage” to a review exercise it claims has “little to do with the realities of human rights practice in Northern Ireland”.
Protections for mountain hares have come into force from today in what campaigners are calling National Mountain Hare Day.
The new regulations mean that it is illegal to intentionally kill, injure or take mountain hares without a licence.
The regulations were passed after pressure from Scottish Green MSP Alison Johnstone to accept the licensing as part of the new wildlife legislation.
Ms Johnstone said: "Today is an important moment for all those who campaigned for years to end the indiscriminate mass slaughter of mountain hares on Scotland's grouse moors.
"These new protections come as a direct result of my amendment to wildlife laws last year, which forced the Government to act after years of delay.
"Overwhelming public support for action ensured that Parliament supported this change, and I would like to express my gratitude in particular to the tens of thousands of campaigners who backed my amendment and helped push it over the line.
"Now that mountain hares are a protected species, the Scottish Government has a responsibility to protect them. We will be keeping a close eye on them and will challenge any move that suggests they are not fulfilling this duty.
"Scotland is in a nature emergency, with one in nine species at threat. The progress we are seeing today is important but we need to do so much more. The Scottish Greens are committed to fighting for Scotland's nature, ending the persecution of our wildlife and restoring Scotland's unique and beautiful natural environment."
The move was also welcomed by animal welfare campaigns charity Onekind.
Director Bob Elliot said: “We are delighted that the day has come when mountain hares have become a protected species and where the mass scale killings of this beautiful animal are put to an end. We have campaigned for four years for an end to these culls and so today really does feel like a huge triumph. A triumph not just for ourselves, but also for our passionate supporters and all those who campaigned tirelessly for mountain hares.”