Latest news with #JusticeandHomeAffairs
BBC News
11-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
AI to be used to grade indecent images of children on Isle of Man
The Manx government is set to introduce a new system to categorise indecent images of children to enable the use of artificial Intelligence (AI).Under the change, sentencing guidelines will refer to categories used in England and Wales from 21 April instead of the existing Copine Scale (Combating Paedophile Information Networks in Europe). The government said that would mean the constabulary could use AI to "rapidly" grade material that matches verified entries in the UK's Child Abuse Image Database (CAID).Minister for Justice and Home Affairs, Jane Poole-Wilson, said the use of AI would reduce police officers' exposure to "distressing material" and speed up the process. The new system would see images categorised from A to C, with A being the most severe, in relation to the possession, distribution and production of indecent photographs and pseudo-photographs of children. 'Swift justice' The change will be applied to material that falls under the Sexual Offences and Obscene Publications Act the Copine scale (Combating Paedophile Information Networks in Europe), the material is graded from one to five, with five being the most the Isle of Man Constabulary already uses CAID, the grading of material is currently done manually by police officers and digital forensic investigators. This was due to the database's AI grading tool not aligning with the Copine Scale, currently set out in Manx government said the tool had been "positively received" by UK law enforcement agencies for "significantly reducing the time it takes to review and categorise images".Poole-Wilson said the move meant the police would be able to work "faster and more effectively" which would support work to safeguard the victims of sexual abuse and bring "swift justice" to offenders. Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.
Forbes
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
MEPs Debate Proposed Laws On ‘Facilitation' Of Smuggling And Migration
Representatives in the EU's legislative arm are to begin debating new rules designed to prevent human smuggling and irregular migration around the bloc. The legislative package presented by the EU's executive arm has been criticized for treating migrants and people lending them assistance as criminals. It is argued the proposal - if made into law unchanged - could have serious implications for humanitarian workers and other people acting in solidarity with migrants.. Members of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) are to begin debating the legislative package from the European Commission, known as the 'Facilitation Directive' in early April. The proposal, formally known as 'Preventing and countering the facilitation of unauthorized entry, transit and stay in the EU' is nominally designed to modernize Europe's legal framework to crack down on people smugglers and other vendors who 'profit' from irregular migration. The proposal is not from scratch, rather a redraft of proposed changes to the existing 2002 Facilitation Directive. This week, European Member of Parliament (MEPs) in the relevant committee will begin debating the proposal from the commission, as part of its potential journey to adoption. They will be working from a draft report by socialist MEP Birgit Sippel, which highlights some of the major concerns about the proposal. One of the main concerns addressed by the draft report is the danger that humanitarian workers might face criminal sanction for assisting irregular migrants on their journey, or indeed protecting their lives and wellbeing. Such 'criminalization' has already long taken place in various forms around European member states, including the detention of sea rescue workers by Italy, or the persecution of rights NGOs in Greece. This practice is common enough to form a pattern. As Amnesty International notes in a recent policy paper on the directive, 'across Europe, member states have in fact targeted individuals and NGOs, providing non-profit humanitarian assistance - such as food, shelter, medical care, or legal advice - with criminal investigations and prosecutions.' Human rights NGOs and civil society groups fear the Facilitation Directive might formalize that 'criminalization.' The PICUM charity, which works with undocumented migrants, welcomed MEP Sippel's draft report - which would exempt humanitarian workers from the new directive, but says a lot more needs to be done to stop people unfairly prosecuted. 'This text is a first positive step forward in the protection of solidarity actions, but more could be done to prevent the criminalization of migrants themselves,' said PICUM's Silvia Carta. "We stand ready to work with the European Parliament so that no one faces prosecution simply because they crossed a border or helped people in need'. Aside from the humanitarian issue, the Commission proposal also contains many clauses that people fear are either too broad or are just irrelevant to protecting people on the move. These include definitions of facilitation that could see all manner of people who engage in commercial transactions with irregular migrants - think shopkeepers, taxi drivers, landlords - criminalized for in theory financially benefitting from people's journeys. At the same time, the proposal contains elements that could see migrants themselves prosecuted as 'smugglers' for taking some active part in their own journey, something that is already widespread among many reception countries in Europe.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Starmer to meet Taoiseach in Liverpool
The Prime Minister will meet with the Irish premier in Liverpool this evening for the first of a series of annual UK-Ireland summits. Sir Keir Starmer and Taoiseach Micheal Martin will co-host a reception on Wednesday evening, which is designed to celebrate cultural links between the UK and Ireland. It comes after both governments signalled a desire for a 'reset' in relations, which had been put under strain throughout Brexit and the previous Conservative government's laws to deal with legacy issues of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The two leaders will also host a round table with businesses across the tech, energy, construction and manufacturing sectors – which have operations on both sides of the Irish Sea – on Thursday morning. They are expected to agree what is being described as a 'wide-ranging programme of new and enhanced strategic co-operation' between Ireland and the UK, to be taken forward by both governments through to 2030. Mr Martin said: 'This summit is one of the most significant bilateral engagements between the British and Irish Governments in a generation and shows the resolve of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and I to put in place the building blocks to bring strategic co-operation between our two countries to a new level. 'I am keen now that we work in partnership on a structured and ongoing basis to realise the full potential of the British-Irish relationship across a comprehensive programme of co-operation, including on infrastructure delivery, opportunities for SMEs, marine planning, energy, education and culture.' Mr Martin will be joined by Ireland's deputy premier Simon Harris, who is also the country's defence and foreign affairs minister for the summit plenary meeting later on Thursday. The Prime Minister previously met Mr Harris in Dublin when he held the position of taoiseach last year. The Irish delegation also includes Education Minister Helen McEntee, Climate, Energy and Transport Minister Darragh O'Brien, and Justice and Home Affairs Minister Jim O'Callaghan.
The Independent
05-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Starmer to meet Taoiseach in Liverpool
The Prime Minister will meet with the Irish premier in Liverpool this evening for the first of a series of annual UK-Ireland summits. Sir Keir Starmer and Taoiseach Micheal Martin will co-host a reception on Wednesday evening, which is designed to celebrate cultural links between the UK and Ireland. It comes after both governments signalled a desire for a 'reset' in relations, which had been put under strain throughout Brexit and the previous Conservative government's laws to deal with legacy issues of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The two leaders will also host a round table with businesses across the tech, energy, construction and manufacturing sectors – which have operations on both sides of the Irish Sea – on Thursday morning. They are expected to agree what is being described as a 'wide-ranging programme of new and enhanced strategic co-operation' between Ireland and the UK, to be taken forward by both governments through to 2030. Mr Martin said: 'This summit is one of the most significant bilateral engagements between the British and Irish Governments in a generation and shows the resolve of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and I to put in place the building blocks to bring strategic co-operation between our two countries to a new level. 'I am keen now that we work in partnership on a structured and ongoing basis to realise the full potential of the British-Irish relationship across a comprehensive programme of co-operation, including on infrastructure delivery, opportunities for SMEs, marine planning, energy, education and culture.' Mr Martin will be joined by Ireland's deputy premier Simon Harris, who is also the country's defence and foreign affairs minister for the summit plenary meeting later on Thursday. The Prime Minister previously met Mr Harris in Dublin when he held the position of taoiseach last year. The Irish delegation also includes Education Minister Helen McEntee, Climate, Energy and Transport Minister Darragh O'Brien, and Justice and Home Affairs Minister Jim O'Callaghan.
