Threat of 10-year jail term for UK travellers who hide journeys 'disproportionate'
February 10, 2021, 12:19 pm

Threat of 10-year jail term for UK travellers who hide journeys 'disproportionate'

Travellers arriving at Heathrow Terminal 2 on Monday.

Backlash against government plans to jail those who conceal journeys from Covid hotspots

Two former Conservative attorneys general and backbench MPs have branded the government’s threat to impose 10-year jail sentences on travellers who try to conceal journeys from coronavirus hotspots as disproportionate and an abuse of power.

Matt Hancock has announced a requirement for UK residents returning to England from 33 “red list” countries to pay £1,750 to quarantine for 10 days in government-designated hotels. The health secretary said on Tuesday those caught lying about their movements could be fined £10,000 or be jailed for 10 years.

The former attorney general Dominic Grieve said such a sentence was “entirely disproportionate”.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “The government should not be abusing the powers it has taken through parliament for this emergency to create offences, which are subject to that kind of penalty.”

He added: “My view is that good government is about proportionality and sounding off in this way with suggestions of draconian and completely disproportionate sentences for an offence is a mistake.”

Grieve also predicted courts would not impose such sentences.

Sir Geoffrey Cox, who succeeded Grieve as Boris Johnson’s first attorney general, told the Telegraph: “I get that the secretary of state wants to show that this is serious but you do have to have regard to the overall balance of sentencing policy and law.”The former supreme court justice Lord Sumption said an offence of concealing previous travel should not be compared to those for violent or sexual crimes.

“Does Mr Hancock really think that non-disclosure of a visit to Portugal is worse than the large number of violent firearms offences or sexual offences involving minors, for which the maximum is seven years?” the peer wrote in the Telegraph.

Mark Harper, the chair of the Covid Recovery Group and a former chief whip of Tory MPs, said the plans should be put to parliamentary vote rather than be introduced by executive order.

Speaking on Talk Radio, he said: “I don’t think it would be right for imprisonable offences to be created by ministers by decree in advance without parliament having chance to debate and vote on them.”

He added the government was right to try to prevent dangerous variants spreading from overseas, but said “there have been some concerns about the level of the penalties”.

Steve Baker, a leading lockdown sceptic on the Conservative backbenches, said: “We are suppressing this virus at all costs and I really would implore ministers to take stock. At some point we are going to have to see reason and let temperance reassert itself.”

The shadow home secretary, Nick Thomas-Symonds, said he wanted to look at the detail of the government’s plans and that more information was needed to see if there was a scale within the 10-year sentence.

He added: “What we shouldn’t do either is allow the announcement of an eye-catching 10 years to be in some way a substitute for an effective quarantine system that works. It isn’t a substitute for that and it’s that that I urge the government to look at.”

The transport secretary, Grant Shapps, defended the plan, saying the British public “would expect pretty strong action”.

“It’s up to 10 years, it’s a tariff, it’s not necessarily how long somebody would go to prison for,” he told BBC Breakfast.

He added: “But I do think it is serious if people put others in danger by deliberately misleading and saying that you weren’t in Brazil or South Africa, or one of the red list countries, which as you say does include Portugal.

“But I think the British public would expect pretty strong action because we’re not talking now just about, ‘oh there’s a lot of coronavirus in that country and you might bring some more of it back when we already have plenty of it here’.

“What we’re talking about now are the mutations, the variants, and that is a different matter, because we don’t want to be in a situation where we later on discover that there’s a problem with vaccines.”

source: Matthew Weaver

Levant

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).

Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.