How does he sleep at night?

The Mandleson arrest is just the type that could end up in litigation. Officers often struggle to apply arrest necessity lawfully, but this instead looks to be an issue of the reasonableness of the belief in the arrest reason (presumably PACE s24(5)(f)). Hence, the intel that MPS relied on is key.

FIFA said it wouldn’t use dynamic pricing for World Cup tickets. In a totally unsuprising move, its president has now openly said it will. Dynamic ticket pricing risks reduced transparency & prices ordinary fans out. 🔗 Statement with Euroconsumers: https://bit.ly/40qLNka

"Your personal life is your own business, as long as you act within a framework of which I personally approve."

Nice to see a policing news story (and a local one) with a happy ending. Under the Proceeds of Crime Act and Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme, half the recovered funds will go to charities and community groups in Greater Manchester. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

New on the Gentleman Ultra from The Calcio Blog... Halcyon Calcio: The beginning of our “Golden Era”, why Serie A was cooler than the Premiership www.gentlemanultra.com/2026/02/17/h...

New research by Dr Caroline Miles & Professor Rosemary Broad, @criminologyuom.bsky.social @manchester.ac.uk finds 68% of women runners surveyed in Greater Manchester & Merseyside experienced abuse while running — yet only 5% reported it to police. blog.policy.manchester.ac.uk/posts/2024/1...

A tragic case, but one that will be of interest to those with interests in either #sportslaw or #criminallaw. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

An image brought to you by the same AI that some folk want driving cars, carrying out brain surgery, and in charge of our nuclear deterrent.

Understanding the “new” disruptive behavior at live music events: Group normative (mis)alignment and collective self-regulation Now published in ASAP journal. Please share. spssi.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

This is basically the introduction to every article submitted to the law REF this time around.

A good early analysis of today's Palestine Action case. Once again, the final limb of the proportionality test looks like it will be causing problems.

Good to see MUST and the 1958 speaking out against this. If you want to own a football club whose fans are going to be ok with your casual racism, buying United wasn't a sensible choice. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Don't usually do academic gloating, but this is as decent a spot as any to proof read the new book. 'Policing and the Human Rights Act', coming soon.

A couple of lecturer posts at @uomsociology.bsky.social: On racial inequalities, anti-racism and theoretical debates about 'race': www.jobs.manchester.ac.uk/Job/JobDetai... On political sociology of class and economy or cultural interpretations of class: www.jobs.manchester.ac.uk/Job/JobDetai...

Cook Pass ICE www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articl...

We are thrilled to announce that our teaching and research staff, @lewisgrahamlaw.bsky.social and @lucyfrith.bsky.social, have had their books shortlisted for the @slsauk.bsky.social Prizes 2026. Congratulations! @uomsoss.bsky.social @uomhums.bsky.social

The biggest of #SportsLaw klaxons for this. www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...

Well this is all starting to look a bit of a mess. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

They will need a particular setting for when there's a football match on and the normal rules of the road don't apply.

Today is Candlemas If you have not cleared all your Christmas decorations by today, a demon hiding behind them will cause dire mischief in your house for the rest of the year. See my popular post on this: emptycity.substack.com/p/twelfth-ni...

After Bayern Munich (at home to Union SG) and Eintracht Frankfurt (away at Qarabag), Young Boys are the third fan scene to successfully circumvent a collective UEFA punishment this season.

VfB Stuttgart at home to Young Boys in the Europa League this evening - and ultras from the Ostkurve Bern in an improvised away end at the Neckarstadion after circumventing a UEFA ban with help from their Stuttgart counterparts.

✈️ Followed your team away to a #UCL match last night? We want to hear from you. 🗣️ From ticketing & travel to accessibility & stewarding — share your experience, good or bad, in FSE's 2025/26 #AwayFanSurvey. 👉 Take part: https://bit.ly/4oMENsO

A dozen questions about the end game of Manchester City's "115" case, and its aftermath sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/a-dozen-qu...

New Swingometer! The Gorton and Denton By-election: A tale of Two Manchesters open.substack.com/pub/swingome...

Where are the poppy patriots? Why are they completely silent on this grotesque insult to our armed forces and specifically the 2,000 UK service and civilian personnel who were injured and the 457 who died in Afghanistan?

Following hot on the heels of Ming the Merciless, Grand Moff Tarkin, and Sauron. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Sky Sports have decided that 20.00 on a Friday night is the most appropriate kick-off time for Bournemouth v Man Utd. The last train back to Manchester leaves Bournemouth 15 minutes before kick-off. #mufc

This pair have been an absolute menace for the duration of me trying to write the Human Rights and Policing book. I really could do with the opposite of an Acknowledgements section to reference them in.

📢 When Power Replaces Law New analysis by Dr @yusrasuedi.bsky.social @manchester.ac.uk @uomlaw.bsky.social examines what the Venezuela–US crisis reveals about the fragility of the international legal order — and why it matters for global stability. 👉 www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/w...

“The way the French police football games is completely outdated… it doesn’t meet any of the modern standards of de-escalation.” FSE Executive Director Ronan Evain on the dangerous treatment of fans by French authorities & the failure to learn lessons from the 2022 UCL final. 📰 nyti.ms/4quGGuK

@garymarcus.bsky.social: Two Boston University law professors, Woodrow Hartzog and Jessica Silbey, just posted preprint of a new paper that blew me away, called How AI Destroys Institutions. I urge you to read—and reflect—on it, ASAP. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Honestly boycotting the World Cup would be the most effective and probably the least disruptive of all of the options available to Europe. I’m not sure how you can send teams and fans to contribute to a spectacle designed entirely to celebrate a guy trying to invade your territory.

This would be great news, if MS co-pilot didn't have a tendency to just make stuff up. In my field of research I estimate it provides inaccurate information at least 50% of the time. www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/w...

Two key takeaways from tonight's Afcon final. (1) VAR makes everything worse. (2) You should always go to extra time before penalties. Yes, mostly it's a damp squib, but when it isn't, there's nothing like it. The "let's go straight to penalties" crowd can all get in the bin.

BREAKING. Craig Guildford is to retire from policing. A statement is expected soon. He is the first chief constable to quit after pressure from the Home Secretary since 2005, when Humberside's chief David Westwood departed after David Blunkett called on him to be fired after the Bichard Report

I’m quoted briefly in this FT piece discussing Lord Reed’s time on the Supreme Court www.ft.com/content/2272...

Dear Donald Trump. In recognition of your unique commitment to fascists and other psychopathic fruit-loops,I would like to present you with my 2004-05 Frumba FC Psycho of the Season Award. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

SCAM ALERT – IMPORTANT The cat has already been fed.

NASA say that the crew member who was ill and returned to earth is doing well and now having a meal with colleagues.

The University of Manchester looking suitably gothic this evening.

The very last thing any police force needs is the Home Secretary holding a Sword of Damocles over its Chef's head. I can't think of a better way of ensuring undue political interference in policing and also undermining evidence-based decision making.

WM Police chief Craig Guildford has apologised for identifying a fictitious West Ham v Maccabi Tel Aviv match in a police report. He’s written to the home affairs committee and blames Microsoft CoPilot for the error

Politicians: don't use AI to make your maps.

More than 40 civil society groups (including Netpol) have joined forces to resist yet another proposed expansion by the government of police powers in England and Wales www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

Paper out with @jpinasanchez.bsky.social & @marcelo-f-aebi.bsky.social in @socialindicators.bsky.social 🔔 How often do we compare crime recorded across countries? We show that crime counting rules vary widely across countries and this strongly affects cross-country comparisons