Simon Dolan seeking judicial Review of government’s lockdown - AIBU to think he is a selfish pr**k?

[Userwhatevernumber]

A multi-millionaire is taking the government to court to challenge the lockdown restrictions. He is seeking judicial review of the decision to enforce lockdown.

Fair enough if he wanted to use his own multi-millions to find this. But no, he is actually crowdfunding. He is seeking to raise £125,000 from the public. At a time when he himself has already acknowledged the suffering economy.

AIBU to think this is total selfishness and that he is just another white, rich privileged man thinking he can play the hero and save us all when all the while he is only out for himself?

😡

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/law/2020/may/01/uk-government-faces-legal-challenge-coronavirus-lockdown-businessman-simon-dolan

www.crowdjustice.com/case/lockdownlegalchallenge/

In the sense that they have a legal dept, etc, sure. They will need to make the time and find the resources. And outsource a lot too, i imagine. Including v expensive barristers

Funding that could be diverted in these times of great need. There are much more important things to spend it on than a court case brought by a tax avoiding expat who lives in a country with a far stricter lockdown.

Strangely he seems unconcerned about his 'freedom' in Monaco.

I'm quite sure the vast majority of the UK would rather our tax revenue (that Simon avoids contributing to) is spent on the NHS keeping businessess afloat, social care, abuse services, supporting the children who've lost parents to Covid, services for the disabled.

I very much doubt the majority of UK taxpayers (those of us who, unlike Simon don't avoid paying it) want precious funds wasted on an expensive legal case to prove basic common sense.

Even if it really was impossible to divert the funds, they might be needed for more worthy court cases in the future.

The funds come from us. The UK taxpayer. Something Simon avoids being.

I thought you had to be personally affected to do a JR? Hardly the case if he's in Monaco

Yes, thats right. You do need to be personally affected. I guess the point he will make is that he can't enjoy his UK property. Unless he can find someone else to be the 'victim'

But he can enjoy his UK property.
We have no border controls. Non essential flights are arriving daily with no checks or quarantine of any sort.

We don't actually have a proper lockdown. We go to the shops, we go for exercise (we can drive to do that too), we can visit people for essential care, we can get takeaways, ice-cream, coffee, we can go to DIY shops.

He may have 'restricted freedom' where he lives but he'll see he won't have the same experience here. He could pop on a plane to the UK today if he wanted. Perhaps whilst here he could stop by HMRC to pay some tax.

Whether he'd be allowed back to Monaco I don't know. They have a stricter lockdown but that's for him to take up with them.

Toffee, Couldn't agree more

An update for Dolan's supporters and critics ...

Update on Join the Legal Challenge to the UK Govt Lockdown

We have today accused Boris Johnson of “dragging his heels over the burning embers of the economy” after the Government said it needed more time to respond to his legal challenge to lockdown.

Our lawyers sent a Letter Before Action the Government on Thursday April 30, setting a deadline of May 7 for them to respond.

The legal challenge calls on the Government to urgently action the allowing of gatherings of up to 100 people, the reopening of schools, and to commit to a review the lockdown restrictions every two weeks

However, government lawyers have now written to our legal team requesting a further week to issue their response.

The initial deadline was also the time PM Boris Johnson was due to announce a review of lockdown. That announcement has also been pushed back – reportedly until Sunday evening.

“The Government is playing for time in asking for more time to respond to the Letter Before Action. Time is something ministers really do not have the luxury of – every day is estimated to cost the economy £2.5billion.

“It is yet another example of the Government sitting on its hands while Britain is sent hurtling on a journey to economic and social ruin. Boris Johnson wants to be seen as Churchillian – he is behaving more like Nero, dragging his heels over the burning embers of the economy and freedom.

“We have a delay in addressing the Letter Before Action and delay in addressing nation desperate to hear a plan on how we will climb out of the mess of lockdown.

“The logic of delaying any announcement is baffling, unnecessary and damaging. Other countries are emerging from lockdown and Britain we will be left behind – ruing the rising cost with every passing hour.”

The extension request from Government comes following pressure from its own MPs over lockdown. In a House of Commons debate on Monday evening (May 4), questions over the legality of lockdown were aired. Our Judicial Review was referenced in the debate.

One backbencher who took part in the debate, Steve Baker MP (Wycombe), had already called on the Prime Minster to “end the absurd, dystopian and tyrannical lockdown.” Writing in a national newspaper, he argued: “These extraordinary measures require not only legal authority but democratic consent. There is a real possibility that they have had neither.”

Mr Dolan said: “There is growing criticism and frustration over the Government’s delays, including from within its own party.

“It is now universally accepted that the lockdown will cause enormous long-term damage to both the economy and the general health of the population.

“We know from the House of Commons debate that the Government is aware of the issues over the legality of lockdown. To say it hasn’t had time to properly respond is unacceptable when so much is at stake.

““Boris will play to the crowd on Sunday by allowing picnics and visits to the garden centre. He is going to let people play golf and go fly fishing.

“But it’s just lightweight stuff which does not address the real needs of ordinary people. We need serious decisions which will get the economy moving and safeguard future generations.”

Our lawyers have given the Government until Tuesday May 12 to issue its response.

Thanks Goaty

I think Simon should be more transparent on his crowdfunding page (why does someone worth approx £142million need to crowdfund?).

He doesn't say he lives in more strictly locked down Monaco. It seems a bit deceptive to those he's taking money from otherwise.

I hope the the first question the government lawyers ask is why Simon is unconcerned about the (stricter) lockdown where he lives.

Imagine if he donated just £1million to those caused he processes concern about. Peanuts to him but a huge sum to those in need.

I hope the the first question the government lawyers ask is why Simon is unconcerned about the (stricter) lockdown where he lives.

This isn't relevant legally. He just has to show that he's a "victim" of the interference with property rights.

All he needs to do if he wants to enjoy his UK property (properties?) is get on a plane. We have no border restrictions, no checks, no quarantine. He might not be allowed back to Monaco but that's their decision not the UK's.

The European Convention of Human Rights has exceptions when rights can be suspended for civil emergencies, war etc

I'm sure a global pandemic would qualify

If a rich fucker in a tax haven wants to sue the government to let him become an even richer fucker,
he should at least use his own money, not GoFundMe

"I think the point of crowd sourcing here is to show that there is a groundswell of support,"

I think that rich fuckers got rich by using other people's money, not their own

It's Article 15 @BigChocFrenzy - it needs an emergency threatening the life of the nation, and it needs the state wishing to derogate to notify the Council of Europe. You can't do it retrospectively, so it would be too late now.

I'd guess his case will be joined with other applications to give ultimately the Supreme Court a chance to apply legal scrutiny to the strategy. A wide range of rights affecting all of us is being interfered with, and the state needs to be able to justify that legally, especially on the proportionality principle.

Ch003. You said you know him. Do you think his motivation is business interests (i think enjoying his uk property rights also encompasses making cash from uk businesses) or power trip/ ego/ attention (or a combo of both)?

Chh03. Not Ch003.

Like Toffee says. Tax avoiding scumbag is not some human rights hero.

@P999 Legally he's doing nothing wrong. His tax avoidance schemes are legal. He'll be doing 'tax efficient investing for high networth individuals'.

Legal. But is he moral?
Clearly not judging by his behaviour.

I suspect you're right about both motivations. Obscene greed and attention seeking.

I do wish he had to say where he lived on his crowdfunding page. The people he's taking money off should be aware he lives somewhere with a very strict lockdown. And that he's not bothered about his 'freedom' there.

I also still want to know why someone with approx £142million needs to crowdfund, particularly for an initial £30,000.

I've just read his letter before claim - it's a bit of a marathon:

wedlakebell.com/content/uploads/Letter-to-the-Rt-Hon-Matt-Hancock-MP-Secretary-of-State-for-Health-Social-Care-30-April-2020-redacted-ref-1.pdf

What happens to the money if the case doesn't go ahead, is is given back?

What happens to the money if the case doesn't go ahead, is is given back?

Always rather vague with these crowd funding situations. So far the case is going ahead, although it's always possible with judicial review that a judge won't give it permission to go to a full hearing.

An update on this: the government has filed it's defence. There's an interesting point on school closures.

Late on Friday afternoon, 3 minutes before their deadline expired, the Govt filed with us their defence against our claim. All 58 pages of it.

We will publish the whole thing on the site shortly, but the main story is that we have finally exposed that the whole schools shutdown was a lie. The Govt have admitted that they had no legal basis to close schools, and that they simply 'recommended it'.

This was something we suspected all along. The Govt says is is nonsensical for us to say that schools were closed because they remained open for key workers and there had only been a 'request' that schools should shut their doors to other pupils, yet the PM announced on March 18th that "schools will remain closed until further notice"

This is really quite an extraordinary lie, and one which never would have come out if we hadn't started this Judicial Review

Sorry for dragging this topic back up again, but the odious Simon Dolan is spouting his offensive rubbish again.

This time comparing the utterly unfounded rumour of mandatory vaccination against Covid to rape.

twitter.com/simondolan/status/1289850014164848641