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BORIS JOHNSON is facing a legal challenge over his latest coronavirus rules after a businessman launched an appeal to quash the Prime Minister's new laws immediately, declaring them illegal.
Wealthy businessman Simon Dolan has launched a legal bid against the Prime Minister’s latest “draconian” measures to fight the invisible killer disease, claiming they have been “sneaked in” using a legal loophole.
He said: "businesses were being driven into the ground and lives are being ruined."
Mr Dolan, whose Jota Aviation company has been delivering personal protective equipment (PPE) to the NHS, has joined forces with wedding venue operator Cripps Barn Group Ltd to seek an injunction, which would immediately halt the Government’s latest lockdown laws.
The legal bid comes after Mr Johnson urged members of the public to adhere to the new rules including pub and restaurant curfews of 10pm, a "rule of six" limit on social gatherings, and mandatory face mask wearing.
Mr Johnson set out the need for "drastic action to tackle the fast growth of coronavirus"
asking people to "work from home if possible and to stop non-essential travel."
But today, Mr Dolan and Cripps Barn Group Ltd served legal papers on the Government, seeking urgent relief from the Court to quash the new restrictions and declare them illegal.
In their 'Letter Before Action’, they are also seeking permission to take the measures to judicial review.
They say the contradictory and confusing laws are destroying the hospitality industry and that the measures are disproportionate to the risk to public health from COVID-19.
They claim "The Government misused legislation to bring in the new regulations without proper scrutiny by parliament."
The Government introduced the new measures through the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 by certifying the legislation as ‘urgent’.
This meant ministers were allowed to make the laws effective immediately without prior approval in parliament.
If the injunction is granted and a public official attempts to impose the lockdown laws, they could be in contempt of court which is ultimately punishable by imprisonment.
Mr Dolan, who owns ten UK businesses and employs 600 people, said: “With 16 million people now under draconian local restrictions, and everyone facing harsh fines for contravening rules they can’t even understand, the tide is turning."
"More and more people believe, like us, that the Government cannot be allowed to do what it likes with no thought to the consequences of its actions."
“The new legislation has been sneaked in using a legal loophole without scrutiny from parliament."
"That is why the country is in a total mess and a state of confusion."
"Businesses are being driven into the ground and lives are being ruined."
The Prime Minister himself had to apologise for getting confused by his own laws and his own father did not know to wear a mask.
“I have long argued that all the lockdown measures have been brought in illegally and are completely disproportionate to the risk from COVID-19."
"We have evidence which backs this up and challenges the spurious scenario presented by Professor Whitty when he claimed that there could be 50,000 coronavirus cases per day by next month.“
"The new measures threaten to destroy the hospitality industry."
"We know there are dismayed, worried and angry people in the hospitality industry and we need more people from the sector to come forward and support this legal case so they can make their voices heard."
"Anyone who wants to support it financially can donate to the CrowdJustice appeal."
The lockdown measures are illegal, they do not work and they must be scrapped.
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