Despite the fine’s position as the most commonly imposed sentencing disposal, it has been the subject of limited research. This dearth is a particular concern as recent statistics show that a large proportion of financial penalties are in arrears, with significant amounts being written-off. There have been various attempts in recent years to improve the enforcement process, which underscores the need for an evaluation of current policies and practices. The thesis is based on a study evaluating the enforcement of financial penalties by the Birmingham and Manchester city centre magistrates’ courts. The fieldwork was conducted both inside and outside the court building: defaulters’ appearances at the fines court, and fines clinic, were observed, and bailiffs and Civilian Enforcement Officers [CEOs] were accompanied as they attempted to execute distress warrants and bail warrants respectively. The thesis outlines various problems, and makes a number of proposals designed not only to raise the levels of effectiveness and efficiency but also the quality of justice. Taken together they provide a new coherent framework for the enforcement process.

In the last 30 years English law has seen a small but steady proliferation of shari’a councils though exact numbers are unknown. They have been set up to meet the religious needs of the British Muslim population focussing on providing a forum for the resolution of marital disputes. Shari’a councils offer mediation and reconciliation services as well as issuing religious divorce certificates. In the academic research to date it is apparent that the primary applicants to shari’a councils are Muslim women. In order to understand why one must investigate Islamic law which differentiates between the way in which men and women may divorce. Muslim men are free to pronounce a unilateral divorce without seeking the approval of any judicial body. Muslim women are arguably not granted any equivalent rights and must either secure their husband’s consent or apply to an authority to provide them with a religious determination. Shari’a councils have emerged to meet that need. My research demonstrates that whilst Muslim women are generally satisfied with the outcome of a shari’a council ruling they are critical of the processes. This becomes even more apparent to them when they compare their experiences of shari’a councils with the civil court system. Nonetheless, civil law alone is insufficient to meet the women’s needs and access to a religious authority remains a vital resource for many Muslim women. There is, however, a dynamic and evolving relationship emerging between Muslim family law practices and English law, which is still only at the embryonic stage.

<div>In Divide & Recombine (D&R), data are divided into subsets, analytic methodsare applied to each subset independently, with no communication between processes;then the subset outputs for each method are recombined. For big data, this providesalmost all of the analytic tasking needed when data are analyzed. It also provideshigh computational performance because typically most of the computation is em-barrassingly parallel, the simplest parallel computation.</div><div><br></div><div>Another kind of tasking must address computational performance and numericaccuracy: the computing of functions of all of the data, or “statistics”. For data bigand small, it is often important to compute such statistics for all of the data, whichcan be summaries of the data, such as sample quantiles of continuous variables, orcan process the data into a form that helps analysis, such as dividing the data intorepresentative subsets. Development of computational methods to compute thesestatistics can be challenging.</div><div><br></div><div>D&R can be a very effective framework for computing statistics. To supportthis, we introduce the concept of embarrassingly parallel (EP) statistics, both weakand strong. The concept of EP statistics is not entirely new, but has had littledevelopment. The existing methodology is mainly sums of sums. For example, this isdone when computing the necessary statistics for least squares where sums of productsand cross productions are carried out on subsets then summed across subsets. Ourtreatment of EP statistics has taken the concept much further. The outcome is abilityto use EP statistics in conjunction with the use a Fourier series to approximate an optimization criteria. The series terms, which are strongly EP statistics, are summedacross subsets, and the result is optimized. These are EP-F computational methods.</div><div><br></div><div>We have so far developed two EP-F computational methods for two widely usedstatistic computations. EP-F-Quantile is for quantiles of big data, and EP-F-KDtreeis for KD-trees. Speed and accuracy of EPF-Quantile are compared with that of thewell-known binning method, which also can be formulated in terms of EP statistics. EPF-KDtree is the first parallel KD-tree computational method of which we areaware. EP and EPF computational methods have potentially many other applicationsto computing statistics.</div>

Assisted Reproductive Technology has, in the last 40 years, raised numerous ethical questions. One of these ethical questions has been whether or not children born as a result of Assisted Reproductive Technology treatments may be harmed as a consequence of being brought into existence in this way. Harm caused to children is quite rightly a serious concern for society and society expects the State to intervene to protect children from parents who pose a significant risk to their children. Towards this end section 13(5) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 requires licensed infertility treatment clinics to ‘take into account the welfare of the child who may be born as a result of treatment’ when considering whether or not to provide a woman with treatment services. This thesis will argue that section 13(5) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 should be amended as it is acts as nothing more than an arbitrary and unjustified infringement on an individual’s right to reproductive liberty; is an ineffectual means of promoting the welfare of the child who may be born as a result of treatment; is philosophically incoherent; and is inconsistent with the law as applied in so-called ‘wrongful life’ cases. The argument that section 13(5) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 should be amended will be grounded upon the contention that an individual’s right to reproductive liberty should be accorded particular respect. This thesis will argue for a right to reproductive liberty which encompasses a negative right of the individual to be free from unjustified interference by the State when making reproductive choices. The pervasive influence of the child welfare principle as applied in the context of decisions directly impacting upon them has, it will be argued, played a significant part in the inclusion and retention of section 13(5) within the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. This thesis will examine the way in which the child welfare principle as applied to children has grown in influence and how an unquestioning adherence to this worthy principle has led to an incongruous version of it being applied at the pre-conception stage. While the State have a solid mandate to protect the welfare of children this thesis will argue that that mandate cannot realistically be extended to apply to future children, when to refuse an individual access to Assisted Reproductive Technology has the effect of preventing the child whose welfare is to be taken into account from being brought into existence in the first place.

This thesis aims to better understand how to effectively assess and manage the risks posed by online IIOC users. First, it presents an introduction to the topic with a commentary on the increasing prevalence of this form of offending. Second, a systematic review of literature is conducted regarding the proportion of online IIOC users also found to perpetrate contact sexual offences. A qualitative synthesis of data revealed 10% of IIOC offenders had an official criminal record for a contact offence. This increased to approximately 40%, when analysing data from interview studies. Third, the thesis presents a thematic analysis of the accounts of 10 online IIOC-only offenders regarding their reasons for accessing IIOC. Here, a number of themes consistent with known pathways of contact sexual offending were identified, characterised by the unique role of general problematic Internet use. The findings are used to construct a cyclical model of IIOC offending, viewed within the context of a maladaptive emotion regulation loop. Fourth, the thesis critically evaluates the validity and reliability of a psychometric tool, the Emotion Control Questionnaire, Second Edition (ECQ2), used to measure emotion dysregulation amongst IIOC users. Fifth, a small-scale exploratory quantitative study is conducted of a mindfulness-based intervention package, aimed at reducing emotion control deficits amongst IIOC-only offenders. This found no clinically significant change in offenders’ scores, pre- to post-treatment, or when compared to a non-treatment control group. The null finding is attributed to a sampling artefact. The thesis concludes with an overall discussion of the work.

Abstract This study elucidates the processes that may determine the distributions of Mn and other trace metals on the slope of the southern Okinawa Trough. In addition to salinity and temperature, large-volume seawater samples were collected for analyzing dissolved manganese (DMn), particulate manganese (PMn), suspended, particulate organic carbon (POC), pH and dissolved CO2 (TCO2 ) during June-July of 1998, 1999 and 2000. Concentrations of DMn and PMn in a transect decrease generally seaward from the shelf break. However, anomalous distributions of DMn and PMn occur usually between 600 m and 900 m in many deep profiles. Such distribution patterns are probably influenced by the lateral transport of metals released from slope sediments or from the plumes of submarine venting systems. For example, dissolved manganese generally decreases with depth in the oxygenated condition, but in the study area unusual high DMn concentrations were observed commonly at depth 400 m, 600 m, 800 m and 1200 m. The unusual Mn signals become weak, in general, from the South Mien-Hua Canyon to the North Mien-Hua Canyon. The higher concentration of PMn sometimes was observed in deep stations than in shallow stations at the same depth implying that processes other than lateral transport may account for the distributions. Images obtained from EK-500 showed that submarine venting systems exist in anomalous Mn distribution areas. Anomalous distributions of PMn and Kd match DMn unusual distributions very well. Besides, the distribution of TSM is closely related to PMn distributions (R=0.433, p=0.01). Although the distribution of pH data appears to be normal, total alkalinity and total CO2 display anomalous distributions coincidently with those Mn unusual distributions. Meanwhile, the ratio (PMn/PAl) is higher for those unusual Mn distributions, and this is likely the effect of submarine venting.

Les systèmes juridiques des démocraties libérales reposaient traditionnellement sur une séparation nette entre les fonctions répressives, de règlement des litiges privés, et l’activité administrative. L’Administration devait alors faire appel au juge répressif pour sanctionner la non-application de ses règlements. Les litiges privés étaient, eux, du seul ressort des tribunaux civils. Ces deux digues, élaborées afin de contenir l’action de l’État et inspirées par l’idée que la séparation des fonctions est le meilleur garant des libertés publiques, ont successivement cédé et le droit administratif s’aventure à présent dans des domaines qui lui ont été longtemps interdits. La doctrine de droit administratif, après avoir résisté fermement et s’être opposée ouvertement à ces évolutions, a fini par se résigner à l’attribution d’un pouvoir répressif propre à l’Administration et accepte désormais que « Le temps est définitivement révolu où la solennité des audiences judiciaires pouvait seule conduire le citoyen au châtiment »2. Le juge pénal n’a plus désormais le monopole de la répression et l’Administration cumule dorénavant les pouvoirs de réglementation et de répression. Mais qu’en est-il du juge civil ? Il semble bien que l’ouverture à la concurrence des grands services publics ait amené une innovation dans notre droit administratif puisque le législateur a doté des autorités administratives du pouvoir de résoudre des litiges privés pouvant aller jusqu’à forcer une entreprise privée à contracter. Le bel ordonnancement du droit gagné à force de luttes contre le pouvoir royal le cède aujourd’hui à de nouveaux agencements qui confient de nouvelles prérogatives à l’Administration.

This thesis considers the impact of substantially attenuating a suspect's right to silence on the relative positions of the police and defence in custodial interviews. The main hypothesis argues that these provisions have had a significant, unforeseen impact on the working dynamic between police officers and legal advisers. Interview strategies have developed, which seek to reinforce advantages to the police associated with control of pre-interview evidential disclosure. A second hypothesis postulates that introduction of the inference provisions has influenced suspect behaviour during custodial interrogation, leading to a reduced reliance upon the exercise of silence. The study drew upon data collected from in-depth, tape-recorded interviews with police officers involved at various stages of the investigative process, representing a wide variety of roles and experience. Full transcripts of the interviews were prepared and then subjected to a close-grained, qualitative analysis in which various themes were identified. The findings reveal, inter alia, that pre-interview disclosure has assumed increased significance, and can be instrumental to the interrogation outcome. Police officers are accorded considerable discretion in the management of police-suspect relations, which is evident in the emergence of control strategies for case-related information. Greater openness has flowed from the development of better-trained lawyers, and was manifest in the increased emphasis by police officers on truth-seeking during interview. Evidence emerged of controlled disclosure being used as a mechanism for securing or negotiating the co-operation of an interviewee. The extent of disclosure varied according to a number of factors, although, in serious or complex cases, non-disclosure formed the basis for the strategy. The incremental release of information has been shown to have an unsettling effect on interviewees and can undermine the legal adviser's presence. The police claim fewer no-comment interviews and improved content from the use of these tactics - findings that are echoed in recent studies by the Home Office and in Northern Ireland. The research therefore indicates that there is evidence to support both hypotheses.

Saflufenacil is a new herbicide for broadleaf weed control. Limited information is available for crop tolerance, weed control and herbicide behavior in the rice environment. Studies were designed to 1 and 2) evaluate rice tolerance and weed control to saflufenacil in combination with clomazone and imazethapyr; 3) evaluate the absorption and translocation of imazethapyr and saflufenacil in weed species 4) assess saflufenacil degradation and persistence in soils; and 5) investigate the use of reference compounds during the determination of pesticide adsorption (Kd). None or minimal rice injury was observed from preemergence (PRE) application of saflufenacil. Intense injury (68%) was noted with combinations of clomazone (505 g ha-1) applied PRE and saflufenacil (50 g ha-1) applied postemergence (POST). Similarly, rice injury up to 83% was observed in earlier evaluations when saflufenacil was applied POST with imazethapyr. However, subsequent evaluations indicated rice recovery from herbicide treatments. Combination of saflufenacil with imazethapyr resulted in hemp sesbania control ≥ 88% and red rice control of 100%. Rice yield was not adversely altered by the herbicide treatments used in the clomazone and imazethapyr weed control programs. Imazethapyr plus saflufenacil provided a greater uptake (30%) and translocation (35%) of 14C-imazethapyr than imazethapyr alone in the TX4 red rice. Absorption of 14C-saflufenacil ranged from approximately 40 to 60% in hemp sesbania plants. At 12 and 24 hours after treatment a greater percentage of the absorbed saflufenacil was quantified above the treated leaf at the two lower light intensities. Similar trends were observed for basipetal movement of saflufenacil. An accelerated solvent extraction method was developed to extract saflufenacil from soil. Half-life averaged among soils was 59 and 33 days for saturated and field capacity, respectively. Saflufenacil persistence in the environment was 2 to 3 times longer under flooded conditions for most of the studied soils. Adsorption values were affected by soil to solution ratios, particularly when the soil-pesticide interaction resulted in Kd values > than 2 mL g-1. The use of reference compounds during Kd estimation allowed for calculation of a conceptual adsorption window generating a more comprehensive set of data with alternatives for comparison of soils and methods.

The private and public domains are usually regarded as a dichotomy: what is in one is not in the other. There can be many reasons for intrusions by the news media into the private lives of people. This thesis assesses the extent to which celebrity is a useful conduit for understanding why the media intrudes into people’s private lives and the extent to which celebrity affects any public interest justification for doing so. In essence: does celebrity make a difference in press intrusions into the private lives of others, or is it just one of many factors. The private lives of celebrities have been subject to invasion by the press for many years, while the conceptual definition of privacy has been fiercely debated by academics and lawyers. In 2011, as a direct consequence of the revelation that the News of the World had illegally accessed murder victim Milly Dowler’s voicemail during an active police investigation into her disappearance, the first part of the Leveson Inquiry was launched in order to examine the relationship between the British press and the public, the police and politicians. The significance of the Leveson Inquiry on public life and the media and political spheres means that an analysis of press intrusions into the private lives of both celebrities and those, like the Dowler family, who were unlucky enough to fall under scrutiny due to tragic events, is essential in understanding the relationship between celebrity, privacy and the press in twenty-first century England. This thesis utilises an observation study of the Leveson Inquiry public hearings from the Royal Courts of Justice, and the resulting evidence, to investigate the impact of celebrity on the nature and extent of press intrusion into the privacy of celebrities, and how it differs in the cases of noncelebrities who become of interest to the media. The thesis concludes that the element of celebrity has a major impact on press intrusion into the private lives of individuals regardless of their personal status, as ordinary individuals are targeted due to their proximity to a celebrity, or as a result of being caught up in extraordinary circumstances. However, social media platforms are threatening the role of the press in revealing private information about individuals to the general public, as both traditional celebrities and ‘internet micro-celebrities’ communicate directly with global audiences.