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Piers Corbyn charged with another coronavirus lockdown breach over hospital protest

Piers Corbyn rallied against the lockdown at Speaker's Corner: Getty Images
Piers Corbyn rallied against the lockdown at Speaker's Corner: Getty Images

The brother of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has been charged with another breach of the coronavirus lockdown, in a court case which may be heard behind closed doors.

Piers Corbyn, 73, is accused of repeatedly flouting the government’s pandemic controls and has been vocal in his opposition to the laws, insisting that the Covid-19 outbreak is a “hoax”.

In June he appeared in court accused of breaking lockdown rules by attending two protests in Hyde Park the previous month, and last week he was arrested at an anti-lockdown protest and hit with a £10,000 fine by the Met Police.

Now, he has been charged with another breach of lockdown, said to have occurred on May 9 outside St Thomas’ Hospital in Lambeth.

It is alleged Corbyn, who was on an anti-lockdown protest at the time, “failed to go home” when instructed to by a police officer.

Corbyn pleaded not guilty at his June court hearing to the first two charges of breaking the coronavirus lockdown, and his case was set down for a trial later this year. He has also indicated his intention to fight the £10,000 fine.

(PA)
(PA)

The latest charge he faces has been brought at Westminster magistrates court under the Single Justice Procedure, along with 140 others accused of breaking lockdown between March and May.

Their cases have been processed by the Met Police and could be dealt with behind closed doors, with little public scrutiny of the prosecutions.

Under the controversial Single Justice Procedure, a guilty plea can be entered in writing without the need to attend court at all, meaning a magistrate can deal with the case administratively.

The cases, including Corbyn’s, could be adjourned for a hearing in public if the defendant pleads not guilty, a request is made for an open hearing, or if the magistrate decides a hearing is necessary. Corbyn has not yet entered a plea in this case.

Watch: How is coronavirus treated?

The Single Justice Procedure was introduced in 2015 despite opposition from the media, and has been used to deal with offences including speeding, driving while on the phone, train fare dodging, and not paying the TV licence fee.

The laws enforcing lockdown had a troubled start when in early April it was first revealed that people had been wrongly convicted.

Powers granted to police in the Coronavirus Act 2020 – which were intended to help direct infectious people to seek medical attention – had been used as tools of general lockdown enforcement.

A subsequent CPS review found that every single prosecution brought under the Coronavirus Act had been botched, with dozens of cases ditched and a string of convictions overturned. The review also found incidents of Welsh regulations being used to prosecuted alleged lockdown breaches in England.