Just for Kate

As she's the only one as obsessed with politics as I am (though she gets a partner - that's not fair), another politics post. Everyone else can look away now.

Stop and Search has been banned by the European Court of Justice. Yet again, it took the EU to point out to this government and the police that stopping and searching people without reasonable grounds is oppressive. Under UK law, the cops can take you aside and go through your pockets without even having to suspect that you're up to anything.

In the 1970s, this behaviour was known as the 'suspicion of being black' law, as black youths were targeted out of all proportion. The laws were changed in the 1980s, then changed back in the 2000s under the Terrorism Act. Lo and behold, the cops started harassing ethnic minorities again. Then they turned their attention to anyone planning to hold a legal demonstration, and photographers - a very useful tool to prevent democracy.

The sole condition was that the search had to look for articles used in connection with terrorism – but this covered many things commonly carried by people in the street. Police did not even have to have grounds for suspecting such articles were present.

The judges said that, because of this, there was a "clear risk of arbitrariness in granting such broad discretion" to a police officer.

Their concerns were compounded by the fact that black and Asian people were four times more likely to be stopped under section 44 and there was a risk that the power could be misused against demonstrators.

"The absence of any obligation on the part of the officer to show a reasonable suspicion made it almost impossible to prove that the power had been improperly exercised," the judges said in describing the lack of judicial checks.

This lightens my mood even more. Poetry marking is going well (congratulations, students) and Alastair Campbell is coming out with some corking BS to the Iraq war inquiry.

Once again, 3 cheers for the European Union. Now we just need to make it socialist.