Today, the court cleared Tommy Robinson of a terrorism-related charge after he refused to provide police with the password to his mobile phone during a stop at the Channel Tunnel terminal in July 2024. The stop was carried out under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which enables officers to detain people at UK ports to determine whether they may be involved in terrorism.

In handing down his verdict, Judge Sam Goozée said he could not ignore that the stop appeared to have been motivated by Robinson’s political beliefs rather than any evidence of terrorist activity. He described the police’s rationale as legally inadequate and found the detention unlawful.

Robinson had argued that his phone contained “journalistic material” and that forcing him to hand over the PIN would infringe on his rights. He also publicly thanked US-billionaire Elon Musk, who he said supported his legal defence.

The verdict raises significant questions about the application of counter-terror powers: how police identify reasonable suspicion, how rights of journalists are protected, and how political beliefs interplay with law-enforcement decisions.

This case may prompt review of how Schedule 7 is used at ports and whether the threshold for stopping individuals is being applied correctly.

Sources: The Guardian, Financial Times, Reuters