A football fan banned from attending matches for three years has been told he will have to surrender his passport when requested to by authorities after an appeal failed.for offensive comments he made about the 1958 Munich air disaster.
But now Judge Gittins has said he did not have the authority to do that and Blake would have to comply with any demands made by theA football banning order includes a provision that lets the police demand fans hand in their passports at certain times to prevent them travelling to games abroad, although an exemption could be applied for.
At a fresh hearing at Newcastle Crown Court on Wednesday, Judge Gittins said "regrettably" he had found that was "not permissible" and the passport surrender was a "mandatory" part of a banning order. The judge said it was therefore "incumbent" on Blake to "explain position" to the authorities if he was ordered to surrender his passport.