Paying the price for parliamentary supremacy - Boris reads the Riot Act!

So Boris Johnson is going to have to stump up £75m in compensation for those affected by the Sony warehouse fire, caused by arson during the London riots. The "chicken feed" in question results from the Riot (Damages) Act (1886), which states that damages from riot are payable by the local police authority.Unfortunately for Boris' budget, the judges are reluctant to overturn parliament's will, this having been the law since The Riot Act (1714), until such time as new legislation is brought forward - meaning the insurers get off scot free, the uninsured are compensated, and City Hall has to find the dosh.As the Guardian notes: Even if this were considered "unfair and unwarranted in the 21st century", the three appeal judges said on Tuesday, "it is for parliament and not the courts to amend it or remove it altogether".The case is a great example of how the appeals system works; the mayor, having appealed from a ruling in the High Court, has been refused permission to appeal to the Supreme Court - although of course his lawyers can apply to the Court of Appeal to challenge this, it doesn't look promising.It's also a cautionary tale for potential appellants; on appeal, the amount awarded was increased as the judges in the Court of Appeal held the Mayor responsible for consequential losses flowing from the arson as well as direct losses. Judgments can go up as well as down!At the moment, the taxpayer is left footing the bill. Expect legislation on this at some point in the future...