Heads up for all UK Dissentians
I learnt about this over the weekend; a Bill currently going through Parliament that would dramatically reduce parliamentary discussion over future laws, and give individual ministers the power to alter any law passed by Parliament. Taxation and crimes with a penalty greater than two years imprisonment are exempt, but everything else - from the recent smoking ban to the Acts of Parliament that define the House of Lords - could theoretically be altered, introduced, or abolished simply on the proposal of single ministers. With the regulatory burden of Parliamentary debate gone major changes to the law can be made without giving Parliament the opportunity to fully examine and debate them. To name some current examples, I know where we'd be on ID cards by now if this new Bill was in place, and house arrest, and trial by jury.
Please read some of the pieces linked below, and consider writing to your MP. This is too important to be ignored.
Newpaper comment pieces:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,6-2040625,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1072-2049791,00.html
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/constitution/story/0,,1715467,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,28010-2057835,00.html
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/constitution/comment/0,,1724047,00.html
http://www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk/...xml&sSheet=/opinion/2006/03/13/ixopinion.html
Campaign sites:
http://bill111.wordpress.com/
http://www.saveparliament.org.uk/
I learnt about this over the weekend; a Bill currently going through Parliament that would dramatically reduce parliamentary discussion over future laws, and give individual ministers the power to alter any law passed by Parliament. Taxation and crimes with a penalty greater than two years imprisonment are exempt, but everything else - from the recent smoking ban to the Acts of Parliament that define the House of Lords - could theoretically be altered, introduced, or abolished simply on the proposal of single ministers. With the regulatory burden of Parliamentary debate gone major changes to the law can be made without giving Parliament the opportunity to fully examine and debate them. To name some current examples, I know where we'd be on ID cards by now if this new Bill was in place, and house arrest, and trial by jury.
Please read some of the pieces linked below, and consider writing to your MP. This is too important to be ignored.
Newpaper comment pieces:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,6-2040625,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1072-2049791,00.html
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/constitution/story/0,,1715467,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,28010-2057835,00.html
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/constitution/comment/0,,1724047,00.html
http://www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk/...xml&sSheet=/opinion/2006/03/13/ixopinion.html
Campaign sites:
http://bill111.wordpress.com/
http://www.saveparliament.org.uk/