Category Archives: Blog

DNA database

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I’ve added to my website an article about what’s wrong with the national DNA database Labour are building – tackling in particular the question, “but what does an innocent person have to fear?” The answer – a lot! Read it and see …

Ming Campbell's conference speech

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Ming’s speech went Lib Dem leader Ming Campbell makes his speech to party conferencewell and it was good. I am glad he didn’t try to be anything he isn’t or resort to gimmicks. Ming’s strength is serious commitment and integrity and belonging to an era where men stood for something and stood by their word. That’s his forte. The speech itself covered all the bases and sent us (the party faithful) home content with a week in which we grew in confidence and progressed in content.

I finally bought Greg Hurst’s book ‘Charles Kennedy – A Tragic Flaw’. Now the story in full is in the public domain. I feature briefly – the book revealing how in the Parliamentary Party before Christmas when Charles opened the floor up for comments I was the first MP (after nine or ten had spokes in support of Charles) to raise the issue of his drinking – albeit I termed it ‘personal habits’. Then Julia Goldsworthy followed later saying how unhappy she was with the way things were then being run in the party in parliament. Both she and I were in the group of 25 MPs who signed a letter saying we would resign our front bench positions if Charles didn’t resign. And the rest, as they say, is history.

I saw Charles on Question Time last night – and he was on pretty good form. His conference speech was well received – he is held in much affection in the party – but it was quite clear that his political salad days are past and his future hopefully will be as an effective front bencher – when the time is right.

Human rights

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I did get called in the Meeting the Challenge debate on Wednesday. I had put a card in – but in a democratic party you never know if your name will be chosen by the Chair of the debate who has absolute discretion. Anyway – I was called – and the speech went down well. It is one of my causes – that of the poverty of the built environment and what that does to the life chances of young people and the aspirations of all living in those areas of deprivation where the worst that developers can do is done.

Later I was a speaker at the Liberty (the group that fights against removal of civil liberties as opposed to the shop) and the room was packed. The Liberal Democrats and Liberty have a lot in common in their stance against the appalling onslaught of authoritarian legislation and removals of freedoms as experienced under this Labour government. Huge audience and packed room – this was Lib Dem territory at its finest: the only political party to really stand up for British values in the best sense of the word – freedoms and the basics of law and human rights.

This morning (Thursday) the theme continued in an early debate on human rights. Labour have desecrated the Human Rights Act – the most significant piece of legislation to be brought in in recent years to protect our freedoms. But Labour try to damage it by implying that it is there for use by criminals and terrorists. Misuses and abuses have occurred – but through misinterpretation by the courts. We need to campaign to educate those who must apply the law so that it is used only for the purposes for which it was intended – to give us, the ordinary citizens inalienable rights to our freedoms, freedom from slavery, torture, discrimination and civil liberties.

The motion passed with no votes against. Well, at a Lib Dem conference – I should bloody well hope so!

Charles Kennedy's speech and my latest video diary

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Tuesday was the big day at conference! Would Ming’s leadership be dented by defeat? That was the media’s obsession. In the event – Lib Dems had a red letter day. Our big idea – switching taxation from the person to pollution passed without amendment. Now both Labour and Tory will have to come onto our territory if they are really going to walk the talk – as opposed to their current hot air.

Later Charles made the traditional speech given to leaders of our party. He received a standing ovation on coming and going – and went for a Liberal drum-beating approach. He was never going to come on as an avenging angel – despite what the media probably hoped for. He wasn’t out to upstage Ming. It was just good solid stuff.

The evening was the piece de resistance! The book – Britain after Blair was launched and five of us who have written chapters were there to entice people to buy it. My chapter is about race relations. Blair’s legacy is worsening race relations. The negative impact of our American inspired foreign policy is clear in the growing fear of Muslims and consequent growing divisions in our communities. We are also more segregated than when Blair came to power – both residentially and socially – and this incendiary neglect of deprivation and isolation can lead to awful outcomes where communities have become extreme in their segregation – look at the race riots that were sparked in France and Holland because they were simply left to fester. But you’ll have to buy the book to not only know what proposals I argue for but also what the other 13 MPs say as well as a sensational audit of the country in Britain after Blair!Published by Centre Forum.

Today (Wednesday) – started with my usual (now) video diary – with another TV crew filming me filming my diary. The media love this stuff at the moment! You can watch it here:

http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=8491896411529032552&hl=en-GB

The Great Repeal Act

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Yesterday was Nick Clegg’s big moment with his set piece speech (he’s my boss as our Shadow Home Secretary).

Targeting Labour’s favourite tendency – legislation – Nick went for the 3,000 new criminal offences created by Labour (1,300 under Blunkett alone) with the message ‘do less, but do it better’. I guess that’s something Labour just don’t understand. Less is more! Wave after wave of new laws that have broken the Home Office down into a gibbering form of incompetence as they fail to cope. John Reid blaming the civil service for what has been an intolerable torrent of ineffective law.

Far too often Labour goes for bringing in another law that does the same thing as an existing law which hasn’t actually been properly used – which is so often the case.

Nick also reeled off the list of illiberal laws that Labour has brought in taking away our freedoms and indeed, our British values. The right to protest, control orders, curfews, etc etc etc – the list is long, long, long. There is even a law against selling or buying grey squirrels.

So Nick’s big idea is the Great Repeal Act – an Act that will take away unnecessary laws and roll back all the illiberal infringements of our civil liberties. And he wants the public to send in the laws they believe should form part of this – so you can contact www.greatrepealact.com with your ideas.

The basic message is that ‘tough’ and ‘soft’ – the language of Labour and Tories on crime is yesterdays world. For LibDems it’s what is effective that matters.

In the afternoon it was Ming being interviewed by the Guardian’s Michael White (who was quite fabulous I thought). It was Ming in his best setting. He is comfortable and at home in this milieu and came over as relaxed and confident. He did make a mix up with Arctic Monkeys but suffice to say that even Olympic sprinters can occasional encounter a hurdle! But the over-riding impression I got – and indeed always get – is that Ming is a truly decent human being. And in this day and age of political volatility and shallowness – is a welcome change.

And today as I write (Tuesday) is a biggie. Usually they say only two things are certain in life – death and taxes. At the LibDem conference it’s Charlie and taxes!