So, today is the day. The final chance to send the Justice and Security Bill back to the House of Commons with a firm 'no' written all over it, in the shape of the excellent amendments proposed to the bill, designed to consign it to a permanent state of ping pong between Houses until time runs out.
I hope you take the chance to send the Bill to this Parliamentary limbo.
Why?
Partly because it is fundamentally illiberal. There is a reason why successive Lib Dem conferences have rejected the Bill over and over again. There is a principle at stake here.
Partly because party policy is fundamentally against this bill. This is a red line issue for many party members.
Partly because it is fundamentally flawed. I won't bore you with the arguments again - your in box is full of them - but if you need reminding just pop over to the Liberal Democrats against Secret Courts site where you can get no end of information.
Or if you don't fancy that, go and see what your own colleague Lord McDonald has to say on this issue over at the Reprieve website.
Or even have a skim of this article just published by the Lib Dem lawyers group. Takes 2 minutes. Says everything you need to know.
I'd partly like you vote against it because I don't think the case for the bill has been made properly; The Guardian suggests The Commons was given duff information only recently when considering the bill - by Ken Clark of all people. With this sort of thing happening, do you really want to put your name to the bill?
But mostly, I'd like you to vote against the bill because its another nail in the coffin of our own liberty. And remember...
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety"
ReplyDeleteAnd in this case the objective seems to be only saving some money - and not even with any assurance that it won't cost more than it saves.