A politician with integrity

[Unglaublich Verwustung]

The [UK] shadow home secretary, David Davis, today dramatically and unexpectedly announced that he is to resign as an MP and thus will force a byelection in his constituency over the government's 42-day terror detention plan.

He said was resigning as an MP to "take a stand" and force a byelection on the issue of the "relentless erosion" of freedom in the wake of the government's 42-day terror detention plan. "I will argue in this byelection against the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this government."

I don't agree with the general politics of his party, neither do I agree with those of their opponents, the standing government, but I fundamentally agree with the content of his resignation speech. We are currently giving away our civil liberties in the name of protecting them, seemingly to prevent terrorists from destroying these same liberties. Yet our government is either unable to see it, or worse, can see it all too clearly. And we also act as though we are blind to it.

Unfortunately I believe it is the latter. We have given up so much over the last ten years, and allowed those we vote for to do this to us each and every day; yet we still stand by and let it happen - are we blind to what is done in our name? This is not just about the latest piece of legislation, which is still to go through the House of Lords before entering the statutes, but is about everything that we have given up so far. Laws have been brought in to protect us yet all they do is restrict us further with every step we take - by the end of 2006 this government had created more than 3,000 new criminal offences during its tenure, one for almost every day it had been in power by that stage. And they haven't stopped for breather since then.

The result? A country less free than before, and a marked erosion of the trust which should exist between the Government and the governed.

And, the only ray of hope that I can see in this, a politician who has the integrity to stand up for what he believes in at the risk of losing his otherwise secure job:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7450728.stm

Now we just need to do the same, and stand up for what we believe in.

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And for the full statement (although I was interested in the fact that the Speaker of the House would not allow him to give this speech in the House of Commons - that seems to be brushed over so far):
The name of my constituency is Haltemprice and Howden. The word Haltemprice is derived from the motto of a medieval priory, and in Old French it means "Noble Endeavour".

I had always viewed membership of this House as a noble endeavour, not least because we and our forebears have for centuries fiercely defended the fundamental freedoms of our citizens. Or we did, up until yesterday.
Up until yesterday, I took the view that what we did in the House of Commons representing our constituents was a noble endeavour because with centuries or forebears we defended the freedoms of the British people. Well we did up until yesterday.
This Sunday is the anniversary of Magna Carta - the document that guarantees that most fundamental of British freedoms - Habeus Corpus.
The right not to be imprisoned by the state without charge or reason. Yesterday this house decided to allow the state to lock up potentially innocent British citizens for up to six weeks without charge.
Now the counter terrorism bill will in all probability be rejected by the House of Lords very firmly. After all, what should they be there for if not to defend Magna Carta.
But because the impetus behind this is essentially political - not security - the government will be tempted to use the Parliament Act to over-rule the Lords. It has no democratic mandate to do this since 42 days was not in its manifesto.
Its legal basis is uncertain to say the least. But purely for political reasons, this government's going to do that. And because the generic security arguments relied on will never go away - technology, development and complexity and so on, we'll next see 56 days, 70 days, 90 days.
But in truth, 42 days is just one - perhaps the most salient example - of the insidious, surreptitious and relentless erosion of fundamental British freedoms.
And we will have shortly, the most intrusive identity card system in the world.
A CCTV camera for every 14 citiziens, a DNA database bigger than any dictatorship has, with 1000s of innocent children and a million innocent citizens on it.
We have witnessed an assault on jury trials - that balwark against bad law and its arbitrary use by the state. Short cuts with our justice system that make our system neither firm not fair.
And the creation of a database state opening up our private lives to the prying eyes of official snoopers and exposing our personal data to careless civil servants and criminal hackers.
The state has security powers to clamp down on peaceful protest and so-called hate laws that stifle legitimate debate - while those who incite violence get off Scot free.
This cannot go on, it must be stopped. And for that reason, I feel that today it's incumbent on me to take a stand.
I will be resigning my membership of the House and I intend to force a by-election in Haltemprice and Howden.
Now I'll not fight it on the government's general record - there's no point repeating Crewe and Nantwich. I won't fight it on my personal record. I am just a piece in this great chess game.
I will fight it, I will argue this by-election, against the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this government.
Now, that may mean I've made my last speech to the House - it's possible. And of course that would be a matter of deep regret to me. But at least my electorate, and the nation as a whole, would have had the opportunity to debate and consider one of the most fundamental issues of our day - the ever-intrusive power of the state into our lives, the loss of privacy, the loss of freedom and the steady attrition undermining the rule of law. And if they do send me back here it will be with a single, simple message: that the monstrosity of a law that we passed yesterday will not stand.

[wellard]

Great post UV

Though people in politics do occasionally stand up and put there whole career on the line it is not often enough. I agree with his stance BTW

[Kakero]

Ahh politics....Okay, he is stupid and has act irrationally. Without position, power, influence and money. Nobody is going to listen to him no matter how noble his motives are or how big of a fuss he create. Life will go on without him.

[Firestormalpha]

I have to agree with Kakero somewhat. Couldn't he have made a stand without resigning from his position?

[dplax]

Oh, but this way he attracts more media attention.

[Skippy1]

^And there you have the crux of the matter in my own humble opinion.

He's made a lot of noise, embarrassed his own party, and simply deflected attention away from more important issues. Now the taxpayer will have to fork out yet again for another by-election that is not necessary. The worst part of it is that both the LibDems and the Labour party have hinted that they may not put candidates forward at all leading to a farcical situation where he will be elected again anyway.

What the hell is wrong with having 42 days detention anyway? It's not like people will be mistreated or anything and the Govt has offered compensation for those proven to be wrongly held. Hell! In this country at the moment, the crims are all so well looked after, they won't even try to escape when a perfect opportunity arises.

If the police feel they need this extra time in order to investigate someone that could potentially blow up innocent people, then I'm all for it.

Erosion of civil liberties my arse! Take a trip to Baghdad, Helmand Province or the Ghaza Strip and you'll find a definate lack of civil liberties.

Davis is serving his own interests without a single thought of the cost both financially and indeed to his own Party. The Tories have had the Labour Party by the balls in recent months with even die-hard Labour supporters being swayed. This episode will only highlight the divisions in the Tory party that Cameron has done a great job so far to heal, and given Brown something to deflect attention away from his own failings.

When you take the wider picture into consideration, it's a pretty bloody selfish act I reckon.

As to CCTV cameras and DNA data bases.........do you have anything to hide? Because the only problem I can see with them is if your a crim. If your of the greater majority of us going about your life and working for a living rather than stealing it off someone else, then you shouldn't have a problem with it.


Phew! Now that's a rant.

[Bungleau]

Originally Posted by Skippy1 *snip* What the hell is wrong with having 42 days detention anyway? It's not like people will be mistreated or anything and the Govt has offered compensation for those proven to be wrongly held.

Which seven six weeks of your life are you willing to give up? And do you think that the government's compensation will fully compensate you for nearly two months of your life as well as potentially losing the job you have on the outside? Government compensation is rarely based on actual losses, but more on what they think it ought to be worth. And government officials aren't generally well-paid, so...

If the police feel they need this extra time in order to investigate someone that could potentially blow up innocent people, then I'm all for it.

As do I, if I felt they were truly able to handle it. I don't know about in the UK, but over here, I have a less than stellar opinion of those who've been appointed to protect us from terrorists. I'd be much happier if they were a step ahead instead of a step behind...

Erosion of civil liberties my arse! Take a trip to Baghdad, Helmand Province or the Ghaza Strip and you'll find a definate lack of civil liberties.

True indeed. Some don't realize how good they have it.

*snip* As to CCTV cameras and DNA data bases.........do you have anything to hide? Because the only problem I can see with them is if your a crim. If your of the greater majority of us going about your life and working for a living rather than stealing it off someone else, then you shouldn't have a problem with it.

Ah, but that's a slippery slope. It sounds reasonable, but it's one short step removed from being stopped on the street and asked to show your papers... "you don't mind emptying your pockets, do you? Or do you have something to hide? You don't mind submitting to this full-body, all-cavity search, do you? Or do you have something to hide?"

I'm with you, but I'm not quite willing to give it all back just yet.

[ElfBane]

What!?! A "Politician with Integrity"??? Where's the moderator? This post needs to be moved to the Fantasy Roleplaying and Fantastic Creatures board

[Skippy1]

Originally Posted by Bungleau Which seven weeks of your life are you willing to give up? And do you think that the government's compensation will fully compensate you for nearly two months of your life as well as potentially losing the job you have on the outside? Government compensation is rarely based on actual losses, but more on what they think it ought to be worth. And government officials aren't generally well-paid, so... Obviously I'd be none too happy to be detained, but, if it did happen, and they came up with no evidence of wrong doing, I'd sue their ass! You see we are rapidly adopting the compensation culture that you, our American cousins, have perfected. As do I, if I felt they were truly able to handle it. I don't know about in the UK, but over here, I have a less than stellar opinion of those who've been appointed to protect us from terrorists. I'd be much happier if they were a step ahead instead of a step behind... The coppers over here are pretty good on the whole. I've quite a few of them as mates in fact and they do a bloody brilliant job under the circumstances. Now I wouldn't be quite so glowing if I were still living in OZ.... Ah, but that's a slippery slope. It sounds reasonable, but it's one short step removed from being stopped on the street and asked to show your papers... "you don't mind emptying your pockets, do you? Or do you have something to hide? You don't mind submitting to this full-body, all-cavity search, do you? Or do you have something to hide?" Hmm......I might enjoy a cavity search. Fact is though, it's coming whether we like it or not I reckon. I'm preety sure that the "free" society we've enjoyed in the past will bear no relation at all to what it will be like in the next 20 years or so. I'm with you, but I'm not quite willing to give it all back just yet.

You may have no choice, mate.

Anyway, we digress from the original topic which was actually about David Davis making a prat of himself, and in the process, wasting yet more of the taxpayers hard earned to gratify his own attention seeking. For those on the other side of the Pond who don't know, this same bloke actually ran for the leadership of the party not so long ago against Cameron. Not that I think he would purposely try to derail the new leader of course.....

[Skippy1]

Bah! Sorry, haven't quite got the Quote thingy sussed!