Rescuing Democracy in the United Kingdom from our current Elected Dictatorship

You will notice that, since New Labour came to power, not a single leading Cabinet member or party 'heavy hitter' has appeared on the programme (BBC's Question Time). Spin, not face-to-face confrontations with the voters, is the Government's chosen method of communication. Ordinary people are dangerous. Ordinary people might ask a question which throws a politician 'off message'; the Cabinet member might reveal himself or herself to be a human being like us, and not a programmed android. Worse still, he or she might tell the truth. Ann Leslie - Daily Mail, September 16, 2004

 

WWW silentmajorityspeaks.com

EU Constitution threatens control of asylum policy

One of Britain's top lawyers has warned that the UK's ability to control asylum policy would be wrecked by the proposed EU Constitution - even if Tony Blair wins an opt-out from a new treaty.

A new legal opinion, drawn up by Martin Howe QC, concludes that despite a possible derogation, the Constitution would strengthen the European Court of Justice and under-mine important aspects of immigration policy - such as denying benefits to asylum seekers who fail to make a prompt claim on arrival in the UK.

At the same time, a recent ICM poll confirms that the vast majority of people - some 77 per cent - want asylum policy to be run from Westminster, while only 15 per cent believe it should be handed over to the EU.

Seizing on the findings, Conservative Leader Michael Howard said: "Tony Blair claims that Britain's asylum rules won't be affected by the Constitution because we have an opt-out. But he is wrong. The opt-out has not yet appeared but, even if it does, it will be of limited use. The Constitution would still give un-elected judges in Luxembourg more power to decide what Britain can and cannot do to manage asylum."

Highlighting how Labour has let the country down over asylum and immigration, during an election campaign visit to Northampton, Mr Howard warned: "The Constitution would incorporate the Charter of Fundamental Rights into EU law. That means that the European Court of Justice would start interpreting existing and new EU asylum rules in the light of this Charter. The Charter is very broad, and includes wide- ranging rights. And, by opening up another avenue of appeal, the Constitution would wreck the Government's attempts to speed up our asylum procedures."

Insisting that asylum policy should be accountable, efficient and responsive to today's needs, Mr Howard said the Constitution would take policy in the opposite direction, which would be "bad for Britain and it would be against the wishes of the British people".

Pledging that an incoming Conservative administration would get a grip on the issue, he declared: "We have a clear alternative. Immigration and asylum should be subject to firm but fair control. People know the benefits that migrants bring to our country. But people want to know that immigration is being controlled properly. We are all proud of the fact that Britain has long been a haven for those fleeing persecution. But people want to know that the asylum system is being used to protect those who have a genuine claim - and not abused by those who don't."