eurealist.co.uk

Telegraph | News:

“Alan Milburn, Labour’s general election supremo, has branded Charles Clarke’s appointment as Home Secretary a ‘mistake’ and has accused him of failing to send out a tough enough message on crime to voters.”

Tim Worstall comments on this story here

Alan Milburn…Fascist or What?

Clarke has already announced that anyone may be locked up, anytime, for any amount of time, upon no evidence whatsoever. No judge, no jury, no trial, just simple fiat. And Milburn says that this is not tough enough? What the hell does the disgusting little fascist want? Hangings from lamp-posts?

Eurealist Files:

“PARIS — This is a year of crucial decisions, when the European Union can close ranks and look forward to further expansion or see its precarious unity shattered.

France, because of its size and role in the EU, holds the key to the future with a referendum on the proposed European Constitution — a lengthy document, read by few, comprising 448 articles, that one French pundit described as ‘badly put together.’

A number of countries — starting with Spain on Feb. 20 — will hold referendums on the constitution, while others are expected to let their legislatures vote for them. The parliament of Slovenia approved the constitution by a large majority last Tuesday. The most vocal critics of the proposed charter are in France, the Netherlands, and Britain.

The French referendum on the charter will most likely be held in June. While the government and a number of politicians urge acceptance, opinion polls indicate a strong rejectionist current, largely because of domestic problems and opposition to opening the EU gate to Turkey.

France’s rejection of the constitution would send a strong signal to Britain and the Netherlands, which vote later.

In France, the issue has degenerated into a simmering political debate in which some regard the referendum as a vote of approval or disapproval on the record of conservative President Jacques Chirac.

To save the constitution, Mr. Chirac is trying to separate its approval from the decision on Turkey’s European future — by promising another referendum in 2015 dealing only with whether or not to invite Turkey into the European Union.

His approach appears to have further muddled the issues, triggering a barrage of often-confusing — and, frequently, later-denied — statements across the entire political spectrum.

The increasingly acerbic debate is taking place against a background of disagreements between Mr. Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy, his economy minister and leader of the dominant Union for a Popular Movement”

By Andrew Borowiec
Washington Times
More:

Times Online - Sunday Times:
“FORFEIT RIGHTS:
In the past we had warning that an enemy was preparing an attack. Now it comes without warning from men with suitcases containing the means to destroy a plane, train, power station or worse. The idea of imprisonment without trial is abhorrent and should only be adopted as a last resort, but in the end such terrorists must forfeit their human rights.

Geoff Bradford
Herne Bay, Ken”

But not the rest of us!

Times Online - Sunday Times

Letters to the Editor: Paying for the privilege of bias
I have recently paid my BBC licence fee and the debate about the future of its royal charter has given me an idea (A brief guide to unconscious BBC bias, Comment, last week). The government should publish a left-leaning newspaper (with no advertising) distributed here and abroad. To pay for it, it should introduce a newspaper reading licence of, say, £150 to be paid only by those who live in the UK.

If you are caught reading a newspaper, even one you have paid for, without holding a valid newspaper reading licence, you would face a hefty fine or even a spell in prison. Neighbours would be encouraged to rat on those whom they know haven’t paid their licence. Those who support the existing principle of the BBC licence fee will support this idea of a licence, I’m sure.

Reg Bamford
London SW15

Telegraph | News | Howard backs down over ID card support:

“The Conservative Party will this week withdraw support for the Government’s identity cards scheme, in a major climbdown by Michael Howard. The Tory leader has told aides that the party will abstain from a key vote on the controversial proposals on Thursday.”

Will someone wake me up when the Tory’s return to basic Consevative principals, come out fighting such legislation which infringes personal freedoms tooth and nail?

EU Referendum

In a good post about the Kilroy party launch, Helen makes some interesting and pointed comments about the state of the media and the British political culture.

“The main problem, it seems to me, is the basic notion of “listening to the people”. Of course, politicians ought to have some idea of what it is people want, but forming policies on that basis and nothing else gives you a bar-room manifesto. Some basic political ideas must be present as well. In fact, that is the problem with the main parties as far as most voters are concerned – they have no ideas and no convictions.

If Veritas is to survive and thrive, it must come up with a notion of what sort of country it would like to see. Yes, we want to get out of the euro-mess. But what do we do afterwards?

Without imitating or stealing their clothes, Veritas could look at the newly announced Conservative fisheries policy, that tries to answer that very question. Then do what the Tories seem unable to do and look at other topics in the same way.

Perhaps, a good starting point would be that we want to see a free people in a free country; a people who are self-reliant in a country that takes its place proudly in the world.”

Guardian Unlimited Politics | Special Reports | Labour fuels war on asylum:

“Immigrants’ rights to settle permanently in Britain will be drastically curbed as the government admits for the first time that the nation’s ‘hospitality’ has been tested by abuses of the immigration and asylum system.

The crackdown - which would even have excluded the nanny whose case led to the downfall of David Blunkett - came as a senior cabinet minister insisted that fears of refugees and migrants overstretching public services were ‘legitimate’. Patricia Hewitt, the Trade and Industry Secretary, said it was ‘unfair’ if people were ‘flouting the rules’”

Just three points on this news from Labour
1 How will this go down with the EU, unlike the Tory policy will a Labour government promise take this power back to Westminster?
2 Labour stealing policies again. Apart from removing our basic rights and aligning Britain with the EU don’t they have any of their own?
3 Unless they have the power to do this it is no more than empty electioneering.

Adam Smith Institute Blog - Europe’s favourite think tank blog
The present UK government seems insensitive to the rules and traditions which evolved to protect our liberties. This is as evident in tax avoidance as elsewhere. Tax evasion, which means failure to pay the tax due, is illegal. Avoidance, which means taking steps to lower one’s exposure to tax, is perfectly legal. Indeed, for a company you could argue that it constitutes an obligation to protect shareholders’ funds.

Lord Tomlin, in a 1935 case involving the Duke of Westminster, said “Every man is entitled, if he can, to order his affairs so that the tax attaching is less than it would otherwise be.” Despite this and other equally clear legal pronouncements, the current Treasury puts avoidance in the same bag as evasion, and treats it as immoral, using bad law against it.
……
For example, new government rules require advance disclosure of avoidance advice by tax professionals. Forget about client confidentiality; the Revenue wants to know.

What seems to have escaped the government’s notice is that its relentless drive to fill its coffers has sent its coach and six roughshod over yet more of the principles by which liberty is maintained. There are quite a few already trampled in its wake.