During the Blair wars I petitioned for impeachment of the PM on the grounds of lying to the house. And sure enough, 3 years and countless pointless deaths later, he voluntarily stood down to a standing ovation from his peers. (And let that be a lesson to you!)
It was the first time that I had ever written to my MP. And the last, until today.
Having just finished up on a contract I decided to take a break and have a bit of a clean-up. While I was updating my records I found again the ruins of that impeachment effort. But I also found that Adam Price, one of the MPs behind the impeachment attempt, has a new cause.
A couple of weeks ago, the BBC aired a documentary called The Ministry of Truth. Unfortunately, I missed the program at the time, but I have since had a chance to watch it. The central question is this, “how do I prosecute an MP for lying?” And the answer is simple: you can’t. At least, you can’t yet.
Adam Price will submit a bill to make it unlawful for an MP to lie while doing their job. It is known as the Elected Representatives (Prohibition of Deception) Bill. Blair may have gotten away with it, despite us meddling kids, but the least we can do is to make it harder for the next guy.
FOR THE ATTENTION OF:
Richard Ottaway MP
Croydon SouthDear Richard Ottaway,
Please could you tell me if you agree in principle with the Elected Representatives (Prohibition of Deception) Bill? And if not for what reasons?
It seems to me such an obvious provision that I’m amazed it is not a fundamental part of our law already. As a company director myself it seems I have more accountability to the people of Britain than those who govern it.
I’m under no illusion that this bill will prevent us from making mistakes in the future. We cannot prohibit mistakes. But we can, at least, ensure that they are honest ones.
Yours sincerely,
Paul Sinnett
