Playing fast and lose with your personal details
Highly personal information concerning thousands of local patients in our part of Essex has been stolen. Read what the BBC has to say about the story here.
Remember this next time you hear someone argue in favour of compulsory ID cards. It is sometimes said that "If you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear". That is simply not true.
Each of these patients, whose personal details may now be anywhere, had every right to privacy. They now also have much to be anxious about.
Posted on 30 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell MP
Monster wind turbines for Clacton? Its government policy
Last week, Tendring Council rejected plans for six monster wind turbines on the outskirts of Clacton. This week, Gordon Brown announces that the government is going to force the construction of 7,000 of these things across the country. (Presumably, the government will find it much easier to do this, having forced through changes in planning rules that allow an unelected quango the final say).
Building all these wind turbines will cost £100 Billion. Will the government pay for it? No. You will.
Every householder will face even higher energy costs in order to give the companies building the monster turbines hidden subsidies for doing so. (An interesting example of what happens when big business and big government get together ...)
Yet, wind turbines are a red herring. The brutal fact is that to meet our energy needs, Britain either builds new gas, coal and / or nuclear power stations, or the lights will go out. Simple. Until the government gives the green light to more power stations - not wind turbines - there will be a risk that vulnerable people and the elderly might have to chose between "eat or heat".
I suspect politicians like Brown prefer to keep talking about wind farms because it hides this uncomfortable truth - and their failure to face up to it.
Posted on 27 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Sunshine in Henley
Its the Henley by-election today, and alongside every single Conservative MP, I've been drafted in to help win.
Boris Johnson held the seat until he was elected London Mayor - but there is no complacency and we are taking nothing for granted. Remember Romsey ....
Still, smilling voters allow a quiet confidence. The sun shines over Henley and the sky is Cameron blue.
Posted on 26 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Polite Parliament?
Likable
Labour MP, Tom Harris, blogs in defence of the House of Commons. He contrasts "
courteous
", "polite" Parliament, with the "hate" filled blogosphere. Ummm.....
Without wanting to offend Mr Harris, I'm not sure he's got it entirely right.
The blog may be brash, and very occasionally boorish. Yet, the popularity of the internet blog sites shows that they works. If only we could say the same for Parliament.
No matter how polite the Honourable Members might be, Parliament is monumentally useless at holding those with real executive power to account. The self-regarding Westminster elite might not get it, but the disaffected electorate seem to. As a legislature, the Commons today is supine and spineless.
The green benches need to find some of the passion, authenticity and verve that exist on-line. Instead of defending the faux rituals of their “gentlemen’s club”, MPs need to use the internet to make themselves more directly accountable.
Even if that means having people say unpleasant things about you very occasionally.....
Posted on 25 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Planning Bill is wrong
Tomorrow, Gordon Brown will try to force a new law through the Commons that will allow unelected officials to approve most big planning decisions. Instead of local councillors, who you can hold to account come election time, key decisions will be made by unelected officials sitting on a new planning commission.
What makes me so angry isn't just that this will hand yet more power to remote officials. Nor that it will favour big corporations against individuals and small communities. Nor even that, Soviet-style, it will conceivably lead to poorer planning decisions.
No. What makes me cross is that the Prime Minister dares to pretend that he believes in localism and democratic renewal.
It is measures like this that make me realise that Brown's sunken reputation is well deserved.
Posted on 24 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell MP
Why are the people who run our railways so hopeless?
Like many local people in this part of Essex, I rely on the train to get me to work. Yet, the reality is that during weekdays we no longer seem to have a train service that we can depend on. I now regularly try to catch a train due to arrive way ahead of the scheduled time, just to stand a chance of getting where I'm supposed to be on time.
At the weekends, it appears that this part of Essex simply doesn't have a train service of any kind at all. Turn up at the train station, and after much waiting, a bus, might or might not, turn up to drive you to the next station. Eventually.
This grubby, third rate service is causing misery to the working and family lives of many local people - for which they are forced to pay through the nose.
How can costal communities possibly prosper if we are cut off from the railway network at weekends?
The only thing about rail services we can depend on is the certainty that the big, corporate businesses on the receiving end of all the public money that's been poured into the railways, will almost certainly not have to face the consequences of their failures.
Posted on 23 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Why I enjoy MP surgeries
Today I had a coffee morning at a community centre in Clacton, followed by a packed afternoon surgery.
Two gems stood out.
First, I was approached by a man who "printed Margaret Thatcher's manifesto in 1979". Sure enough, he produced a photo showing a younger him hard at work over a printing machine. A smiling Mrs T looked on. "You printed history!" I said. "I know I did" he replied "And we've not had a leader like her since".
Later, an older man sat himself opposite me. He began telling me of his wife's ill health - and his fears that his doctor was not doing all he could to treat her.
Then he did something fascinating; he drew out a print off he'd downloaded from the web. Even a non-medic like me could see that he had, with internet access and common sense, got, in effect, a second opinion - several times over.
Tomorrow, he'd be asking his GP why he wanted to prescribe this drug, rather than that. Why treatment X had not been discussed with his wife, when "they have it in America"
Ten years ago, this man would have done what we've all been expected to do. Defer to the doctor. Revere the experts. Yet, today he explained "its not that my GPs not good. He is. Its just that my wife's health is more important to me, than to him".
Unnoticed by the self-regarding Westminster elite, there is a profound change taking place in public attitudes. I start to see it in my surgeries all the time now.
Since the internet is modern, we politicians like to show that we "get it". Yet how many actually grasp that it spells the end for one-size-fits-all, take-it-or-leave-it public services? Unless we politicians do, then the internet might end up getting one or two of us......
Posted on 21 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Obama or McCain?
Who would you rather won the US Presidential elections? As a Conservative, I feel I ought to want McCain to win. And yet, I can't really find much reason why.
How often have pro-small government, free market,liberals like me found ourselves willing on the likes of Bush snr, John Major or Bush II? How often do we end up feeling let down with their Big Government-knows-best centralism?
No. Until the US Republicans re-discover States Rights and much else besides, I'll be cheering on Obama.
Does Obama believe in small government? I don't know. But I do know that today he became the first Presidential candidate since Nixon to refuse public money to fund his campaign.
Instead his campaign will be funded by millions of people each giving small on-line donations. The $133 million spent so far came via 1.5 million web donors. That's less than $100 each.
I like that. A lot.
It speaks volumes for Obama - and more importantly, for the democratising effect of the internet.
Posted on 20 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
The revolution is coming ....
As someone who believes with an absolute passion that Big Government cannot, and should not, run every aspect of our lives, I have never felt as optimistic as I do today. A revolution is coming.
That century and a half trend towards more Big Government - centralised, clunking and bureaucratic – is petering out. Just below the surface, there are now powerful currents running the other way.
In the age of Google – decentralised, post-bureaucratic, ex-clunking – Big Government will be anathema. Just as the web has revolutionised commerce and business, it will transform politics and public services. Now that information is available to us all, we need not leave it to "experts" to decide for us. Since the internet allows us to come together - “aggregates” in techie-talk – we are no longer each at the mercy of faceless officialdom.
Everywhere the big and the corporate will give way to that which is distinctive and niche, local and particular.
If you have not read it, I strongly recommend that you read Chris Anderson’s book the Long Tail. Lefties - at least the more reflective ones who understand its implications - will hate it ....
Posted on 18 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Lessons from Sweden
Fraser Nelson makes a brilliant case for setting schools free in today's Telegraph. It is one of the best summaries I’ve read of what needs to be done. CLICK here to read it.
Posted on 18 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Glorious Ireland votes "no"
The "no" vote has prevailed - and the consequences for the European Project are big.
First, the architects of European integration must now admit that their European Constitution Lisbon Treaty is dead. Not Lazarus dead, but dodo dead.
Second, this result illustrates that the EU project has no democratic legitimacy. None.
Ireland
has benefited from Euro squillions. Her political / media establishment, like our own BBC, was almost universally behind the well-financed "Yes" campaign. Yet still the Irish have said "no".
As more details of this great victory for the people against Brussels unfold, do read Daniel Hannan's rolling blog about it. Dan helped galvanised the Irish "no" campaign when it seemed a lost cause, made people realise that the Irish were voting on behalf of us all - and was once again way ahead of the Westminster herd.
Posted on 13 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell MP
42 days
The government wants to be able to lock up terror suspects for 42 days before charging them - rather than the current 28 days. There will be a vote on it in the House of Commons this evening.
If I believed this measure would make us more secure, and help defeat the Islamic terror threat, I'd back it 100%. And stuff party politics.
But this measure won't make us any safer at all.
If Gordon Brown was serious about dealing with the terrorist threat posed by Islamic extremists, he would first of all acknowledge that the threat is one posed by radical Islamists.
Second, he'd retake control of our borders, scrap the Human Rights Act and admit that "multiculturalism" has not created the social cohesion it was supposed to.
But he will do none of those tough and difficult things. Instead, he is trying to make himself look big and tough and effective with talk about 42 days, rather than action.
Posted on 11 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Pensioners forced into poverty
Almost one in three pensioners is now in poverty. New figures reveal that 200,000 more older people were classed as poor in 2006-7 than the previous year.
It is outrageous. Having spent their working lives paying into "the system", older folk find that Big Government is simply not there for them.
Why? Big Government has frittered away all those squillions of tax-pounds (politicians eye-catching initiatives don't come cheap, you know).
Worse, Big Government has created a tax-racket almost designed to hurt the most vulnerable. Ordinary pensioners find themselves taxed on meagre incomes from (taxed) savings that they paid for out of (taxed) earnings.
Most indefensible of all is the council tax. Council taxes have been steadily increased - yet there has been no significant increase in local services in most parts of Britain. Enough is enough. It is time to scrap this invidious form of tax, which hits older people hardest. Some ideas on a fairer system of local government finance are outlined here
CLICK HERE
.
Posted on 11 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Set Clacton's schools free
BBC news today is full of pictures of Bishops Park College in Clacton. Bishops Park has rarely been out of the news - and was even opened, amidst a blaze of flashbulbs, by Tony Blair just before the last election.
Today
Bishops Park
is in the news because the government has just announced that secondary schools must either improve or face closure.
This latest initiative will cost over £400 million nationally and is meant to drive up standards. What, you might ask, was the purpose of all those other initiatives, at a cost of squillions, over the years?
If politicians and officials ran the supermarkets in Clacton, there would be waiting lists of fruit and veg, and catchment areas for breakfast cereals. So why do we let these people run Clacton's schools?
It is time to do what they do in Sweden, and set the schools free to manage themselves - accountable to local parents and the community. Let local parents, not little Ed Balls, have the ultimate say.
Posted on 10 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Making politicians accountable
Another week, another story about politicians and their expenses. This time it is Euro MPs in Brussels in the firing line.
It is time to recognise that there is something wrong with our politics. And it isn't the voters that are at fault. And it ain't the media. Its the politicians that are the problem.
Quite simply, politicians need to be made much more directly accountable.
Those who spend public money need to account for how they do so. Simple. No if's. No maybe.
And its isn't only about expenses. Politicians need to be made directly accountable over how they do their jobs.
Politicians should be made more directly accountable by giving voters the right to force debates and votes in Parliament. By allowing constituents to trigger by-elections to oust wayward MPs. And maybe even with "open primaries" so that everyone gets a say over who is their MP.
Direct democratic accountability. The gentlemen's club in Westminster called Parliament might not like it, but at least they might then do a better job at representing the voters.
Posted on 10 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Defence policy is letting our armed forces down
Today’s Telegraph reports that our forces in Afghanistan do not have enough helicopters. How come there is a shortage of helicopters when we are spending £1 billion replacing the ageing Lynx?
Simple. Because that money gets spent in the interests of a few defence contractors, rather than our armed forces.
Something called the Defence Industrial Strategy (more reto 1970s than a space hopper) means that we have to build a new sort of helicopter, at twice the price - and which will not be ready until 2015.
2015 must seem a long time away if you happen to be in Helmand. Yet even when the tax-guzzling Future Lynx helicopter finally gets to you, don’t expect it to be operationally superior to the "off-the-shelf" alternatives available today from Sikorsky or Eurocopter.
Defenders of our monumentally useless defence procurement policy like to imply that somehow Sikorsky helicopters et al might not be up to the task of ferrying British troops around. Really? They seem to do a pretty good job ferrying those Americans about - but what do they know, eh?
It might enrage them to point this out, but the defence-industrial dinosaurs have much in common with Gordon Brown. That is, they want lots and lots of extra public spending, but without the reforms needed to ensure that the money is better spent. It is time to scrap the Defence Industrial Strategy, and have a policy that equips our armed forces with the best kit in the world.
Posted on 9 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Ireland to the rescue?
Our own government disgracefully went back on the promise to give us a referendum on the European Constitution Lisbon Treaty.
However, in Ireland, the political establishment was not able to cancel the referendum
–
and as a result, they will get to vote on the European Constitution Lisbon Treaty in a few days time. Will they vote "no"?
Until just a few days ago, it was highly unlikely. Yet now there is just a (thin) chance that the Irish might just vote down the Eurocrats.
In my three short years as an MP, it has become increasingly obvious that the whole EU project is run by the politicians - against the interests of their own people.
CLICK HERE
to read the great Daniel Hannan for more.
Posted on 6 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
How politicians and local government waste our money ....
The heroic Taxpayers Alliance campaign to expose how much of our money gets wasted by useless local councils and inept government departments.
Click here to read - then please post a comment if you think that any of it sounds familiar ....
Posted on 5 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell
Is Brown on dodgy ground?
A few weeks back, I asked Gordon Brown a question at PMQs. Given that Mr Brown claimed “he had no knowledge of the dodgy loans used to fund the 2005 election campaign”, and since “Lord Levy has revealed that the Prime Minister knew everything. “Is Lord Levy lying?”, I asked.
All I got was an awkward shuffle, then a dagger-stare, followed by a gruff “I knew nothing of these loans”.
Ummm…
Knowing how Brown sometimes uses evasive semantics, I've been reflecting on the precise meaning of those six words.
In one sense, Mr Brown's reply has to be technically correct. By definition, there had to have been a time at which Mr Brown did indeed know nothing of the loans. The issue is at what point did he become aware of the said loans? When did the “I know nothing” become an “I knew nothing”?
Posted on 3 June 2008 by Douglas Carswell