End of Parliament in the UK?

This might sound overblown, but the Government is currently quietly passing a Bill in the UK Parliament that effectively gives Ministers the power to amend any law they like – without having to bother Parliament with it. As The Guardian, The Observer , The Times, and The Times again and again have all reported (and is, of course, discussed on the web), this Bill has been referred to (by law professors and MPs) as the Abolition of Parliament Bill.

Simply put, the tediously titled Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill lets Ministers write “Orders” that amend legislation passed by the Parliament. These Orders need not go through any Parliamentary process beyond rubber-stamping by a committee (not, be it noted, the House itself). No debate is allowed, just a vote. And, of course, the Minister decides which committees see the Order! There are a few safeguards in place but, bizarrely, this Bill is itself liable to amendment by Orders – which means that (once passed) any inconvenient resitrictions could be easily removed.

This means that Ministers can change any law at all. They can change the punishments for crimes, make new acts criminal, impose new obligations on British subjects at will, do anything they like, provided it can be tacked onto an existing piece of legislation. No longer need they convince anyone (least of all the public) that their plans are good ones. They could even extend the period between General Elections or, indeed, abolish them entirely. They have only to see a possibility and then take action.

No one is suggesting that the Government actually envisages creating a police state – merely making its own life easier by facilitating the amendment of legislation. However, if a Government with this big a majority has problem passing its Bills, perhaps the problem is in the content of those Bills rather than in the Parliamentary process? Parliament doesn’t exist simply to frustrate the plans of Ministers. It exists as a system of checks and balances upon Ministers, to ensure that their plans are reasonable, feasible and acceptable. As such, it must not be bypassed willy nilly. Also, whatever this Government’s intentions, once an Act like this is passed, it’s available to any future Government. And is it really sensible to hand such a carte blanche to anyone? Least of all an unknown set of politicians. By all means, let’s have a Bill that helps Parliament to work better – but not one that bypasses democracy.

Do go and check this out for yourself. The links above are a good start. Then write to your MP (just takes a couple of minutes from that website) and encourage them to oppose this Bill when it comes back for its next reading. Bad laws serve no one except the corrupt and power-hungry.

pax et bonum

Article posted at 2:53pm on 06 April 2006
Category: Politics, Struggling, General