Thursday, June 25, 2009

Westminister to install hand picked and rigged "independent" board!


Dear All

I previously commented on the Spectator, Coffee house blog that the “independent” body to oversee MPs claims would be fixed and rigged in such a way that it would fall far below what the public expect and are entitled too.

Enter New Labour who will introduce a Bill that will clean up Parliament.

Or a more apt description, several placemen to allow business as usual, smoke and mirrors to shield the guilty!

We are getting an “Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority” (Ipsa) and an officer known as the “Commissioner for Parliamentary Investigations”.

Then as with much of New Labour’s corrupt practices, the Devil is in the detail. This is all about allowing Gordon Brown to be seen to be doing something immediately, it’s his ‘Statesman’ act, remember that?

This is to generate good press for him with the promise that expense fiddling MPs will face up to a year in clink. The Fraud Act 1968 and 1978 already exists on the statute books and provides for much harsher sentences like 10 years to life.

The IPSA or Department for Shielding the Guilty will have five hand picked members, a judge, an auditor and a former MP and two others who might come from the reality television circuit, maybe Susan Boyle.

Now the catch; they will be appointed “only with the agreement of the Speaker” and “approved by a Speaker's committee” in order to makes sure the “right” people get appointed.

Anyone think that this crap is “independent”?

Anyone think the Commissioner whose job can be cancelled on a whim will rock the boat?

This is very much the case that the potential pool of the guilty will chose their judge and jury!

This is a political stitch-up by the Parliamentary Establishment of the worst sort and shows it holds the electorate in total contempt. What we need is root-and-branch reform of Parliament coupled with a massive exodus via the ballot box of the guilty being kicked out. The expenses system needs clarity, transparency and enforcement of the rules; it needs ‘Headhunters’.

Trust has been broken and this sham, this smoke and mirrors will convince people that the ballot box is the only way to remove these people who care only for themselves.

Cromwell said; “in the name of God go”!

How right he was!

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very good question. Who minds the minders? Westmidden is utterly corrupt and beyond redemption. Its time for Scotland to go her own way.

Anonymous said...

Do you know what happened to the publication by a LibDem placeman revealing the conspiracy behind the Paddies Market sale? Purcell was implicated as criminal no.1.