Thursday 19 January 2012

Politics in our country is rotten to the core......

.....because honesty and openness, principle and honour amongst politicians appear to be characteristics that are most noticeable by their absence. Let us consider three examples which have occurred during the last 48 hours.


1. Yesterday Richard North, EU Referendum, posted on a statement by Cameron, one which in a related post I intimated meant that he, Cameron, had misled the House of Commons. Today, Richard North posts yet another example of the duplicity of Cameron who presents a new 'initiative' when that 'initiative' is anything but. There are other examples of Cameron introducing 'policy', policy that is in effect putting in place 'programmes' that originate from the European Union. The most obvious examples are HS2-Trans European Network-Transport and the Big Society - European Year of Volunteering 2011.


2. Jack Dromey has been 'censured' by the House of Commons Committee on Standards and Privileges (the irony of that title escapes the minds of MPs, obviously!) That the report issued by that committee finds that whilst Dromey did wrong, the fact he was a new MP with a heavy workload is sufficient for him to be 'excused'? The man is an astute political operator - you don't become one of the hierarchy in a trade union without so being and it has to be remembered that as Mr. Harriet Harman he has no doubt enjoyed many moments of 'pillow talk'.  So Dromey 'apologises' for the error of his ways a fiddle he hoped he would get away with and all is forgiven? The report of their findings can be read here and it is worth dwelling a moment on the MPs comprising that committee whilst bearing in mind the Daily Telegraph Expenses findings, the brief details being placed in brackets:


Rt hon Kevin Barron MP (Labour, Rother Valley) (Chair) - (Kevin Barron claimed London flat in 2004-05 as his second home with a monthly mortgage interest of £1,509, which rose to £1,791 in 2005-06. It increased in 2007-08 to more than £2,000)
Sir Paul Beresford MP (Conservative, Mole Valley) - (Sir Paul Beresford, who works up to three days a week as a dentist, designated his west London property, which includes his surgery, as his second home on his parliamentary allowances)
Annette Brooke MP (Liberal Democrat, Mid Dorset and North Poole) - (Annette Brooke pays £1,124 a month rent for a flat in London and makes few other claims. One was £149.95 for a vacuum cleaner)
Rt hon Tom Clarke MP (Labour, Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill) - (Tom Clarke designated the Sloane Club in Chelsea as second home, and claimed about £1,500 a month while in London. Claimed £400 a month for food)
Mr Geoffrey Cox MP (Conservative, Torridge and West Devon) - (Geoffrey Cox QC made monthly mortgage interest payments of £1,750 in 2005-06 and 2006-07. This was his only regular claim)
Matthew Hancock MP (Conservative, West Suffolk) - (Entered Parliament in May 2010)
Oliver Heald MP (Conservative, North East Hertfordshire) - (Oliver Heald's second home is a flat in south London. Has spent £5,258 on refurbishing his bathroom as well as £2,891 on new windows. Bought three lavatory brushes in as many years)
Julie Hilling MP (Labour, Bolton West) - (Entered Parliament May 2010)
Heather Wheeler MP (Conservative, South Derbyshire) - (Entered Parliament May 2010)
Dr Alan Whitehead MP (Labour, Southampton Test) - (Alan Whitehead claimed mortgage interest payments of up to £730 per month on his second home in London. Also claimed £1,942.98 for a replacement boiler)


3. When Cameron and Clegg usurped power, following the results of the 2010 General election, they subsequently produced a document/manifesto entitled: "The Coalition - our programme for government". From page 27 of that document:
"We will bring forward early legislation to introduce a power of recall, allowing voters  to force a by-election where an MP is found to have engaged in serious wrongdoing and having had a petition calling for a by-election signed by 10% of his or her constituents."
Aha, everyone thought - at last we can have some control over these people. Not so, I'm afraid, as what was a deliberately loosely worded political promise (and what political promise is not loosely worded in a manifesto, or anywhere else come to that?) results in we the people having virtually no power on which to recall any MP who it is felt has questions to answer.


From Fausty's blog we learn that:
"All of them agreed (as did the Committee), that the government's recall bill, if implemented, would have the opposite effect on politics to what its proponents purport to want. It would cause further deterioration in confidence in the democratic process."
Today the House of Commons Political and Constitutional Reform Committee held a hearing into the Recall Bill (video on Faustys blog).

So what has happened in the last 48 hours (which is no different to what has happened for yonks now) is that (1) a Prime Minister has tried - or intends trying - to pass off initiatives as his own, when in fact all he is doing is pre-empting legislation which will be imposed, at some time in the not too distant future, on our country from Brussels. In other words, he has lied to/misled the country; (2) an MP has been caught taking money which he did not declare (and I accuse, knowingly) - judged by some whose own behaviour is questionable; and (3) two politicians contrived to mislead the public by presenting a promise they had no intention of keeping.

Come election time the voters are asked to place their trust in representatives who maintain that they will govern in the best interests of the country - that they do not and obviously have no intention of so doing becomes more obvious by the day. So just why the hell do we, the people, continually re-elect these bastards back time and time again? Are we so blind that the Labour Party, comprising politicians that got us into the present financial problem, are now as equally popular as the present Coalition, if opinion polls are to be believed? Are we so blind that the present Coalition is equally trusted when the three examples above show they are no better than the last lot of thieves/conmen they replaced? Having shown that they lack any sense of honesty and openness, principle and honour, why have we not attached them to the nearest lamppost? Why when local authorities impose draconian measures have we not meted out similar punishment? Are we that cowed?

Is not Cameron acting as a dictator, not just in his attitude to Salmond and the question of Scottish Independence, but in every action he takes? He can decide whether Fred Goodwin retains his knighthood? Where is the people's voice in that decision? Salmond decides that he wants a referendum on Scottish Independence and wishes to set the question(s) put - is that not a decision for the people? Cameron decides to intervene in the pay of top executives in the private sector - is that not a decision for the shareholders of those companies?

Our politicians extract money from our earnings by force, not having given any indication why that money is needed and on what it will be spent; they decide to engage in wars and then 'cry tears' every Wednesday at PMQs over the lost lives of our servicemen, all without the express consent of the people; they decide to loan our money to the IMF, at a reduced rate of interest from that which has to be paid for the initial loan, without asking for our agreement; they instigate procedures, funded by our money, but then are 'shocked' when they don't work; they decide who can and cannot vote in the Scottish referendum; we could well be deprived of plastic bags when visiting a supermarket - and our 'government' cannot but comply; and finally we have a Conservative MP, Bernard Jenkin, stating that there is a "ferociously negative" public perception of politics; that action needed to be taken, as it was "not in the public interest to keep reinforcing that narrative". If anything demonstrated that these bastards believe they are a 'class apart' and that they believe in the present system of democratised dictatorship, then it is surely that statement!

Just who the hell do these politicians think they are? I am fully aware that we British are supposed to be slow to anger - so will someone please light a fire under their backsides?

7 comments:

Stuart said...

I do at least sympathise with those who deliberately blank politics. Makes you wonder where it will all end up. Can we keep going on like this or will something happen?

Good post btw.

TomTom said...

I am warming to Zac Goldsmith, he at least seems to have principles. The fact that this country is degenerate and run by carpet-baggers is self-evident. I am firmly of the opinion this system will never permit change through the ballot-box simply because the Oligarchs count the votes.

Paul Coombes said...

Reading your blog helps satisfy my need to know that there are other people who feel as frustrated as I do. It meets a need to belong. However, I am increasingly of the opinion that we need to prepare for the time that people do get angry. We need to be putting out a message of how society should be and could be come the revolution to open the eyes of those that haven't thought about it. To show them how their life could be better than it is. Having a clear picture of how the future could be would also help in influencing the post-revolution direction of the country. This has been said by Richard North on many occasions. The problem I have is that we don't seem to be getting past stating that direct democracy and referism would be nice.
How do we get from here to there? The problem is, I suspect, that we all feel we could add something to the movement but as foot soldiers not officers. Where are we going to find a leader?

DeeDee99 said...

The principle reason why ordinary people don't rebel is ignorance. Ignorance of economics; ignorance of our history; ignorance of our Constitution and how it has been subverted and ignorance about the true behaviour of our political class - elected and appointed to The Lords.

Leaving aside our woeful state education system, the main culprit for all this ignorance is, of course, the BBC. For anyone who isn't particularly interested in 'the news' and 'current affairs' the BBC is their main source of information when they catch the 6 o'clock or 10 o'clock output (one can hardly call it news). They are fed a diet of pap. Panorama is a shadow of its former self.

The MSM is little better - althought the DT did expose the expenses scandal and (amongst the Cameron sycophancy) permits a few critical articles to appear.

The sad fact is, that it is only in the blogs where the true facts are to be found and that means (a) having an interest in the first place and (b) putting in the time and effort to track them down.

Perhaps, if Scotland leaves the Union, England will find enough 'good men and true' to challenge the status quo because we won't be laden down with the unreconstructed socialists from the north of Britain ... maybe that is one of the things Cameron really fears. A resurgent England could challenge on our enforced membership of the EU; challenge on the current failed construct of Parliament and challenge the politicians who have failed us for so long.

Keep up the good work WfW.

Nota reargunner said...

I was terribly ill, recently. Had been listening to Stephen Nolan with his guest, the Salford Red Ferret on his late night programme on Radio 5Live.
She does not understand that her abuse of the system with all her 'Worldly Goods' is unacceptable. If she wants to emulate Dick Turpin she ought to get rid of her motorbike and ride bareback through Ancoats.

SAA@hotmail.com said...

why ordinary people don't rebel is ignorance. Ignorance of economics; ignorance of our history; ignorance of our Constitution

It is actually FEAR. The British are depressives and The System instills a sense of impotence which is why anti-depressants are a GP's primary offering. Look at the distribution of anti-depressant prescriptions - North West, North East....it is mass-medication to hide despair.

Look at tests on laboratory animals; some resist Stress and fight, but others simply die prematurely

There are lots of people resigned to fate and simply dying before their time.....walk around Northern cities and see broken people.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

S: One can but hope that eventually 'light' dawns - thanks for the praise!

PC: To coin a phrase: I have a dream - and it is one also held by Ian Parker-Joseph in that one day there will appear a group of people willing to stand as Independents (assuming Ukip can't be bothered to get off their arses and adopt it) standing on a plaform of dd and referism........

TT: Have to agree with your last point about change through the ballot box.

DD99: Thanks for your support.

narg: Trust you now feeling better?

SAA: An interesting take......