enlighten.me.uk

Our current MP Beverley Hughes did not vote last night on the Digital Economy Bill. Nor has she bothered to reply to my correspondence on the issue. As she is standing down, I have written the following letter to the person who wishes to be her successor:

Dear Ms Green,

It is my understanding that you are the Labour Party candidate for Stretford and Urmston. I write to inform you of the reason that you will not be getting my vote.

Along with thousands of other UK citizens I watched in horror last night as the outgoing Labour government whipped their MPs to vote through the highly controversial and badly written Digital Economy Bill, not only without due process but with most of the voting MPs not even present at the truncated debates. While the bill itself is obnoxious, it is my belief that it would have been much less so if subjected to proper parliamentary scrutiny. The issue is not that this bill originated in Lords but that, under government duress, Commons chose not to do its job. I raised my concern by e-mail to our current MP Beverley Hughes some days beforehand, but she did not have the decency to respond.

The brave efforts of members such as Tom Watson, Eric Joyce and Austin Mitchell have not gone unnoticed, but against the force of the party whip they were doomed to failure. The Labour leadership has shown a despicable contempt for democracy and for the purpose of the House of Commons. Therefore I cannot, with a clear conscience, vote for any candidate whose appointment will encourage this to continue.

Please understand that this is not about you as a person. If you are elected, I would like to believe that you will do the job that we will be paying you to do and represent us fairly. However at a general election your credibility as a candidate is linked to your party’s credibility. If you believe in democracy then you will surely wish to resign your Labour Party membership and stand instead as an independent candidate. If you do so, then I and many others will be able to judge you on your personal merits when choosing whom to vote for.

Yours sincerely,

Julian Yon, BSc(hons)

I have written similarly to the Tory candidate, to express my feelings about the fact that his party were complicit in the subversion of democracy. And I’ve written to Bev Hughes asking her why she didn’t turn up. I doubt she’ll reply.