DEMOCRACY: Bill puts our values at risk

Ours is supposedly the oldest parliamentary democracy in the world, and we talk often of our British belief in fair play. Yet with the Trade Union Bill, this Government is putting these values at risk.

By The Newsroom

Published 6th Feb 2016, 05:00 BST

We’ve already seen it make it harder to register to vote; soon it will redraw the parliamentary map in a way that benefits the Conservative Party.

Furthermore, in the Trade Union Bill is a clause that will cut off trade unions’ financial support for the Labour Party, while doing nothing to limit hedge funds and millionaires that support the Tories. They’re attacking democracy by silencing opposition, whether from unions, campaigners, or charities, and by changing the rules to make it harder for anyone else to win an election.

As the House of Lords debates the Bill, I can only hope the Government will take the opportunity to embody the values of democracy and decency it claims to support and drops these unfair proposals.

Terry Clark,

Links Avenue,

Amble