Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable today criticised Barclays for obtaining a court order banning The Guardian newspaper from publishing documents showing how the bank set up companies to avoid paying hundreds of millions of pounds in tax.
He has also offered to provide a witness statement to support the press in court, saying:
"These documents are clearly of immense public interest, suggesting as they do a systematic attempt to avoid paying tax.
"At a time when banks are receiving massive support from the Government, the public has a right to know if those same banks are also trying to avoid paying their tax bills.
"Barclays is negotiating for substantial government backing under the Asset Protection Scheme. The Government must make it an absolute pre-condition that tax avoidance at the expense of the taxpayer should stop.
"The scale of tax avoidance by banks has not been previously exposed because it is so hard to report on. These documents provide chapter and verse on the banks' activities. Banks have been able to hide behind commercial confidentiality and threats of legal action to prevent their tax avoidance becoming known.
"There needs to be an open discussion of the banks' tax avoidance and its role in causing the financial crisis. Allowing independent tax professionals to examine these documents is vital to regulating the banks in a way that properly protects the UK taxpayer."
Tuesday 17 March 2009
Lib Dem victory on data sharing plans
The government has DROPPED controversial plans to allow people's personal details to be shared between different organisations.
The move follows a campaign by the Liberal Democrats to drop the clause in the Coroners and Justice Bill, which is currently being considered by MPs.
In a humiliating climbdown, Justice Minister Michael Wills today conceded that the powers were "drawn too widely".
The plans prompted heated debate in the Commons when the bill was first discussed in January, with even former home secretary David Blunkett raising concerns about whether they were justified.
The Liberal Democrats argued that, under the bill, data sharing would not just be restricted to public bodies, and that people's information could have been given to private companies in any country.
Mr Wills today told Lib Dem MP Adrian Sanders: "I hope it will give your constituents some reassurance that we have now withdrawn the clause that they are worried about."
The move follows a campaign by the Liberal Democrats to drop the clause in the Coroners and Justice Bill, which is currently being considered by MPs.
In a humiliating climbdown, Justice Minister Michael Wills today conceded that the powers were "drawn too widely".
The plans prompted heated debate in the Commons when the bill was first discussed in January, with even former home secretary David Blunkett raising concerns about whether they were justified.
The Liberal Democrats argued that, under the bill, data sharing would not just be restricted to public bodies, and that people's information could have been given to private companies in any country.
Mr Wills today told Lib Dem MP Adrian Sanders: "I hope it will give your constituents some reassurance that we have now withdrawn the clause that they are worried about."
1,000+ police have criminal convictions
Over a thousand serving police officers in Great Britain have criminal convictions, according to new figures revealed by the Liberal Democrats.
The information, gathered from Freedom of Information requests to Britain’s police forces, shows how:
- There were 1,063 serving police officers in 41 police forces across Britain who had criminal convictions
- This includes five officers who were sacked by the force but reinstated by the Home Office
- There are 77 serving police officers with convictions for violent offences who have kept their jobs: 59 with convictions for assault; 14 for violence against the person; two for battery; and one for wounding
- In the last five years, just 45 have been dismissed from the police for violent offences
- 96 serving police officers have convictions for offences of dishonesty: 36 for theft; five for perverting the course of justice; three for fraud; and one each for dishonesty and forgery
- In the last five years, just 37 have been dismissed from the police for dishonesty
- 210 officers have been dismissed or required to resign in the past five years as a result of other criminal convictions
Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Huhne MP, said:
"It is staggering that so many of the people entrusted to protect us from crime have criminal convictions themselves.
"It is even more worrying that so many police officers convicted of serious crimes involving dishonesty or violence have been allowed to keep their jobs.
"There is a disturbing lack of consistency in how police forces deal with officers who are convicted of crimes.
"The public entrust the police with the use of legal force precisely because they are self-disciplined and restrained, which is why anyone convicted of a violent offence should be dismissed.
"I cannot see how a police officer convicted of dishonesty can perform their duty effectively, as any prosecutor would be reluctant to call them as a witness for fear of being taken apart by the defence.
"The public will be rightly concerned that there are serving police officers who have committed crimes as serious as GBH, assault, wounding and robbery.
"The trust that is absolutely vital in policing is seriously undermined when police officers are being convicted of crimes of dishonesty.
"Allowing police officers convicted of offences of violence or dishonesty to continue serving merely brings the vast majority of law-abiding and diligent officers into disrepute. Police forces should get tough on bad apples."
The information, gathered from Freedom of Information requests to Britain’s police forces, shows how:
- There were 1,063 serving police officers in 41 police forces across Britain who had criminal convictions
- This includes five officers who were sacked by the force but reinstated by the Home Office
- There are 77 serving police officers with convictions for violent offences who have kept their jobs: 59 with convictions for assault; 14 for violence against the person; two for battery; and one for wounding
- In the last five years, just 45 have been dismissed from the police for violent offences
- 96 serving police officers have convictions for offences of dishonesty: 36 for theft; five for perverting the course of justice; three for fraud; and one each for dishonesty and forgery
- In the last five years, just 37 have been dismissed from the police for dishonesty
- 210 officers have been dismissed or required to resign in the past five years as a result of other criminal convictions
Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Huhne MP, said:
"It is staggering that so many of the people entrusted to protect us from crime have criminal convictions themselves.
"It is even more worrying that so many police officers convicted of serious crimes involving dishonesty or violence have been allowed to keep their jobs.
"There is a disturbing lack of consistency in how police forces deal with officers who are convicted of crimes.
"The public entrust the police with the use of legal force precisely because they are self-disciplined and restrained, which is why anyone convicted of a violent offence should be dismissed.
"I cannot see how a police officer convicted of dishonesty can perform their duty effectively, as any prosecutor would be reluctant to call them as a witness for fear of being taken apart by the defence.
"The public will be rightly concerned that there are serving police officers who have committed crimes as serious as GBH, assault, wounding and robbery.
"The trust that is absolutely vital in policing is seriously undermined when police officers are being convicted of crimes of dishonesty.
"Allowing police officers convicted of offences of violence or dishonesty to continue serving merely brings the vast majority of law-abiding and diligent officers into disrepute. Police forces should get tough on bad apples."
Monday 16 March 2009
We need more bobbies on the beat
Lib Dems are calling for measures to pay for 10,000 more police within our communities.
The party is calling on the government to scrap its costly plans for huge 'Titan' prisons, currently estimated at between £1.7bn and £2.3bn. New evidence shows that smaller prisons are more effective at rehabilitating prisoners, meaning far fewer commit crimes when they are eventually released.
The Liberal Democrats say that better policing and improved detection are more effective in cutting crime than ‘posturing over penalties'. Money saved from scrapping ID cards would provide an extra 10,000 police officers.
The party is calling on the government to scrap its costly plans for huge 'Titan' prisons, currently estimated at between £1.7bn and £2.3bn. New evidence shows that smaller prisons are more effective at rehabilitating prisoners, meaning far fewer commit crimes when they are eventually released.
The Liberal Democrats say that better policing and improved detection are more effective in cutting crime than ‘posturing over penalties'. Money saved from scrapping ID cards would provide an extra 10,000 police officers.
Don't keep innocent people's DNA
The UK has by far the largest DNA database in the world, with 4.5 million people registered. Now, innocent children are having their DNA taken and it is being held on the database for ever.
Holding innocent people's information on the database contradicts one of the fundamental tenets of British democracy: 'innocent until proven guilty'.
It is particularly worrying that information on 700,000 children who have never been convicted, cautioned or charged with any offence are on the database.
Some of the most bizarre examples include that of the three children who climbed a cherry tree to build a tree house. They were arrested for criminal damage and had their DNA taken, but the case was never taken any further.
Another is that of a the 14-year old boy who was a victim of mistaken identity when teachers at his school gave police the wrong name after a brawl between pupils. Even after admitting they had arrested the wrong boy, the police refused to remove his DNA.
Liberal Democrats believe that innocent people should have their DNA records removed from the database.
Holding innocent people's information on the database contradicts one of the fundamental tenets of British democracy: 'innocent until proven guilty'.
It is particularly worrying that information on 700,000 children who have never been convicted, cautioned or charged with any offence are on the database.
Some of the most bizarre examples include that of the three children who climbed a cherry tree to build a tree house. They were arrested for criminal damage and had their DNA taken, but the case was never taken any further.
Another is that of a the 14-year old boy who was a victim of mistaken identity when teachers at his school gave police the wrong name after a brawl between pupils. Even after admitting they had arrested the wrong boy, the police refused to remove his DNA.
Liberal Democrats believe that innocent people should have their DNA records removed from the database.
Sunday 8 March 2009
Nick Clegg's message of hope
"We are the only party that will put money into people’s pockets with fair tax cuts. The only party to offer universal childcare and smaller classes in our primary schools. The only party that will use Gordon Brown’s wasted billions to create thousands of jobs today by investing in homes, hospitals, schools and public transport to build the green economy of tomorrow. The only party that will rebuild the jobs, homes and hopes this recession has destroyed. So don’t believe the doubters, the nay-sayers, the professional cynics. This time it can be different."
- extract from Nick Clegg's speech to Lib Dem conference today
You can read his speech in full at http://tinyurl.com/betterfuture
- extract from Nick Clegg's speech to Lib Dem conference today
You can read his speech in full at http://tinyurl.com/betterfuture
Lowest Council Tax increase in years
The Liberal Democrats have given Gosport one of its lowest Council Tax increases for years. The inflation-beating rise of just 2.5% is also one of the lowest in the country.
Gosport Council's share of the Council Tax for a Band D property will go up by just £4.94 a year this April. That's less than 10p a week.
Sadly the Conservative County Council have increased their share of the Council Tax by four times as much, adding £19.17 for a Band D property and increasing their share of the Council Tax for a Band D to over £1,000 for the first time.
While Liberal Democrat Gosport cuts Town Hall waste and bureaucracy, the County Council Conservatives are spending £40 million on new Council offices!
Gosport Council's share of the Council Tax for a Band D property will go up by just £4.94 a year this April. That's less than 10p a week.
Sadly the Conservative County Council have increased their share of the Council Tax by four times as much, adding £19.17 for a Band D property and increasing their share of the Council Tax for a Band D to over £1,000 for the first time.
While Liberal Democrat Gosport cuts Town Hall waste and bureaucracy, the County Council Conservatives are spending £40 million on new Council offices!
Bank boss should pay us back
The Lib Dems are demanding that the ex-HBOS boss blamed for the bank’s collapse give back his pension.
Sir James Crosby, 50 — who has quit as a City regulator after claims he ignored disaster warnings — has a £10million pension pot.
Details were buried in a new annual report from HBOS, which has merged with Lloyds. Taxpayers now own 43 per cent of the firm.
Lib Dem Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said Sir James had a “moral obligation” to repay some of the money.
Sir James Crosby, 50 — who has quit as a City regulator after claims he ignored disaster warnings — has a £10million pension pot.
Details were buried in a new annual report from HBOS, which has merged with Lloyds. Taxpayers now own 43 per cent of the firm.
Lib Dem Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said Sir James had a “moral obligation” to repay some of the money.
Do you really trust this lot with your data?
Government staff are misplacing their security passes at a rate of 23 a day, it has emerged. Almost 17,000 civil service passes have been lost or stolen over the past two years. Around two thirds of the misplaced cards have been misplaced by staff at the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The figures follow a series of other security lapses by civil servants, including an incident where highly sensitive intelligence files on al-Qaeda were left on a train by a senior Whitehall official. In January last year, a laptop with the details of 600,000 people on it was taken from a Royal Navy officer’s car in Birmingham, and in November 2007, two CDs with details of 25 million Britons were lost after being posted from a Revenue and Customs office in Tyne and Wear.
This government cannot and should not be trusted with our personnel information. All this latest incident does is demonstrate the serious issues around data security should National ID cards be introduced.
The figures follow a series of other security lapses by civil servants, including an incident where highly sensitive intelligence files on al-Qaeda were left on a train by a senior Whitehall official. In January last year, a laptop with the details of 600,000 people on it was taken from a Royal Navy officer’s car in Birmingham, and in November 2007, two CDs with details of 25 million Britons were lost after being posted from a Revenue and Customs office in Tyne and Wear.
This government cannot and should not be trusted with our personnel information. All this latest incident does is demonstrate the serious issues around data security should National ID cards be introduced.
Fight for our Freedoms
"I'm a liberal – I'm against this sort of thing." That's what Harry Wilcox, a dry cleaner from North London, said when asked to produce his ID card in the 1950s. He drew the line.
It's time we drew that line again. The actions of two repressive parties – first the Conservatives, now Labour – have robbed us of too many of our fundamental rights and freedoms.
The Liberal Democrats are proposing the Freedom Bill - http://freedom.libdems.org.uk - and here's a selection of the measures it incorporates:
• Scrap ID cards for everyone.
• Restore the right to protest in Parliament Square.
• Scrap the ContactPoint database of all children in Britain.
• Remove innocent people from the DNA database.
• Reduce the maximum period of pre-charge detention to 14 days.
You can read the full set at http://freedom.libdems.org.uk/
It's time we drew that line again. The actions of two repressive parties – first the Conservatives, now Labour – have robbed us of too many of our fundamental rights and freedoms.
The Liberal Democrats are proposing the Freedom Bill - http://freedom.libdems.org.uk - and here's a selection of the measures it incorporates:
• Scrap ID cards for everyone.
• Restore the right to protest in Parliament Square.
• Scrap the ContactPoint database of all children in Britain.
• Remove innocent people from the DNA database.
• Reduce the maximum period of pre-charge detention to 14 days.
You can read the full set at http://freedom.libdems.org.uk/
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