In My View
Posted by Robert Walter, MP for North Dorset, at 13:57, Wed 3 December 2008:
IN MY VIEW
In the week when the Queen visits Parliament and goes no further than the throne in the House of Lords, the arrest of Damien Green MP takes on particular significance. The Government and the organs of the state carry on their business in the service of the Crown. The attempt by Charles I to arrest members of Parliament led to our brief republican period under Oliver Cromwell and the execution of King Charles himself.
In our modern democracy the powers of the state now derive from the law. But the misuse of that power is only a short step from dictatorship and oppression. The privileges of Parliament and its members are not personal to me or any of my colleagues. Those rights are an expression of our democratic values and the right of the people, through their elected representatives, to hold the government to account.
As a member of parliament it is my duty not simply to pass laws but to ensure that those laws are upheld. The critical role of members of Parliament is on behalf of their constituents and the country as a whole to scrutinise the work of ministers and their officials and ultimately to hold the government to account. It is quite clear that governments will always present their work in the best possible light. They will highlight the successes and hide their failures. Some call that spin or perhaps simple human nature.
A constructive opposition will where appropriate herald those successes as well. But the opposition and backbenchers on all sides of the House must seek out the truth of the real effectiveness of government.
When matters of national security are involved or the personal details of individuals are under discussion then a degree of secrecy is appropriate. The House of Commons has a Security and Intelligence Committee which is able to examine secret government papers involving the security of the state. They, quite rightly, do that in private, and any public conclusions are about the government’s management of these matters and not the substance.
Administrative incompetence or simple bad management should not be a state secret, and in law it is not. However governments and their officials will do their best to keep their failings out of the public eye. Damien Green was seeking after the truth. A junior civil servant, who was dissatisfied with the performance of the Home Office, provided him with some inside information. As an employee he was of course not acting in the interest of his employer, and would in any organisation be subject to disciplinary proceedings. But the information he provided was of public interest because it involved the work done in the name of the people of this country. If that work is done badly we have a right to know.
It is not about party politics. As an opposition MP, Gordon Brown was adept at getting information which embarrassed the last Conservative government. A healthy democracy must be able to see through the façade of government. There is no role here for the police and the criminal law. The authorities the House of Commons have questions to answer for allowing the police access to the confidential files of a member of Parliament who was simply doing his job.
I hope this will be the first and last incident in the last three centuries of the Executive overstepping the mark and abusing its powers.
Comments
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Posted by Andy Newton, 18:32, Wed 7 January 2009: (Is this post abusive?) #
I agree entirely. The Damien Green affair was absolutely scandalous - and I have no doubt it was prompted by the spat between Boris Johnson and the Met.
"Law and order" has gone too far, we now live in a police state - Who will protect us from the police?
Posted by Karen Harrison, 18:34, Wed 7 January 2009: (Is this post abusive?) #
Absolutely. The executive arm of this government is out of control and this was just another of their abuses.
Posted by Mrs. P. Griffiths, 12:37, Thu 8 January 2009: (Is this post abusive?) #
What a good thing when 'shady business' is brought to light.....we, the voters, have a right to know what is going on, unless ofcourse it is a matter of national security. Patricia Griffiths.