- Cymraeg
- English
John Dixon's response to the Queen's Speech
November 18, 2009 2:00 PM
Cardiff North Lib Dem candidate John Dixon has responded critically to today's Queen's Speech to Parliament, outlining the final legislative programme of the Labour Government before the next General Election.
John said: "This year's Queen's Speech is a political charade that should be dropped in favour of an emergency programme of political reform. After the expenses scandal, this Parliament has destroyed its own legitimacy. Not in living memory has confidence in politicians, trust in the system, or faith in the government's capacity to change things been as low as it is today. This Parliament no longer has the right to govern. All it has left is a solemn duty to clean up for good the mess in British politics. The one gift this failed Parliament can give its successor is a fresh start."
Amongst Labour's proposed reforms is the Improving Schools & Safeguarding bill - the twelfth education bill in as many years under Labour. Senior Liberal Democrats have suggested that it represents more tinkering with the edges of the education system rather than more radical reform to tackle class sizes and education funding.
On the Social Care bill, John Dixon has also hit out at the Government's proposals, saying: "This Government's treatment of older people is a shameful legacy. Hundreds of thousands of older people have been forced to sell their home over the last decade and these proposals will do nothing to end that awful trend. The National Care Service appears to be little more than a gimmick as ministers have failed to give any serious explanation about how they intend to pay for these proposals."
Instead of today's bills, the Liberal Democrats are proposing the following seven major reforms of the Westminster political system:
1) Recalling power for MPs suspended for misconduct - so we never again have to wait months and years to get rid of people who have betrayed the people they represent
2) A code of conduct for candidates in the next election, including declaration of financial interests - so everyone elected can command full public confidence
3) House of Lords reform - so only elected representatives have the power to make our laws
4) Party funding reform in time for this election - so big money and the whiff of corruption it brings are removed from politics for good
5) A fixed term Parliaments - so the voters can never again be toyed with by a Prime Minister planning an election timetable to save his own skin
6) Legislation to establish a 100-person Citizens' Assembly, on the Canadian model, to agree a new voting system for Parliamentary Elections
7) Changes to House of Commons procedure to reduce executive power - so never again can a government use the power of the whips to ride roughshod over the views of Parliament.
For more details, visit www.libdems.org.uk
What would you like to do next?
-
Subscribe for updates
Follow the party's activity on...
- Twitter:
- Liberal Democrats
- Facebook:
- Liberal Democrats
- YouTube:
- Liberal Democrats