Andrew Turner, the Island’s MP has issued a statement following today’s announcement that prisoners are to be given the right to vote.
“A key pledge in the Conservative Party manifesto was the scrapping of the Human Rights Act and replacing it with a British Bill of Rights. The aim was to stop Europe dictating to us and enable us to return to common sense which the Act seemed to have overlooked.
“The British Bill of Rights is not just about rights, but also about the responsibilities which every citizen should uphold in order to earn rights. It is about common sense; for example, when a victim defends themselves, they should not be treated as a criminal. It is about putting the honest, law abiding citizen first.
“These are sound principles, which are hard to argue against. However the Liberal Democrats have done just that. One of the compromises for coalition government was that the British Bill of Rights be dropped. This has upset many people: MPs, party supporters and many members of the public who support this approach. I still support the British Bill of Rights and will push for it in every way possible.
“Today we see the effect of this deal. We have been told by the European Court of Human Rights that it is ‘unlawful’ to prevent prisoners from voting. This is exactly why we need a British Bill of Rights – to stop Europe from telling us how to govern our country. Why should we give the vote to prisoners, to those who decided that they would not uphold their responsibilities and abide by our laws? When you break the law so seriously that your right to liberty is removed, so should your right to vote.
Allowing prisoners the vote insults those who choose to abide by the law and uphold their responsibilities as British Citizens. It is an undesirable diktat from Europe supported by the Liberal Democrats. We must fight it and continue to push for a British Bill of Rights.
END Contact : Andrew Turner’s office 01983 530808
