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The Repeal vote has opened with a truly disappointing shortlist that is sure to appeal to middle-England, but is sadly reactionary and horribly predictable in it’s contents.

Listening yesterday to the (disappointing) panel wafting it’s way through the nominations, and brushing aside the opportunity to push the debate in interesting directions, I soon lost hope it’d be a relevant list that did little, at least for anybody who doesn’t read the Daily Mail. Certainly no Identity cards act, which is perhaps the most significant ever change in the government-citizen relationship. It’s exclusion demonstrates the ignorance, wilful or otherwise, of the panel and - I fear - the wider public - to the implications of the act.

Anyway, the shortlist…

• The Dangerous dogs act is certainly a poor piece of legislation, but it doesn’t in itself really matter all that much other than to demonstrate knee-jerk legislation is a bad idea, and more scrutiny is needed across all our legislation. Not that I expect any government will pay heed to that.
• The Human rights act brings sensible laws in to our statue book, but has been turned into some bizarre hate-figure by the Daily Mail for entirely superfluous reasons.
• The Hunting ban was inevitable on the list, and is probably going to win. More time wasting. But then the ban is ignored anyway, and until it is enforced I don’t quite see why the hunting lobby just don’t keep a low profile and get on with their vicious past-time.
• Ditto the European union act. The EU has been a huge benefit and brought economic prosperity to this country (just look at who are biggest trading partners are), but again a certain group of newspapers has turned it into a bete noire. People would be voting against a self-created, and self-perpetuating mythical beast, rather than the act itself and what it represents.
• Act of settlement 1701. An act preventing catholics ascending to the throne. Well, let’s get rid of the throne itself and we’re sorted. No more religious discrimination. That we have a head of state that is appointed by accidents of birth is truly ridiculous.

I’ve therefore voted for the last item, the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (with reference to the limitations on demonstrating near Parliament), because it’s the only item on the shortlist I feel strongly about that isn’t a sop to middle england. That the government feels it can selectively ban free-speech, no matter how inconvenient, is ridiculous. But it’s a missed opportunity by Today, when there are other pieces of legislation that will affect all of our lives, and could better use the attention this vote will bring.

Vote here

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 23rd, 2006 at 8:53 am and is filed under BBC, Europe, Id Cards, Media, Politics, Radio, UK. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.