Entries from December 2009 ↓

I’ve been tabling a number of written questions to the DCMS in recent weeks. One of them unearthed this letter from BPI lobbyist, Geoff Taylor to the amiable and talented Secretary of State, Ben Bradshaw.

Mr Taylor’s letter seems confused. On the one hand, he trumpets the tremendous success and creativity of the music industry. On the other, he suggests that piracy is destroying the business.

I’ve been struck at the sheer magnitude of the recorded music industry lobby around the Digital Economy Bill. I’m going to prod around a little more when Parliament returns in the New Year.

It was a very great honour to meet Yessika Hoyos Morales of the Corporacion Colectivo de Abogados for lunch today.  Yessika is a deeply inspiring character and has given me the energy to pressure the government into taking a tougher line with Colombia, particularly within EU negotiations on a possible free trade agreement with the country.

I shall be asking questions of the Foreign Office about the extra-judicial killings of dozens of trades unionists in Colombia, many of which are linked to the Colombian army.

The UN High Commissioner for Human rights, Dr Navi Pillay, said last year that the Colombian army stands accused of a “crime against humanity” due to the “systematic and widespread” nature of the murders.

Other countries have expressed deep concern about the free trade deal. Many think that the deal will legitimise the regime in Colombia. Norwegian Finance Minister, Kristin Halvorsen has said “We are not satisfied with the way human right and fundamental labour rights are dealt with in this [free trade] agreement”.

Hilary Clinton recently told Congressional leaders that “continued violence and impunity in Colombia directed at labour and other civic leaders makes labor protection impossible to guarantee in Colombia today. Colombia must improve its efforts . The proposed US-Colombia agreement is therefore not currently on the legislative agenda in Washington”

I would like to see a similar unequivocal statement from the Foreign Office.

Martin Linton

Tom Watson

Martin Salter

Tom Levitt

Frank Cook

John Mann

Michael Gapes

Roger Berry

Jim Dowd

Graham Allen

Albert Owen

David Chaytor

Mark Lazarowicz

Christine McCafferty

David Taylor

Alan Keen

Richard Burden

Doug Maysmith

Martin Caton

Alan Whitehead

Jon Cruddas

1)  The Secretary of State shall be under a duty to ensure that a referendum on reforming the electoral system for the House of Commons is held before 28 October 2010.

2)  The referendum must offer a choice between the existing method of voting and a preferential system.

3)  If the result of the referendum is in favour of changing the electoral system for the House of Commons, the Secretary of State shall be under a duty to lay implementing measures before Parliament within three months of the date of the referendum.

4)  In this section:

“Implementing measures” means measures designed to and likely to implement the result of the referendum before the general election next following the referendum, and includes bills and statutory instruments.

“Preferential voting system” means a system of voting in which electors may express their support for individual candidates in order of preference and in which they are not restricted to expressing a fixed number of preferences.