Deep, dark politics: Jenny Jones on the Police Bill

‘If you make protests impossible to perform legally, criminalise non-violent direct action, abolish or restrict the ability of citizens to challenge the Government in court through judicial reviews, turn people against lawyers, gerrymander the election boundaries and dish out cash in the way that looks best for Conservative MPs – that is deep, dark politics.’ That’s how London CND Vice President and Green Party Baroness Jenny Jones summed up the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill which is currently being debated in the House of Lords. Read Jenny’s report and listen to her speech here

Fukushima 8th Anniversary meeting: Video

To mark the 8th anniversary of the Fukushima disaster, three mothers from the town met in Parliament, along with Caroline Lucas MP and Dr Ian Fairlie. You can watch a full video of the meeting below.

Parliament motion on US withdrawal from INF Treaty

Early Day Motion  1744 – put forward by Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP and supported Caroline Lucas, Jonathan Edwards, Peter Bottomley, Kelvin Hopkins, and Emma Dent Coad – has already attracted support from Scottish Nationalist,  Plaid Cymru, LibDem, Conservative, and Democratic Unionist MPs. The full text reads:

‘That this House is deeply concerned by the announcement on 20 October 2018 by the US President of the decision to withdraw the US from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF); notes that withdrawal from the INF will serve to undermine international attempts to curb nuclear proliferation; further notes that this move will destabilise global and specifically, European security; commends those countries, including France and Germany, who have released statements criticising the move; and calls on the Government to use its influence on Washington to urge the US to deal with any concerns it may have over treaty compliance through diplomatic means and to uphold its commitments to the treaty.’

Young activists meet London CND's vice-presidents at Parliamentary reception

On Monday, Parliament’s Jubilee Room was filled with enthusiastic young activists from London universities, come to hear from our vice-presidents about getting involved with London CND.

We were kindly hosted by Catherine West MP, who spoke alongside Jenny Jones and Bruce Kent about their support for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

The event was attended by students from universities including University College London, University of the Arts London and Pearsons Business College, as well as Catherine West’s alma mater, the School of Oriental and African Studies. It was a great opportunity for students to meet other activists, and find out about starting their own university CND societies with the support of London CND.

Before the drinks reception, a small group of students was given a private tour of the House of Lords by Jenny Jones, Baroness of Moulsecoomb, who is another of London CND’s vice-presidents.

You can see more photos from the event on our facebook page.

45 Peace campaigners locked to railings at Parliament: video

45  peace campaigners locked on to the railings outside Parliament on Wednesday, with 40-50 supporters nearby.

The activists were highlighting the fact that the UK is refusing to enter into multi-lateral talks to begin the urgent process of eliminating nuclear weapons.

They support the current talks on the United Nations Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. 122 countries have supported this Treaty. 58 countries have signed the Treaty intending to ratify it later. Only 50 states need to ratify the Treaty for it to become law.

So far the UK, which could play a leading role, has refused to be present at the many preparatory round of negotiations.

For too long the British government has claimed that it would support multi-lateral moves for a nuclear free world. Now is the ideal opportunity for this.

‘Plenty of time to recall parliament’ before Syria attack

Speaking in the emergency debate on Syria, Catherine West MP argued there had been plenty of time for the Prime Minister to recall parliament to debate a military attack on Syria. Reminding the government that the ‘dodgy dossier’ on Iraq has haunted political debates for years, she said:

The role of parliament is important because there is an element of having to persuade not only one another but the country of our views, our principles and our ideas. That is an important principle that came out of the very lengthy Chilcot inquiry.…Today, we have to reflect on what we have learned from the report, not just about the importance of parliament and our role in scrutinising the Executive, but about two other key elements.

One of those involves the need for a plan. My hon Friend the Member for Wirral South [Alison McGovern MP, co-chair All Party Friends of Syria group – ed] made a fantastic speech yesterday in which she mentioned the cross-party group on Syria and its steadfast commitment to the Syrian people. She spoke about the importance of having a plan, and one of the sticking points over the past week has been the lack of a sense of what we should do next. There has been a sense of ‘this feels fine for this weekend, but what happens next?’

The second element is the need for high-quality intelligence and evidence. This goes back to what was crudely referred to as the ‘dodgy dossier’, which has haunted us in our political debates from many years. We still need to ask those questions. Many of us will make no apology for asking questions. That is our job as back-bench members, whatever role we might have…. there was plenty of time last week to recall parliament, and I wish that we had had yesterday’s debate—perhaps not with every single security detail—at that point.

Many of us could have taken losing a vote—or, indeed, winning a vote. Whatever might have happened with that vote, at least we would have done what we always do, which is to debate, to contend, to get cross, to get sad, or to get happy. We would have done what we do in this place and gone through the lobby to produce a result for the people we represent.

• Catherine West MP discussed the UK attack on Syria on the BBC’s Daily Politics. Listen to what she had to say here