Greens attack "Abolition of Parliament" Bill
18 March 2006
The Green Party conference today called for immediate action to raise publicawareness of the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill, and to publiciseGreen Party opposition to it.
Proposing an emergency motion, Cllr Matt Sellwood, of Oxford Green Party,said: "The Bill threatens to shatter the very foundations of democracy inthis country, allowing government ministers to create law without consultingparliament, thereby replacing a system of checks and balances - over sixhundred years in the making - with despotism."
In her keynote speech yesterday, Principal Speaker Caroline Lucas said theBill "will effectively allow government ministers to amend, repeal orreplace any legislation without consulting Parliament, and even to createnew offences, with penalties of up to two years in prison, without anydemocratic scrutiny whatsoever".
Cllr Sellwood added: "Putting the emotional language of the motion aside,this Bill is dangerous to democracy, and it is vital we oppose it,especially since neither the Conservatives nor the Lib Dems are taking alead on this issue."
