The Socialist 4 April 2012 Kick out the cuts coalition  George Galloway's stunning Bradford West victory Greater London Assembly election Tony Mulhearn in Liverpool Mayor election challenge Wales: Challenging the establishment parties Southampton TUSC: Labour resigned to austerity Pensions: National action needed Tanker drivers' and Tory scaremongering Notts teachers fight five-term year US embassy protest remembers Trayvon Martin Tamil Solidarity 20 April Day of Action 100 years since Titanic tragedy Spain: Huge general strike as government enters deep crisis Oppose the Con-Dems' snoopers charter Supporting my sons on £184 a week Tory MPs and church attack gay marriage |
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Home | The Socialist 4 April 2012 | Join the Socialist Party Readers' commentOppose the Con-Dems' snoopers charterDerek McMillan, Mid Sussex Socialist PartyOliver Cromwell favoured a state-controlled postal service so that the government could keep a close eye on what people were writing to each other. Today's UK government - which talks loudly about democratic rights overseas - wants to be able to monitor the calls, emails, texts and website visits of everyone in the UK under new legislation set to be announced soon. Internet firms will be required to give the government's intelligence agency GCHQ access to communications on demand, in real time. And as ever, the opposition is in no position to oppose this measure. The Labour government proposed similar measures but backed down when there was a massive campaign of opposition including by the hypocritical Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. The government has to justify this measure and they claim it is to combat crime and terrorism. Most likely, the "crime and terrorism" that they will combat is political opposition to their programme of cutting public services and pensions. The "criminal and terrorist" pensioners, nurses, doctors and teachers will have their views and plans monitored. It is unlikely that serious terrorists send each other messages in plain language. It is down to the trade unions and socialists to fight back against this. They could die of old age if they waited for the nominal opposition to get its act together. In this issue Election Challenges
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