PM should remember Carta values

WHY did Tony Blair, when Prime Minister, and now David Cameron, associate with corny prime-time American television and succumb to chat show questioning?

Hopefully, Mr Cameron was playing to the gallery, when stating that he did not know what Magna Carta meant. If that were true, he should be aware how UK citizens are being thrown to the wolves.

Back in 1215, when King John signed the Magna Carta at Runnymede, the Great Charter of the Liberties of England gave rise to a fair and protective parliament. The Charter progressed to the Habeas Corpus Act 1679 that stated prisoners should not be detained without trial by jury.

Centuries of libertarianism went west when Tony Blair approved of the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) 2003, enforcing the Extradition from the UK Act 2003. Truthfully, the acts are ‘international conventions’ drafted to serve America’s best adjudication interests.

Warrants to arrest our citizens are demands from foreign judges who have no affiliation with the English legal system. In fact, the law offers UK citizens less protection now than at any time since the Middle Ages.

Cases where UK persons have languished in overseas jails owing to mistaken identity are easy to cite. Much worse, English courts do not compel foreign powers to produce any prima facie evidence, just whimsical suspicion. Currently a contingent of UK residents are fighting extradition proceedings, the most publicised is the case of Abu Hamza.

Since Friday, January 13, 2012, Richard 0’Dwyer of Bolsover, Derbyshire, is fighting extradition to the USA as Westminster magistrates agreed with American prosecutors, ruling the GP’s son should face trial in New York on two charges of copyright infringement. The charges are yet to be challenged.

Instead of hobnobbing on American TV, the Prime Minister should show his mettle and return to some good old-fashioned Magna Carta values, like having English law shielding the public.

Shortcomings of wind power

From: Dave Haskell, Newchapel Road, Boncath, Pembrokeshire.

YOUR readers who are currently blighted by wind farms, those who are about to, and those who deem these monstrosities as inevitable, hopefully will be very interested in the following recent email discussion I have had with a local Welsh Tory MP. The MP stated that, “While I am certainly not starry-eyed about wind turbines they do have a contribution to make to enhancing the diversity of the UK energy supply.”

My reply read as follows: 
“Well, exactly how do they meaningfully make a contribution and enhance the diversity of the UK energy supply when they are totally reliant on conventional power stations for back-up to ensure security of supply? Can you fully explain your statement, please?”

Tide is against the Lib Dems

From: Peter Asquith-Cowen, First Lane, Anlaby, East Yorkshire.

GETTING the balance right 
will be a mountainous task for 
Ed Miliband, but he has come out of this week’s Labour conference in Manchester in a better position.

While the opinions of the electorate count, the crazy policies of the coalition don’t make any sense, are totally illogical and without a firm 
basis, and Nick Clegg seems hell bent on pushing the “self-destruct” button, having shot himself in the foot making promises to students he couldn’t ever deliver and now shooting himself again in the foot by attacking the pensioners.

This man lives on another planet and has no concept of reality at all.

I’m surprised he is still the 
Lib Dem leader, but judging 
by their lukewarm, sit-on-the-fence, wishy-washy policies 
it is only a matter of time 
before this party and its leader 
are “not only at sea” but will shortly sink beneath the waves 
to become part of British political history.

More homes won’t help

From: Geoffrey Thorpe. Lister Avenue, East Bowling, Bradford.

ED Balls (Yorkshire Post, October 1) says that the windfall from the sale of of the 4G licences should be spent on house building to get the economy moving. Construction work will not help the economy, for who will buy the houses?

The banks are not too keen on lending for mortgages unless you have a large deposit. The housing market is very slow and first-time buyers do not have the funds to put down large deposits. Some local developments that were built had to include a portion of affordable homes; these were priced at £180,000 – not really affordable for first-time buyers.

If all these thousands of houses do get built, there will be another recession as this country cannot just build houses to keep the economy moving. The Government should encourage manufacturing industries that can build and make goods that can be exported – this will help to create new jobs.