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An absolute Conservative commitment to an EU referendum

You can choose whatever name you like for the two types of government. I personally call the type of government which can be removed without violence “democracy”, and the other “tyranny”. — Karl Popper Before the Lisbon Treaty, I had no interest in being an MP. That Treaty was introduced to sidestep democratic rejection of the near-identical EU Constitution: I saw democracy dying at the hands of fanatical advocates of European political integration. Previously, I thought it was enough to vote Conservative [...]

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Polling stations open now in Bucks CC election

Polling is in progress today across the country. In Wycombe, we have elections for Bucks County Council and a by-election for Disraeli ward of Wycombe District Council. The BFP reports that our Town Crier has made a final appeal for people to vote. So far, turnout appears to be consistent with precedent for local elections: rather low. My wife and I voted this morning in West Wycombe. I understand people were turning out at a rate of about 10 per [...]

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Bucks County Council is working hard to encourage voter turnout

Chris Williams, Chief Executive, Buckinghamshire County Council has said: Anyone presented with the opportunity to influence the running of an organisation with a customer base of more than half a million, and an £849 million budget, would kick themselves if they missed it. So I want to make sure every one of the 389,738 people in the county eligible to vote grasps their opportunity on Thursday 2 May to influence the way Buckinghamshire County Council is run. County Council elections happen once every four [...]

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BFP launch its ‘get out and vote’ campaign (From Bucks Free Press)

The excellent Bucks Free Press are doing their bit to encourage participation in the County Council elections: ELECTION time is looming. There is less than a month before residents go to the ballot boxes for the Bucks County Council elections and the Free Press has launched its ‘get out and vote campaign’. Read more via BFP launch its ‘get out and vote’ campaign.

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The Intelligence and Security Committee should have an elected Chair

Earlier today, I moved amendments tabled by Andrew Tyrie MP to make provision for an elected chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee which scrutinises MI5, MI6 and GCHQ. At present, the ISC is a Government committee of parliamentarians. The Bill makes it a Parliamentary committee whose members are appointed by the Houses of Parliament on the Prime Minister’s nominations. The nominees would then elect their own chair. The Committee must have access to highly classified material, so it can’t operate along identical [...]

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Of course shareholders should control executive pay

Via the BBC: Swiss voters have overwhelmingly backed proposals to impose some of the world’s strictest controls on executive pay, final referendum results show. The measure has two important strands: shareholders will have a veto on executive remuneration and golden hellos and goodbyes will be banned. The former is a sensible, pro-market reform, the latter is not. Both are a response to what has gone wrong with capitalism. It is entirely right that the owners of firms should control the [...]

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Westminster to Wycombe: A view from Wycombe Abbey

NB This post has been kindly written by Tiffany Lau, Yr 12, Wycombe Abbey School – outlining her thoughts and experiences of the Westminister to Wycombe debate  Many misconceptions were cleared up at today’s Westminster to Wycombe Parliamentary debating event at Highcrest Academy, High Wycombe. Here are just a few. 1.     Politics is boring. Debating in a British Parliament format more or less clears up this misconception. There were quality debates on overseas aid, public spending and the deficit, the [...]

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I won’t support Labour on fuel duty – or duck the issue of spending

Today, we’ll be debating an Opposition Day motion on fuel duty, which I want cut. It’s shocking that 60% of the pump price of petrol is tax. Nevertheless I won’t be supporting Labour. It’s one thing to be supported by Labour on a important constitutional point — Parliament’s control over our EU budget contribution, for example — but it is another to support them on an Opposition Day designed to injure the Government. In any case, fuel is 10p a [...]

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Bank on Dave – in Parliament tomorrow

Tomorrow in Parliament, I’m hosting a meeting with Dave Fishwick and MPs to discuss his struggle to start a local, responsible bank in touch with its savers and borrowers. The Channel 4 documentary is here and this Russia Today video gives an overview: The FSA have declined to attend but I’m hoping that MPs hearing from Dave will redouble efforts to persuade the Government to lower barriers to entry in banking. If you would like to ask your MP to [...]

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The coming completion of the European nation?

Following Barroso’s contradictory speech calling for a federal European state, the Telegraph reports, Germany, France and nine other of Europe’s most powerful countries have called for an elected European Union president and an end to Britain’s veto over defence policy in a radical blueprint mapping out the continent’s future. And they report my comments, Steve Baker, the Tory MP for Wycombe, warned that proposals to strip Britain of its veto over defence or foreign policy would be “the end of [...]

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Steve Baker is MP for Wycombe. He was previously an RAF officer then a business software consultant. Find out more...

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