Will COVID 19 facilitate implementing the dangerous authoritarian policies of this far Right faction of the Tory Party with their “Decimating Down” agenda conveniently enabled by the “COVERT 2019 Rigged Election” fake “landslide victory” result? In a recent Article in the Canary they offer a stark warning: “The Tories just revealed the most terrifying part of their coronavirus plan.” Stating that: “The bill will introduce sweeping measures,” the article published an alarming quote on Twitter from ITV’s political editor, Robert Peston, that summed up the enormity of the proposal:
“There has never in my lifetime been a law that so encroached on our civil liberties and basic rights as the Coronavirus Bill, scheduled to become law by end of month. It is all aimed at keeping us safe. But the transfer of unchallengeable power to the state for two years is… huge. It covers everything from burials, to holding those who threaten national security for longer, to closing borders, to detaining those with mental health issues, to empowering the police to quarantine those with the virus, and much more. This is… wartime stuff.”
Others chimed in on Twitter: QuantumChoices #FBPE @tfoale 18 Mar “They’re handling it extremely badly – according to the world’s experts. Just like they’re handling brexit really badly, according to the economists and trade experts. This is a government that doesn’t like experts, remember. They prefer sycophants.”
In a subsequent Article the Canary reveal that: “The bill will change the following around mental health care and support:
• It will now only take one doctor’s approval to have a person sectioned (detained) under the Mental Health Act. Previously two doctors had to agree to this course of action. This protected people from biased, incorrect, negligent, or unfair decisions.
• Time limits on detaining people in a mental health setting will be removed. Currently, medical professionals can detain people for up to 6 months at first, depending on circumstance. This will now be open-ended, meaning if you’re in psychological distress you can be locked up indefinitely.”
Such sweeping powers are incredibly dangerous with malevolent leadership in absolute majority control of Government as we now have. In this same piece the Canary also warn that the bill will permit Hospitals to discharge patients back into the community without regard for their ongoing care and allow Councils to ditch their responsibility towards care of the disabled and vulnerable including children. The affect on our judicial system could turn trials into “Kangaroo Courts” with expedited procedures that will put Human Rights at risk just as Brexit will allow the Tories to eliminate most of the right we now enjoy.
There were ominous warning signs on page 48 of the Tory Manifesto that they planned to attack the basic rights of citizens, both Workers Rights as well as Human Rights, especially members of targeted minority groups like the gypsies. The Coronavirus Bill will accelerate our loss of liberty under “Medical Marshal Law” with the Social Safety net now being stripped away even more swiftly and more radically than we had once feared. Within this Article there is a letter that the Canary have drafted, appealing for people to send a copy to their MPs to prevent such lack of responsibility.
Alarmed by what the Canary describe as: “all these changes are unprecedented” they quote civil liberties group Big Brother Watch on Twitter: “The law will last 2 years. Government must justify this length given the severity of the measures, which will interfere with the everyday lives of people in the UK. A shorter duration with a sunset clause would ensure the powers are strictly temporary & promptly reviewed.
It’s right that Government takes rapid & robust action, but good laws are rarely made in haste & rights are too often the casualty of crisis. The Opposition & civil society have important roles to play in scrutinising emergency powers to protect both public health & human rights.”
The Canary are concerned that measures enacted in haste will be retained for a very long time, warning: “But what Big Brother Watch fails to address is whether the powers in the bill will actually last two years; or whether the Tories will merely keep these existing power in law permanently. Because the way the legislation is being passed, they have the power to do this.”
The Covid 19 health crisis could help this radical hard Right faction of the Tory Government to usher in the full scale dictatorship we fear they had planned all along. This fear is amply justified by the alarming pledges on page 48 of the Tory Manifesto where there were warnings of attacks on the power of the Judiciary and a Tory reinvention of what Human Rights will remain in place after leaving the EU. There has been an extremely rapid and alarming reduction of the BBC presentations that might render any criticism of the Government: control of the press and state broadcasting is a classic warning sign of dictatorship!
Due to the distraction of the Covid 19 crisis, thankfully the forced opposition party grovelling in support of the Covert 2019 Rigged Election result is no longer as repetitive and nauseating as it once, but the public cannot be conned into thinking that there will be a progressive comeback in five years time. Future “Elections” will be purely cosmetic attempts to justify continuation of strict Tory authoritarian rule. Voter ID checks will disenfranchise millions of the most vulnerable potential voters and the introduction of electronic voting machines will greatly simplify vote fraud in future.
We need to strengthen and increase the powers of our Electoral Commission, but that will never be an issue worth addressing for the Tory Government who so richly benefit from slack regulations and nonexistent oversight. “Do not expect the Fox to pitch in with long overdue repairs to the Hen House!” Even if no concrete evidentiary proof of fraud is uncovered in an investigation it will still expose the unacceptable weaknesses in our Electoral System: A watchdog that cannot watch is just a dog! We must commit to Rescue our Watchdog as All Votes Must Count.
Why now during the Covid 19 crisis? This global pandemic is clearly demonstrating the critical importance of strong, trustworthy leadership, something that is sadly lacking in Boris Johnson. The lies, chronic blunders, dangerous mistakes, u-turns and cruel calculations that have characterized his handling of the response to Covid 19 have sunk the UK into an even deeper pit of shame called out by world leaders. As the death toll climbs it could fuel public outcry and a revolt against this rogue Tory Government. The PM’s shallow “Get Brexit Done” mantle can no longer hide his nakedness and incompetent lack of leadership in a real crisis.
Demanding a comprehensive investigation into the Covert 2019 Rigged Election result is vital to exposing the corruption that could now cost thousands of lives in the UK. Removing the Tories from office is a top priority in order restore the sanity of adhering to WHO guidelines, properly supporting our NHS staff and enabling a progressive Government to protect the lives of all our people instead of just finding more ways to squander public money on the elite. Progressive socialist policies will prove key to our survival as a nation, but we cannot continue to beg for them piecemeal from a Tory Government that promoted the fake science of “Herd Immunity” fully prepared to sacrifice the most vulnerable and “Slaughter the Sheeple!”.