Ed Miliband: ‘I still believe in prison reform’

by Sunny Hundal    
May 20, 2011 at 10:00 am

Ed Miliband has written an article for today’s Independent titled: Why I was right to demand that Clarke should go.

He starts off by attacking Ken Clarke for his recent comments:

In interviews he talked of “serious rape” involving “violence and an unwilling woman”.

He differentiated between “serious attacks” and “date rape”. He talked of “classic rape”. In this he wasn’t just insensitive. He was wrong.

The Sentencing Guidelines Council makes it clear that no one form of rape is inherently a more serious violation to the victim than another.

He goes on to talk about his policy on reforming the prison justice system.

This means:

- No reduction in sentencing or leniency for serious crimes including rape.

Halving sentences for violent criminals including rapists who plead guilty will do nothing to increase safety on our streets and it gives prison reform a bad name.

- Focus on rehabilitation and reform when it comes to some minor crimes:

In February I told an audience: “Tougher prison sentences aren’t always the answer. I think there are times when people get locked up and come out as harder criminals. Some non-violent offenders can be better punished with a tough community sentence, working off their debt to communities over months rather than getting off with a few days in jail.

“I’ll support the Government if they bring forward sensible proposals to deal with drugs in prisons and drug addiction and mental illness among offenders.”

That audience was not a Howard League meeting. It was readers of The Sun newspaper.

- Saying the government isn’t interested in reform, but merely cuts

Their prison policy is based not on the need for reform or increased rehabilitation for offenders. It is based on the need to cut costs. Their police policy isn’t based on what will make the streets safer but how to quickly find a 20 per cent cut in the police budget.

Only a Justice Secretary who has allowed cutting his departmental budget to be put ahead of real reform could accept an arbitrary cut in prison places.

Sounds like a sensible and populist position to take.

Poll: Most think govt not listening on NHS

by Sunny Hundal    
May 20, 2011 at 9:30 am

A poll by YouGov for campaign group 38 degrees yesterday found that most people don’t believe Andrew Lansley is listening to concerns over the NHS.

Yougov asked:

The government are currently planning to reform the NHS. Currently health services are commissioned by local Heath Trusts. Under the government’s plans local Heath Trusts would be abolished, and health services would instead be commissioned by consortiums made up of groups of local GPs.

Following opposition from doctors, health professionals, some MPs and the public, in April the Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, announced a ‘listening exercise’ to gather people’s views on his plans. Do you think Health Secretary Andrew Lansley does or does not genuinely want to listen to the public’s views?

Response
Genuinely does want to listen to the public’s views – 21%
Does not genuinely want to listen to the public’s views – 55%
Don’t know – 24%

Meanwhile, a poll for Ipsos-Mori found the NHS is now the biggest issue of concern to voters after the Economy and Unemployment.

We need an audit into why the Yes2AV campaign performed so badly

by Anthony Barnett    
May 20, 2011 at 9:02 am

At least three big stories are emerging from the debacle of the Yes to AV campaign.

First, that the strategy of its controlling management was strategically dishonest. Second, that it was run with appalling waste and incompetence and that the two main funders (JRRT and the ERS) may suffer from it. Third, that despite this an exceptionally important independent cross-party network of volunteers and activists was “galvanised” by campaign.
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How Ken Clarke could redeem himself

by Guest    
May 19, 2011 at 8:17 pm

contribution by Emma Poole

I’m not sure it’s a task anyone could achieve but if he followed the little bit of “soapbox” advice I’m going to give here, then it’d help redeem him in my eyes.

As you may be aware I am a rape survivor. Luckily it wasn’t a “serious” rape as he didn’t punch me at the same time! To me though, it has been a curse.
continue reading… »

Open meeting to oppose Nadine Dorries’ agenda

by Sunny Hundal    
May 19, 2011 at 4:28 pm

This week Nadine Dorries said on the Vanessa Show that “If young girls were taught abstinence, there would be less sexual abuse.”

She has proposed girls-only abstinence classes become a mandatory part of the national curriculum.

And Dorries and Frank Field have made the first attempt since the coalition came into office to restrict abortion access.

Of course, this is only the latest attempt by the Dorries-Field double act to chip away at abortion access for women in England, Scotland and Wales. To just keep abortion rights in the state they are now is going to be a serious endeavor, and those behind these latest efforts have their end-game in sight and their strategy is already in play.

So Jess McCabe from The F Word and I are organising a strategy meeting.

We’ll be talking about what we can do to step up the response by pro-choice/reproductive justice activists, which backs up, supports and amplifies the work that groups such as Abortion Rights and Education for Choice are already doing.

Details
The meeting will be on Monday 6 June, starting at 6:30pm (get there for 6!)

It will be free to attend.
It will be at a pub in central London.
The details of the location will be emailed to all those who RSVP.
There will be speakers (TBC)

If you would like to come, please RSVP to jess.mccabe[AT]thefword[dot]org[dot]uk

Note: places are very limited because of the size of the venue. Please let us know as soon as you can.

Ed M gets praise for being tough on crime, but its also a trap

by Sunny Hundal    
May 19, 2011 at 2:27 pm

The Ken Clarke car-crash has created some bizarre (no doubt temporary) alliances.

Feminists called for Ken Clarke to go, along with Ed Miliband. Today, they are joined by the Sun newspaper, which praised Ed Miliband in its leading comment.

WELL done, Ed Miliband. Did The Sun really say that? Yes, we did.

The Labour leader is quite right to demand that David Cameron sack Ken Clarke for his outrageous, offensive and prehistoric views on rape.

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What happened to Libdem promises on social care?

by Guest    
May 19, 2011 at 2:03 pm

contribution by Richard Blogger

The Health and Social Care Bill addresses social care on every page: because it is in the title that is on every page. The Bill does not address the huge issues in social care at the moment, it does not address the forthcoming crisis in social care.

The Liberal Democrat manifesto says this:

We will integrate health and social care to create a seamless service, ending bureaucratic barriers and saving money to allow people to stay in their homes for longer rather than going into hospital or longterm residential care.

Cue applause from yours truly. Has the Health and Social Care Bill done this? No, not at all.
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Blogs to host debates at Compass conference

by Newswire    
May 19, 2011 at 10:00 am

Campaign group Compass is holding its annual conference at the Institute of Education in London on 25th June.

The Robin Cook Memorial Conference will bring together over 1000 centre-left activists, campaigners and thinkers, for discussion and debate.

The event will feature over 90 speakers including: Jon Cruddas MP; Caroline Lucas MP; Chuka Umunna MP; Prof Richard Sennett; Baroness Prof Ruth Lister CBE; Polly Toynbee, The Guardian; Mehdi Hasan, New Statesman; John Harris, The Guardian; John Kampfner, Index on Censorship; Hilary Wainwright, Red Pepper; Frances O’Grady, TUC; Paul Mason, BBC; Peter Kellner, YouGov; Andrew Simms, nef; Deborah Grayson, Climate Rush; Kat Banyard, UK Feminista and many more.

Left-wing blogs will be hosting their own debates for the first time.

Liberal Conspiracy, Left Foot Forward and LabourList will join UKuncut, Action Aid, Child Poverty Action Group; the Co-Operative Party, 38 Degrees, The Electoral Reform Society, The Equality Trust, Fabian Society, Friends of the Earth, Green Party, Greenpeace, Oxfam, Progress, Red Pepper, Republic, Searchlight, Shelter, Robin Hood Tax Campaign, Social Liberal Forum, Unions 21; UK Feminista, World Development Movement and many others in holding events.

The conference is held in association with: FES; New Statesman; The Guardian

More details: http://www.compassonline.org.uk/conference/register.asp

Five recent NHS scandals you should know about

by Paul Cotterill    
May 19, 2011 at 9:25 am

The Tories’ mismanagement of the NHS is so great that I may have to make this a regular monthly feature.

This is just what I’ve picked up on the wires, and we’ve not even got to the Health Bill yet.

1) 37% cuts over five years
NHS Monitor wrote to the Trusts and applicants on 27th April about its new assessment criteria that will be introduced just 4 days later on 1st May. It tells them they need to cut expenditure by 37% over five years.
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Minutes show Cameron met NHS advisor Britnell despite claims

by Sunny Hundal    
May 19, 2011 at 8:50 am

During PMQs yesterday David Cameron was asked about Mark Britnell, who said the NHS would be “shown no mercy” in its privatisation.

Cameron replied: “I’ve never heard of this person in my life”, and tried to turn the tables around by saying he was actually linked to the previous Labour government.

But this is odd coming from the Prime Minister for several reasons.

First, Britnell was appointed by Downing Street just days ago to a “kitchen cabinet” of advisors who were to meet regularly to offer Number 10 advice on NHS policy.

Did Cameron not even know who was advising him? Did he not meet them?

Second, Mark Britnell was chief executive of NHS South Central during the Labour government. The health authority covered the Oxfordshire area, including David Cameron’s constituency of Witney.

A briefing paper published by the Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust has evidence that David Cameron then did meet Mark Britnell.

It details a meeting between David Cameron and health officials, including Mark Britnell, on 16th February 2007.

(thanks to @neilrfoster for alerting us)

Britnell was appointed NHS South Central’s first chief executive in 2006.

Either Cameron didn’t pay attention who was building a hospital in his own back yard, even after meeting him, or he’s lying.

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