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Data loss fiasco must signal end for ID cards, says David Heath
David Heath is calling for the Government to scrap its plans for compulsory ID cards following the revelation that the personal details of 25 million parents and children have been lost by the Government’s Revenue and Customs department (HMRC), and may have fallen into the hands of identity fraudsters.
David Heath said: “The fiasco at HMRC has clearly shown the dangers of the Government holding huge amounts of information about every single one of us whilst being slipshod in the way that same information is looked after.
“This whole saga of incompetence has been shocking and families in Somerton and Frome are now rightly asking whether their personal details are safe.
“The National Identity Register, which the Government are setting up as part of the Identity Card scheme, will hold even more information on each and every one of us than Customs and Revenue managed to lose.
“This is a clear illustration of the real dangers of a big brother centralised state. State control of personal identity details is a real threat to our civil liberties. The Government should respond to the anger and now abandon its ID card scheme. It is clear that the Government cannot be trusted to manage effectively mass databases of personal information.
”The Liberal Democrats opposed Identity Cards when the scheme went through Parliament. We said the scheme would be expensive, misguided and insecure. This latest debacle shows just what is at risk.
“The Government must end the Identity Card scheme for good in order to ensure that we do not risk a personal data disaster on an even more catastrophic scale.”
Somerset the best when it comes to rubbish, says David Heath
David Heath has expressed his delight at seeing Somerset lead the way in reducing household waste.
Somerset County Council had the third lowest residual household waste of any local authority in the country. It also had the second highest recycling and composting rate, recycling over 47% of its waste, compared to a national average of 31%.
Mr. Heath was similarly pleased to see that residents in South Somerset produced the least amount of residual waste per household in the country. South Somerset District Council also had the tenth lowest total household waste per head.
David Heath said: “I am delighted to see the people of Somerset leading the battle against climate change by recycling lots of our household waste. It is fantastic that Somerset County Council has the second highest recycling rate in the country and that we recycle nearly half of all our waste. With a little effort, I hope next year we can top the table and push our recycling rate over 50%.
“I am similarly pleased to see South Somerset District Council also featuring so high up the lists in DEFRA’s annual waste tables. The District Council has worked incredibly hard to reduce residual waste to the lowest level in the country.
“I must congratulate the County Council, South Somerset District Council and all the residents of Somerset, who have put so much effort into reducing waste and increasing recycling. These figures have confirmed what I have suspected for some time – the people of Somerset are the greenest in the country.”
David Heath gets the hump over Japanese whaling
David Heath yesterday adopted a humpback whale to demonstrate his opposition to Japanese whaling.
At a meeting of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Mr. Heath adopted ‘Tasco’ to highlight the need to protect this vulnerable species, now being targeted by Japan’s whaling fleet.
The humpback whale has been protected from whaling for more than four decades but the Japanese have included 50 humpbacks (in a total of nearly 1,000 whales) during its annual ‘scientific’ whale hunt in the Southern Ocean Sanctuary in Antarctica.
David Heath said: “I am very happy to be adopting Tasco in a show of support for the International Fund for Animal Welfare’s campaign to protect this magnificent species from the cruel and unnecessary practice of whaling.
“Whaling has no place in the modern world and Britain must lead the fight against this outdated and barbaric practice.”
Commenting further, Robbie Marsland, Director of IFAW UK, added: “IFAW is very grateful David Heath MP for showing his support for the whales. Whaling is inherently cruel – there is simply no humane way to kill a whale.
“We urge the UK Government and other anti-whaling nations to take diplomatic action at the highest levels to protect whales.”
David Heath congratulates award-winners on funding boost
David Heath has congratulated two groups on winning funding from the Awards for All Programme.
Wessex Counselling Service has been awarded £10,000 and Frome Selwood Photographic Society has been awarded £3,350.
The awards programme is supported by the Arts Council England, the Big Lottery Fund, the Heritage Lottery Fund and Sport England. Grants of between £300 and £10,000 are awarded ‘for people to take part in art, sport, heritage and community activities, and projects that promote education, the environment and health in the local community.’
The Wessex Counselling Service will use the grant to provide a counseling service to adults from a deprived area of Frome and will also make a creche available for local children.
David Heath said: “It is great to see the valuable work and services offered by the Wessex Counselling Service have been rewarded with this grant. The money will ensure that in future people from all age groups, from the very young in the creche, to adults across Frome who will now be able to receive vital counseling services.
“It is vital that we have schemes in place to assist those in the community in need of support and advice, who often have nowhere to turn to. I congratulate the service on the grant, and I have no doubt that it will be a huge success.”
Frome Selwood Photographic Society will use the money to fund its annual photographic exhibition and expand access to its workshops for local people and community groups.
David Heath said: “I understand that the award will be used to expand the society’s print exhibition, which will have a special emphasis on the local youth. It is important that younger generations become more involved in community projects.
“Photography is an excellent way to record and capture life in Frome and across Somerset today. I am delighted that the society has received funding to allow many new people to become involved in this interesting and worthwhile activity, and I wish them every success in their endeavours.”
David Heath canters into racing dispute
David Heath has warned that a bitter dispute between the big bookies and the racing industry risks disaster for not only racecourses like Wincanton but also local racecourse training yards.
Speaking in a debate in the House of Commons today, Mr. Heath warned that a reduction in the levy, the money paid from bookmakers to the racing industry, from £90 million to £33 million, as the bookies are demanding, will drastically reduce prize money and have a devastating knock-on effect.
David Heath said: “If the levy is cut it will undoubtedly reduce prize money in elite races, which will damage Britain’s international reputation for top-class racing. It will also be very harmful to middle-size race courses like Wincanton which are the backbone of the industry. Smaller and less well-supported courses will face closure.
“That will have a knock-on effect on training yards, which will be a great disappointment to the area, as we have locally some of the best yards in the country.
“Racing provides entertainment and employment to a great many people, and is very much part of our local scene. It should not be put at risk by the avarice of the bookies.”
David Heath backs Clegg for Lib Dem leadership
David Heath, Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice Secretary (and himself a former Deputy Leader Candidate) has today endorsed Nick Clegg’s bid to be Leader of the Liberal Democrats.
Mr. Heath’s backing gives Mr. Clegg a clean sweep of MPs in Somerset as David Laws, Don Foster and Jeremy Browne have already voiced their support.
David Heath said: “I have been hugely impressed by the positive and outward looking campaign that Nick Clegg has run. I have never publicly endorsed a leadership candidate in the past, but in this case I really feel that Nick embodies the future of the party.
“I have been impressed that he has focused on the issues that matter to people – education, health, personal liberties, and the environment – and shows an impressive grasp of the challenges that will face the country in the coming years, as well as a thorough understanding of Britain’s place in the world.
“Somerset has long and proud liberal tradition and currently has four Liberal Democrat MPs, all of whom are backing Nick. I believe Nick is an excellent candidate who is capable of building on the strong support the party enjoys in Somerset and the rest of the West Country and developing it in the country at large.”
In response to the endorsement, Nick Clegg MP added: “I am, as ever, delighted and humbled that David has given me his endorsement. I have worked with David for some time on the Home Affairs brief and am all too aware of the contribution he makes to the team, as well as to the party as a whole.
“I am hugely grateful to him for his support as we move into the crucial ballot period.”
Government still unwilling to tackle major constitutional issues
David Heath has urged the Government to be more radical and progressive on the issue of constitutional reform after the Constitutional Renewal (draft) Bill was announced in today’s Queen’s Speech.
David Heath said: “This is a long overdue step towards fairer and more transparent government from an administration that has been obsessed with centralisation and control for a decade.
“It is sad that ministers are still unwilling or unable to tackle the most difficult constitutional issues of our time like fixed term parliaments, devolving power to local government and reform of the deeply unfair voting system.”
Commenting further on possible reforms to the party funding system, Mr. Heath added: “It is clear to everyone that if we are to have a fair and transparent party funding system then reform is needed urgently. The other two main parties seem to have lost sight of this fact in their desperation to secure crude political advantage. The public deserve better from their political parties.
“The Liberal Democrats believe that public confidence in the party funding system will only be restored through comprehensive reform rather than measures motivated purely by party self-interest.”
David Heath calls for action as fly-tipping rockets by 50 per cent
David Heath has urged the Government to take action against fly-tippers after the latest figures revealed a significant increase in fly-tipping incidents in the area in the last year.
In South Somerset there were 1,378 incidents in 2006/07, compared to 910 in 2005/06 – an increase of 51%. While Mendip also saw an increase in fly tipping of 31%, from 910 incidents in 2005/06 to 1,378 last year.
The estimated cost of clearing up the rubbish was £85, 861 in South Somerset – an increase of 35% on the estimated £63,676 that was spent in 2005/06. In Mendip, costs increased by 15%, from £52,608 in 2005/06 to £60,343 last year.
However, in that two year period no prosecutions were taken against anyone for fly-tipping, either in South Somerset or Mendip.
David Heath said: “It is clear from these worrying figures that fly-tipping is a rapidly increasing nuisance in South Somerset, Mendip and many other areas of the country.
“It is no good Joan Ruddock and the Government lecturing local authorities about the problem – their own legislation in this area has made things worse and has often left unfortunate landowners to foot the bill.
“I am staggered that there have been no prosecutions taken against fly-tippers in either Mendip or South Somerset in the last two years. This blight on the countryside will only be prevented if enforcement and punishment are taken seriously by the Government.
“The Government need to set the standard and give clear guidance to local authorities if they are to have any chance of tackling this increasing annoyance.”
David Heath urges local firms to enter the 'business oscars'
David Heath is urging firms in his constituency to enter the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Manufacturing Excellence (MX) Awards 2008.
The Awards are the most prestigious ‘Oscars’ in the business world and benchmark the best practice in UK manufacturing.
The MX Awards were set up over 25 years ago to promote and protect UK industry, and since then numerous awards have been handed out every year in a wide range of categories.
Many of the biggest names in business are sponsoring the event, the finals of which are held at the Dorchester Hotel next June.
David Heath said: “I hope to see as many companies from Somerset as possible enter MX2008, as the competition is known as the national hallmark of best practice in manufacturing and we, as MPs, should be doing all we can to support the country’s manufacturing industry.
“I have no doubt that there are many businesses in Somerton and Frome that exhibit the ingenuity and creativity to enter the 2008 awards, and I encourage them to get involved in this excellent scheme.”
Tory walk-out on party funding talks a tragedy, says Heath
David Heath has expressed his disappointment at the suspension of the All-Party Talks on Party Funding.
Mr. Heath, who led for the Liberal Democrats in the talks, was left frustrated after the Conservatives and Labour were unable to agree on setting limits on campaign spending and on donations.
David Heath said: “It is in the interests of good politics in this country that we find a way to reverse the arms race in party spending and curb the flagrant abuses in the current system. Following the loans for peerages scandals that is clearly what the public expected us to do.
“Sir Hayden Phillips and the representatives of all three main parties have worked hard over six months to do just that, and we were close to an agreement that involved all parties making concessions in the public interest. We did so in good faith and assuming all were committed to reform. Sir Hayden is to be congratulated for his patience and good sense in seeking to achieve those goals.
“For the Conservatives to now in effect walk away is a tragedy, and very short-sighted on their part. It is clear that, far from the radical reform they claimed to want to see, they are now primarily motivated by party self-interest and are happy to continue to employ the deep pockets of their major donors to secure their political objectives, and in particular to pour money into marginal seats. It is instructive that their attitude changed substantially as soon as Lord Ashcroft moved into Central Office.
“It is a depressing outcome for a once-in-a-generation opportunity to secure lasting reform. The test now for Jack Straw and the Government is whether they can resist their own tribal instincts and continue down the road of greater transparency and accountability for trade union donations set out in the draft agreement.
"If they can, then something of value can be rescued. Liberal Democrats will work with any parties still committed to genuine reform of the system, but we will reject any measure based on crude party advantage. The public deserve better.”