At a time when Civil Liberties are increasing under treat from the Labour Government the Liberal Democrats Conference defended them. The Conference condemned the Government's repeated attempted to extend the power of the state over the citizen without adequate justification or appropriate safeguards.
The Liberal Democrats have this morning discussed the problems of Anti-Social Behaviour and how best to tackle the root causes and the problem itself. Although 2,600 ASBO's issued last year (550 by one Council alone), they do not appear to have tackled the problem or the causes. Conference applauded the approach taken by Liberal Democrat controlled Councils who try to tackle the root causes to prevent the Anti-Social Behaviour taking place with methods like acceptable behaviour contracts.
The Home Secretary, Charles Clarke, today sought EU support for new anti-terrorism laws. He hopes to persuade the European parliament to re-examine the way in which the European Convention on Human Rights has been interpreted, saying the interpretation needed to change in order to take into account the al-Qa'eda threat. During the debate the Home Secretary attacked Lib Dem MEP Sajjad Karim, calling him "particularly ignorant and ill-informed". Mr Karim hit back, saying, "Is it uninformed to say that undue restrictions on the liberty of our citizens may assist the very extremists we seek to destroy? Is it ignorant to say that to combat the terrorist threat we need the help of Muslim communities?"
MEPs today backed a compromise negotiated by Liberal Democrat MEP and shadow rapporteur for the Optical Radiation Directive Liz Lynne to allow member states to decide whether to introduce the anti-sun directive. The decision on whether Bare-chested builders and other outdoor workers will have to cover up has been left to national governments after a vote today in the European Parliament.
PLANS to redevelop commercial buildings in Epping have been slammed by the town council as an attack on the town's heritage.
Here is a round up of news stories from your Epping Liberal Democrat Focus Team: