Britannia Radio

TaxPayers' Alliance Bulletin - 15th January 2010

 

How to fix democracy? Vote now

 

You may remember that shortly before Christmas we mentioned that the TPA is taking part in Power 2010, the campaign to pick and promote the five most popular policies to enhance democracy in Britain. Along with several other campaign groups, think tanks and trade unions from right across the political spectrum, we proposed two ideas for how to help mend our broken democracy. Now they've drawn up the short list and opened it up to a public vote. We would of course recommend that you vote for the TPA's two proposals, which are: the power of recall, so voters can sack bad MPs between elections, and a radical expansion of the crucial Freedom of Information Act, to expose much more information about how the public sector and its contractors operate (click to vote). You can vote for as many ideas as you like, and there are a wide range on there from scrapping ID cards to devolution for England, so do have a look at the full list here.

 

MPs' expenses consultation: Have you had your say? 

Thank you to the thousands of you who have used our guide to the MPs' expenses consultation in the last few days. There is still time to reply to the consultation and force the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority to listen to us and build a tough system for MPs' expenses. We really can't emphasise enough the importance of not letting them off the hook at this final stage. If you have already responded, please email the link on to your friends and family and ask them to take part, too. If you haven't, click here and get involved!  

 

Edging closer on public spending

 

We mentioned in our last bulletin that the early shots of the election campaign already seem to be themed around taxation and spending. Encouragingly, George Osborne's first major speech of the year was about the urgency of reducing public spending. While the sentiment is good, and it's nice to see that what detail there is seems to be inspire by our How to save £50 billion report, we still need to hear a lot more detail about how the deficit can be cut . Mike Denham has done a write-up of Osborne's comments here, which gives the taxpayer point of view.

 

Calling TPA supporters in Surrey

Do you live in Surrey? If so, Peter Webb (pictured) of the Surrey TaxPayers' Alliance would like to hear from you. Founded in 2003 as the Surrey Tax Action Group (STAG), and now affiliated with the TPA, our Surrey branch is one of the most active in the country and are always looking for new supporters and activists. The Surrey TPA has a great media profile, is formally recognised by Surrey County Council as a leading local voice on taxpayer value and has run a series of successful campaigns to expose waste and change public policies for the better. Peter and the other branch members are passionately committed to promoting better government and financial accountability. If you live in the area and would like to hear more or get involved, please contact Peter at STPA@pgwebb.com You can also read the latest instalment of Peter's monthly campaign diary here.

 

Best of the Blogs

 

Campaign: The Government resort to Brass Eye for ideas  
Campaign: Nick Clegg breaks out some New Year honesty  

European Union: Eat food - official  
European Union: Esponage  
European Union: Ruling the waves

Burning Our Money: A slow or sudden death?  
Non-Job of the Week: Bexley Borough Council: Biodiversity Officer  

 

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