Victoria Atkins, Conservative Candidate for Louth & Horncastle, welcomed the Lord Chancellor’s confirmation that there would be a new UK Bill of Rights, replacing the Human Rights Act.
“2015 is the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. This anniversary should be celebrated with a new commitment to the rights and responsibilities that we consider to be fundamental to life in our country, and not as dictated by judges in Strasbourg,”she commented.
David Cameron announced this commitment in his Conference speech and it will be in the Conservatives’ General Election manifesto.
Victoria Atkins has played a significant part in producing these proposals, co-authoring a paper entitled “A Magna Carta for 2015” for Conservative Policy Forum, the Party’s national policy network.
“I know from my work prosecuting criminals that the Human Rights Act is a failed Labour experiment”commented theTory Candidate. “Sadly, the term “human rights” has now fallen into disrepute in this country. For many people it denotes not fairness or equality but unfairness and inequality.”
“This is due, in part, to decisions made by courts in which the rights of criminals and the irresponsible appear to count for more than the rights of the responsible, law-abiding majority.”
“It is right” she concluded “that our country, which codified human rights as long ago as 1215, should take back and control the freedoms that we all hold dear.”
“Labour’s failed Act will be abolished by a Conservative Government.”