Enabling the Public to call a General Election
Martin Vickers Excerpts(2 years, 1 month ago)
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Richard Burgon
I thank the hon. Member, who is ever assiduous in attending and contributing to these important debates, for his intervention. My opinion is that this Government have had more than enough chances to deliver, and while we disagree on the need for a general election now, I will make some wider points that he might be interested in considering.
I hope that this discussion will help to kick-start a conversation about why we need to modernise our democracy to empower ordinary people and prevent an unrepresentative Government or unrepresentative Governments from clinging on to power when people have had enough. Of course, such a mechanism should only be able to be used in extraordinary times, but the current crisis shows why it is needed.
Such a Bill is part of a series of measures that we need to restore trust in our democracy. For example, last year I introduced a Bill seeking to ban MPs from taking second jobs. My latest proposal is for a form of recall mechanism, and it is a response to the political crisis we face. We have had two new Prime Ministers since the public last had their say at the 2019 election. Just 80,000 Conservative party members put one of those Prime Ministers into Downing Street, and even fewer people had a say with her successor, who was chosen solely by Conservative MPs. Both these Prime Ministers have been intent on tearing up the promises that their party was elected on in 2019. For example, who voted in the 2019 election for the new wave of austerity that looks set to be announced later this week?
This Government have no mandate. They have also undermined political trust. Institute for Public Policy Research findings on levels of trust in our politics should concern every single Member of this House. It found that trust in politicians is at the lowest level on record, with two in three now seeing politicians as “merely out for themselves” and just 4% of British people believing that parliamentarians are doing their best for the country. No one side in this House can take satisfaction from this. Voters across the political spectrum are united in their distrust: 67% of remain voters, 68% of leave voters, 64% of Conservative voters and 69% of Labour voters believe that politicians are merely out for themselves.
Trust, I am afraid, is in free fall. The 9% fall we have witnessed over the last 18 months shows a rapid acceleration of growing distrust. In comparison, it took seven years for the previous drop of 9 percentage points, and 42 years before that. The IPPR warns that a decrease in trust in politicians is profoundly disturbing. It is linked to long-term damaging consequences such as lower voter turnout, especially among under-represented groups. The Office for National Statistics reports similar concerns with trust in our democratic institutions. Deep reform of our economy and politics will be needed to address this.
It is clear that our democracy is not fit for purpose, and there are two ways of dealing with this crisis of democracy. There is the method of this Government, which is to attack hard-won civil liberties and curtail democratic rights. This authoritarian drift combines anti-trade union legislation with draconian attacks on the right to peaceful protest and voter suppression through the introduction of voter ID, which will target black, Asian and minority ethnic and working-class voters. This authoritarian approach has even led to police arresting journalists covering protests. The alternative is to strengthen democratic rights and modernise our democratic processes.
That brings me on to my proposal, which is a form of recall procedure through a verified petition to call a general election. The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance describes such recall processes as a form of “direct democracy” and a
“political instrument through which the electorate in a particular electoral jurisdiction can express their dissatisfaction.”
It adds that
“the procedure of the recall is associated with the idea that representatives must remain accountable to the people who elected them.”
So, voters should be able to terminate the mandate before the end of a term when their representatives fall short of expectations.
Welp and Whitehead explain in their 2020 book “The Politics of Recall” that
“The idea of ‘recall’ elections is not a last minute ‘add on’ to principles of representative government, but a logical strand of thought interwoven into its foundational reasoning.”
In the same book, Matt Qvortrup traces the development of the recall in the history of political philosophy from the Roman republic to the present day. While I do not have time today to recount the history of recalls in full, I would like to highlight that movements that did so much in the development of our own democracy envisaged mechanisms with echoes of what I am proposing today. During the English revolution, the leading Leveller, Lieutenant Colonel John Lilburne, championed recall as one of the democratic correctives to the risk of an oppressive, overbearing Parliament. The Chartists envisioned annual elections, with the arguments given then not so different from those offered by contemporary movements in favour of recall. There was even a provision for the recall of congressmen by their voters in the first draft of the American constitution written by James Madison.
Later in the United States, the Socialist Labour party and the Populist party pushed that idea as we approached the 20th century. Recall was then included in the new charter of the city of Los Angeles in 1903, and within a decade, it had been taken up by 200 cities and three states. Switzerland was the first modern liberal democracy to introduce recall at the end of the 19th century, although only at a sub-national level.
In the post-war era, recall was used as part of a series of direct democratic provisions in Japan from 1947 to empower citizens with the right to initiate petitions to dissolve local assemblies, recall individual assembly members and recall mayors or governors. More recently, the push for recall has been linked with the introduction of democracy. After the demise of Latin American dictatorships in the 1980s, recall increased its presence and integrated representative democracy with participatory democracy. Likewise, Germany and Poland introduced recall powers after the fall of the Berlin wall.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
I allowed the hon. Gentleman to develop his argument, because I assumed that he was going to at least give a date by which time a recall would be permissible. Surely, if we are to have any form of stable Government, there must be a time limit between the election of a Government and a recall petition of at least—what?—two years?
Richard Burgon
The hon. Gentleman anticipates the point that I will move on to. It may be a case of great minds think alike.
That brings us to today. A form of recall power exists in a diverse range of countries and political systems. Over the past century, the countries that have made the greatest use of recall are Peru, Japan, the United States and Poland. Academic researchers note that recall provisions also exist at one level of Government or another—local, regional or national—in Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Germany, Japan, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Latvia and Switzerland.
Perhaps the most famous case of recall in recent decades is the 2003 recall in California of Governor Gray Davis, where growing dissatisfaction about energy provision and public services led to the election of Governor Schwarzenegger. Because of the high interest in the recall election, the new governor received 650,000 more votes in his election than Governor Davis had received. Recall is generally used to remove individual elected officials, including Presidents, but there are examples, including the German Land of Berlin, where recall, initiated and approved by citizens, can be applied to the entire Parliament. Latvia goes even further: the electorate have a constitutional right to initiate a national referendum to recall Parliament. It is worth noting that recall is now supported by the largest progressive party in France. Mexico held its first-ever national recall election on the President earlier this year. Although that was initiated by the President, perhaps Mexico will be the next country to hold a citizen-initiated recall in the future.
According to Welp and Whitehead, the recall is currently in a “boom phase”, with Welp noting that recall provisions
“have been introduced more frequently since the 1980s”,
while
“in the past were restricted to small municipalities, they have recently reached bigger units such as California, Warsaw, Lima and even presidents.”
Why is recall becoming more popular? Welp and Whitehead explain that
“citizen dissatisfaction with their elected representatives is sufficiently acute and widespread to generate persistent pressure for the introduction of more direct forms of accountability.”
They argue that although recall is not without risk,
“There is some serious empirical support for the proposition that recall mechanisms...can indeed provide genuine improvements to the quality and credibility of democratic institutions when introduced and integrated into the rest of the representative system in a careful and constructive manner.”
My proposal would, as a starting point, seek to amend the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022 to allow people to directly call an election under the following circumstances: first, if we are more than halfway through the five-year maximum period for a Parliament; and secondly, if at least half the number of voters in the previous general election endorse the call for an early general election via an official petition process.
Oral Answers to Questions
Martin Vickers Excerpts(2 years, 5 months ago)
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The Prime Minister
This is the country that secured furlough and that delivered the vaccine across the whole of the UK, while the SNP gets on with overtaxing to the tune of £900 million—that is how much they are overtaxing in Scotland. And we had a referendum in 2014.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
I know that my right hon. Friend is aware of the importance of the seafood processing industry to the Grimsby-Cleethorpes area. However, there is one cloud on the horizon: the recently imposed 35% tariff on white fish, which is causing industry leaders considerable concern even though they recognise the importance of maintaining sanctions on Russia. Will my right hon. Friend arrange meetings with me and my hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby (Lia Nici) with the appropriate Ministers, so we can discuss measures to mitigate the impact on the industry?
The Prime Minister
I will make sure that my hon. Friend gets a meeting as soon as possible with the relevant Minister, but it is very important that we encourage our great fish and chip shops in Grimsby, Cleethorpes and elsewhere to make sure they are not just using Russian fish for their fish and chips.
Oral Answers to Questions
Martin Vickers Excerpts(2 years, 9 months ago)
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Mr Rees-Mogg
I have received 1,800 recommendations from the wise readers of The Sun. I believe that the British people have an enormous amount of wisdom from which politicians, particularly politicians in Scotland, could benefit.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
Businesses and business organisations in my constituency are eager to engage with the Brexit Opportunities Unit. Will my right hon. Friend be touring the UK to promote Brexit opportunities, and if so, may I invite him to visit Cleethorpes in the near future?
Mr Rees-Mogg
My hon. Friends the Members for Cleethorpes (Martin Vickers) and for Ynys Môn (Virginia Crosbie) compete with each other to be greatest champion of their constituencies. I look forward to visiting Cleethorpes in the not-too-distant future. There is a date in the diary, and I am looking forward to the finest food that Cleethorpes can provide when I go there to speak.
COP26
Martin Vickers Excerpts(3 years, 1 month ago)
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The Prime Minister
This country has already shown unbelievable leadership in powering beyond coal, and the countries of the world can see that.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
As my right hon. Friend is aware, northern Lincolnshire and the Humber are major centres of our renewable energy sector and can play a major part in spearheading our achievement of the COP26 targets. Will he reaffirm the Government’s support for developing the industry, not just in northern Lincolnshire but elsewhere, which would have the added benefit of levelling up many of our industrial areas?
The Prime Minister
Yes. I congratulate my hon. Friend on what he is doing to support low-carbon industries across the north-east. That has immense potential throughout the country—he is quite right.
Covid-19 Update
Martin Vickers Excerpts(3 years, 7 months ago)
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The Prime Minister
I am so sorry to hear about the hon. Member’s own loss. I assure her that, of course, I cannot imagine that there will be any chair of the inquiry or any terms of reference that we could devise that would not include looking back at the state of preparedness before covid struck this country.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
Cleethorpes, like other resorts, is heavily reliant on the coach industry to bring tourists into the resort. Although the support for the industry has been very welcome, there have been one or two anomalies. Some coach operators in my constituency and elsewhere have been designated as tourism operators rather than coach operators, which meant that they did not qualify for some of the financial support. Will my right hon. Friend look again at this issue and perhaps arrange for me and representatives from the industry in my constituency to meet the Transport Secretary so that we can see whether any additional help is available?
The Prime Minister
As ever, my hon. Friend makes what sounds like an excellent point about coach operators and tourism operators. I will make sure that he sees the relevant Transport Minister as soon as possible.
Debate on the Address
Martin Vickers Excerpts(3 years, 7 months ago)
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Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
Although the hon. Member for Perth and North Perthshire (Pete Wishart) is misguided, he is always entertaining so it is a pleasure to follow him, as it is to take part in this debate on the Queen’s Speech. Of course, we await detail—those who have criticised the lack of detail have been jumping the gun, because the detail will follow when the Bills are published—and of particular interest, quite rightly, is social care, which the Prime Minister has promised we are going to tackle and I am confident we will.
It was a pleasure to note that much of the content of the Queen’s Speech was to do with the Government’s levelling-up agenda, which I fully support. In my constituency we are fortunate that levelling up began some four years ago: we were granted the first town deal when the Greater Grimsby town deal was established and it has been of great benefit.
I was pleased to hear in the Queen’s Speech the talk of infrastructure. Although there is a wider context, I am not going to waste the opportunity of reminding Ministers of the two particular projects in my constituency that are in urgent need of attention. First, we need to eliminate the concrete surface on the A180, which causes no end of disruption to the lives of many residents. There is a cost involved, but I hope that the Minister will remind the Secretary of State for Transport that the money has to be found.
The other issue is my campaign for the restoration of a direct train service between Cleethorpes and London King’s Cross. The service was cancelled by British Rail in 1992; we now have an opportunity to restore it at almost no cost. There are six daily trains between London and Lincoln, and one or two of those services could easily be extended to Cleethorpes at almost zero cost. Again, I hope the Minister will report back on that to the Secretary of State for Transport.
The A180 is particularly relevant because it is the main route into and out of the port of Immingham which, along with the rest of the Humber ports, has been granted freeport status, for which I had long campaigned. It is important to note that the bid from the Humber ports scored highly in every category. The steering group that has been established to guide the project through is eager to get the freeport off the ground and up and running within months. We were fortunate to have a visit from the Chancellor of the Exchequer a few weeks ago and we reminded him that we were on the starting blocks and eager to start. We need Government officials and the Department right behind us so that we can be up and running very quickly.
Let me turn to the proposals on planning. I agree that changes to the planning regime are needed. In particular, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) and others have made the point that we have to ensure that the planning permissions already granted are actually delivered. That would prevent a lot of the tensions that build up when big planning applications are put in for further estates on the edge of villages. I urge caution in the way the Government proceed on that: we have to carry local communities with us and give them a voice that will actually be listened to.
I turn now to the debate about ID cards, voter registration and the like. I must confess that, until recently, ID cards were anathema to me and something that I would have opposed tooth and nail, because there is no doubt that they change the relationship between the citizen and the state. However, it is fair to say that public opinion has moved on. Staff in virtually every shop and office have passes, badges and ID and we need ID for fairly routine things, such as collecting a parcel from the post office. Certainly, showing ID when we vote is a small price to pay to ensure the integrity of our electoral system.
Law and order has always been particularly important to our constituents. I am pleased to say that my own local party chairman was elected as the Humberside police and crime commissioner last week, which is a tremendous result. I know that Jonathan Evison will prove to be admirable in the post. He will want to see robust and visible policing, which is what our constituents continually tell us that they want.
Let me mention immigration. Our constituents are quite prepared to accept controlled immigration, but they want to ensure that the Government have control over it, so we must be much more robust in our approach. I know that my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is on side with that and will do all she can to push through the necessary legislation, which will certainly have the support of an overwhelming number of my constituents.
The important thing about last week’s elections was that they showed that people notice what is happening in their local communities, and recognise the parties that identify with their particular priorities. I urge the Government and my colleagues to listen to the silent majority so that they can hear what most people want, rather than listening via the social media world, lobby groups and so on. Let me give one example. Members may have heard of Suggitts Lane in this Chamber because it has come up three times at Prime Minister’s questions. I am delighted that, with my right hon. Friend’s support, we are now getting closer to replacing the level crossing with a bridge. When I was out canvassing with our candidate in Suggitts Lane and the neighbouring area, it was quite clear that that is what mattered. It is a local issue and it is what mattered to people. They want that level crossing replaced with a bridge, so that they and their children or grandchildren can have easy access to Cleethorpes beach and its facilities.
We listened to the local community and, as a result, it delivered a Conservative councillor in the Suggitts Lane area for the first time in the existence of North East Lincolnshire Council, which goes back 25 to 26 years. The Government are identifying with the local people, and, where possible, listening to the silent majority. We now have a raft of policies that demonstrate our levelling-up agenda and that we want to ensure prosperity for all our constituents.
Oral Answers to Questions
Martin Vickers Excerpts(3 years, 8 months ago)
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Sarah Atherton (Wrexham) (Con)
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office (Michael Gove)
As the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, naturally, my heart is always in the north-west of England. However, I am delighted that more civil service jobs will be moving to York. I am also delighted that other Departments have made their own announcements about the relocation of senior positions in our civil service, with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announcing plans to create a second headquarters in Wolverhampton, the Treasury creating an economic campus in Darlington, alongside the Department for International Trade, and, of course, DIT has established trade and investment hubs in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Cabinet Office has also announced that our second headquarters will be located in Glasgow, with 500 officials to be located there, and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has established a joint headquarters in east Kilbride with 1,000 new roles relocating to Scotland.
Michael Gove
My hon. Friend is a brilliant advocate for Wrexham, and an economic renaissance is taking place across north Wales from Dolgellau to Wrexham, ably assisted by the brilliant advocacy of new Conservative MPs such as my hon. Friend and her colleagues. The Government want to get behind that, not just by ensuring that our new levelling up fund can provide additional resources for local authorities and businesses in north Wales, but by ensuring that we can have senior decision makers relocated to north Wales—whether that is in Wrexham, Bangor, Prestatyn, Rhyl or other locations that are still to be decided. Of course, the case that she makes for Wrexham is a formidable one, and one that has been heard in the Cabinet Office and, indeed, in No. 10.
Martin Vickers
In the recent bidding process for freeports, the port of Immingham in my constituency came out top, scoring high in every category. May I suggest to my right hon. Friend that moving the civil servants who oversee the freeport operation to one of the Humber ports—preferably Immingham—would be a good move?
Michael Gove
My hon. Friend makes an important case. Overall responsibility for freeports rests with Her Majesty’s Treasury, and my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has made clear his commitment to ensuring that civil service and other decision-making jobs are relocated effectively across the UK, with the establishment of a second campus in Darlington in Teesside—something that has been done in partnership with the outstanding Mayor of the Tees Valley, Ben Houchen. Of course, there is a concentration of expertise in Humberside, both in north Lincolnshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire, not just in commerce but in renewables, and we will do everything we can to ensure that that expertise is supported by Government.
Michael Gove
It is the case that the new Office for Environmental Protection will be in Worcester, which is to my mind an equally attractive location for civil servants and for those who will be working in that critical role. The most important thing is that we have good people, making sure that we maintain the highest environmental standards. That is what the OEP will do, but our commitment to making sure that there are high-quality civil service jobs in Bristol remains. Bristol is one of the principal locations outside London at the moment for civil service jobs, but it is only right that other areas, not least in the west midlands and Teesside, as well as Worcester, benefit, because let’s face it, when we have brilliant Mayors such as Ben Houchen in Tees Valley and Andy Street in the west midlands, making a superb case for locations such as Darlington and, indeed, for Wolverhampton, it would be foolish not to pay attention to their brilliant advocacy and to hope—who knows—that they might be re-elected in forthcoming polls.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
Michael Gove
Yes. I will talk to my right hon. Friend the President for COP26 and ensure that we have a joint roundtable for the companies that my hon. Friend has spoken up for in his constituency and elsewhere, to ensure that the international event taking place in Glasgow, thanks to the UK Government, also benefits people in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.
Covid-19: Road Map
Martin Vickers Excerpts(3 years, 9 months ago)
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The Prime Minister
The purpose of this road map is to be cautious but irreversible, and if I take it from what the hon. Gentleman has just said that he supports the road map, then I am glad to have his support.
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con) [V]
I fully support my right hon. Friend’s cautious approach. However, he will know that coastal resorts have been particularly badly hit, as they rely to a considerable extent on the hospitality sector. That said, northern Lincolnshire and the Humber can play a major part in the post-pandemic economic recovery. Will the Prime Minister give an assurance that the Government will continue to support established and new businesses in the area?
The Prime Minister
Yes, indeed. We will ensure that we support businesses throughout the pandemic. I am absolutely certain that the hospitality industry in Cleethorpes and the surrounding area will bounce back very strongly indeed.
Public Health
Martin Vickers Excerpts(4 years ago)
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Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
We have heard some passionate speeches this afternoon opposing the Government’s measures, but I have to say that on this occasion I feel they are wrong. We have had much quoting of local infection rates, which of course is an important measure, but equally important is hospital capacity, and hospitals are not necessarily in the same constituency or council area as the relevant infection rates. Earlier I listened to the passionate and powerful speech from my right hon. Friend the Member for Gainsborough (Sir Edward Leigh), who referred to his Market Rasen ward. Market Rasen is about 15 miles outside the boundary of my constituency, and people in Market Rasen go to Grimsby, Scunthorpe and Lincoln hospitals if they need treatment. None of those hospitals is in the same council area as Market Rasen.
We need to take note of what Peter Reading, the chief executive of Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust, said in a statement this morning:
“In common with all trust chief executives, I am concerned that some media reports in recent days have suggested the hospitals are under less pressure than last winter. We believe these reports misunderstand and grossly under-estimate what is actually happening and the huge impact that covid has had on operations and capacity in our hospitals”.
It is irresponsible not to take note of such comments.
Locally, my infection rate in the constituency has roughly halved over the past two or three weeks, so it is difficult to argue that the lockdown has not had some impact. We had a low infection rate in the spring, and people wanted to put up the shutters and prevent people from coming to our area. They also wanted strict enforcement. Now, they want equally strict enforcement because we have a significantly higher rate. Those who argue that the Government are taking too much notice of a small group of experts in SAGE and so on also have to explain why most major European countries are deploying similar policies. Are all their experts equally wrong?
We do need more support, particularly for coastal areas. Where the Government decree that businesses should cease going about their legal business, they need more support from the Government. I and my immediate neighbours will certainly be pressing the Minister for additional support. Like other hon. Members, I have doubts about the five days of relaxation for Christmas. We should be mindful of what could happen in the new year.
Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)
Order. Before I call Rachael Maskell, if anybody is on the call list who does not intend to take part in the debate and who has not withdrawn already, please get the message through to the Speaker’s Office so we can better manage the rest of the debate.
Oral Answers to Questions
Martin Vickers Excerpts(4 years, 5 months ago)
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Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)
Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)
Martin Vickers
In his recent Ditchley speech, my right hon. Friend referred to transferring energy sector civil servants and policy makers to Humberside. Will he outline what progress he is making with that, and will he push forward and ensure that the Cleethorpes constituency plays its part?
Michael Gove
My hon. Friend is right. I said that there were at least three possible locations for the relocation of jobs in the energy sector: Teesside, Humberside and, of course, Aberdeen. There are already civil servants in Aberdeen working in this area, but we want to ensure that more jobs are dispersed to areas at the forefront of the green energy revolution—and, of course, Cleethorpes is right at the heart of that.