From Leigh to You

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by a constituency parish newspaper. They posed some relevant and important questions so I thought I would take this opportunity of giving them a wider readership, through the Gainsborough Standard and via my website.

The first question referred to my ‘independent streak’ when voting against the war in Iraq and asked for my position about our role in the continuing conflict in Afghanistan.

I have always been opposed to the war in Afghanistan, but I believe that a comprehensive strategy for Afghanistan must include clear, tightly drawn, realistic objectives that are regularly reviewed. I believe that Afghanistan can be stabilised if a reasonably honest government is established and tribal structures supported. I feel sure that this can be achieved with a much smaller allied force. The use of NATO special forces to train the Afghan army and Police force will be necessary, but it is inevitable that there will always be some level of insurgency in Afghanistan. A larger effort must be made in buying poppy crops thus compensating and appeasing the Afghan people and making them less likely to turn towards the Taliban. These objectives are, given political will and realism achievable. They would also bring great savings of British lives and money.

On the issue of abortion I was asked why I was in favour of its restriction or even its abolition?

My personal belief is that life begins at the moment of conception. An abortion is a premeditated act through which life is taken. As far as I am concerned the 24 week time frame in which it is possible to have an abortion is too long. My personal preference would be for twelve or fourteen weeks. I appreciate that this is unlikely and I will therefore push for abortions to be limited to eighteen weeks after conception.

On the subject of tighter control / restriction of the banking and financial sectors - would I support a future government’s attempts to restrict a free financial market?

I believe the decisions that led to the banking crisis represent a policy failure of historic proportions. We believe we now need deep, wide-ranging reform that matches both the magnitude of the crisis and the scale of the hardship inflicted on the British public. If we can bring stability to our banking system, and reward long-term returns over short-term bonus chasing, then we will have put in place a key foundation stone of an economic recovery.

A Conservative government will

• Abolish the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the tripartite regime it operated with the Bank of England and the Treasury

• Create a strong and powerful Bank of England with the authority and powers necessary to ensure financial stability

• Create a powerful Consumer Protection Agency that will bring together in one place the consumer powers currently split between the old FSA and the Office of Fair Trading

• Demand that banks set aside much more of their own money for their risky lending as a form of insurance policy

• Appoint a Treasury Minister with special responsibility for fighting our corner in Brussels so that European regulations are right for the City of London

• Ask the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission to conduct a focused examination of the effects of consolidation in the retail banking sector.

Further questions covered Europe, pensions, and the ‘broken society’ and I will write about those next week.