Liberal Democrats have a proud history of defending civil liberties, both in opposition and more recently in a coalition government. We successfully opposed the Labour government's undermining of data privacy in 2009, and since taking office in 2010 we have turned back the tide of Labour's erosion of these liberties. So far we have destroyed the ID cards database, halted the indefinite retention of innocent people's DNA, turned off the ContactPoint database, stopped the mass fingerprinting of children without permission from their parents, and ended child detention for immigration purposes.
Just a few months ago at our spring conference in Gateshead, we reaffirmed our commitment to "undo the damage done [by] Labour's assault on basic freedoms". We called for stronger safeguards on existing surveillance measures to guarantee that the balance of power is firmly in favour of ordinary citizens. We asserted the Liberal Democrats' long-standing tradition of protecting human rights, and agreed that it is our "duty … to safeguard basic freedoms against the encroachment of state power". Liberal Democrats all over the country have sought to reverse the substantial erosion of individual freedoms, as the government committed to do in the coalition agreement in 2010.
Following worrying reports of possible government proposals to collect real-time information on people's activity online, including from social media sites, we were pleased to hear the deputy prime minister making clear his commitment to civil liberties and protecting privacy, and confirming that the government will publish draft legislation with sufficient time for consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny. It is absolutely vital that the public get a chance to see and debate the details of any proposals to extend state surveillance, not just being presented with a Home Office fait accompli. It is also essential that the initial plans include adequate safeguards – which should be stronger than the current weak controls. Liberal Democrats in government will not follow the last Labour government by sounding the retreat on the protection of civil liberties in the United Kingdom. It continues to be essential that our civil liberties are safeguarded, and that the state is not given the powers to snoop on its citizens at will.
Julian Huppert MP, Annette Brooke MP, Malcolm Bruce MP, Mike Crockart MP, Andrew George MP, Mike Hancock MP, John Leech MP, Greg Mulholland MP, John Pugh MP, Alan Reid MP, Adrian Sanders MP, Ian Swales MP, David Ward MP, Mark Williams MP, Roger Williams MP
