Magna Carta - Quo Vadis?

This year marks the 800th year since Magna Carta.
A professional footballer, Ched Evans, is unable to follow his profession.
After his release from prison for rape (which he denies), his negotiations with two clubs - Sheffield United and Oldham Athletic -  came to nothing because of strong opposition - which included death threats and an online petition signed by more than 65,000 people.
The main case of these protesters is that footballers should be a role model.
Some years ago I heard a Minister of the Church of Scotland speak on the radio. He had served time in prison for murder....
My 3 epetitions (see below) on Marriage and Migration were more deserving of support than denying a man a chance to start again.

This says it all!

The principal purpose of the European Convention on Human Rights was to provide "a beacon to the peoples behind the Iron Curtain, and a passport for their return to the midst of the free countries." ("The Daily Telegraph", 6 October 2014, page 23) There is nothing in the Convention about immigration control, never mind providing a passport to citizens of non-member countries to enable them to live and work in member states. But that is just what it did on 28 May 1985 when the European Court of Human Rights determined in favour of three women whose husbands were not allowed to live in the UK. In other words, words are (mis)interpreted in a legal context in a way that the compilers had no intention that they would be!

My epetition "Close Immigration Loophole", which closed on 4 September, attained a total of 246 signatures.

A Different War

Britain declared war on Germany 100 years ago today. Wars are about the occupation and/or control of territory. My epetition "Close Immigration Loophole" has exactly one month left to run. It has 239 signatures. It reads: "This e-petition calls on the Government to prevent foreign men from using marriage for immigration purposes. It also appeals to women to sign the petition. "This immigration loophole is a cause of much unhappiness to many British men. Three times as many men commit suicide as women. Among young people the ratio is even higher. "One reason, doubtless, is that there are more young men than young women in the UK. "British men often cannot live in other countries through marriage. "Note: The Government's answer to this problem in 2012 was to impose a condition on British men and women that they have an income of at least £18,600 before their foreign spouse can live in the UK. Other EU nationals are not required to have any income!"

Renewed plea

BBC Radio 4's "Crossing Continents" programme this morning said that for every 100 girls born in China there are 118 boys, and that by 2020 there will be 24 million young men in China unable to marry. If I were one of those young men I'd come to Britain and find someone to marry. To help prevent that, and for the welfare of these islands, please sign my epetition to the Home Office at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/54412. Many thanks to anyone who does ....

Reborn!

My third e-petition to the Home Office has been published today. Please sign "Close Immigration Loophole" at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/54412. Many thanks to anyone who does.

Expired!

My epetition to the Home Office "No to 10,000" expired today. It read: "About 10,000 foreign and Commonwealth men anually were using marriage as a means to live and work in the UK in 1979, when the newly-elected Conservative Government promised to end this concession. It did not. As a result, some 300,000 men live in these islands through having found someone to marry. The e-petition calls on the present Coalition Government to close this loophole." My epetition totalled 76 signatures. Meanwhile the epetition about keeping out Romanians and Bulgarians continues to grow apace. It now has 150,379 signatures.

Peculiar People

Migration Watch's epetition to Britain's Home Office last year - "No to 70 Million" - was signed by 145,533 people. It had no specific suggestion as to what could and should be done to curb migration to these islands. So it achieved absolutely nothing! My epetition "No to 10,000" - which absolutely is specific - has only 65 signatures. Why do great numbers of people sign when there is no specific action that politicians are required to take? There is currently an epetition "Stop mass migration from Bulgarian and Romanians in 2014, when EU restrictions are relaxed". It has 149,138 signatures. It acquired the necessary 100,000 signatures months ago. It elicited an official response on 22 April 2013: "Continuing the controls beyond the end of this year is not possible because of the terms of the Accession Treaties agreed under the previous Government". Even so, many people continue to sign it! Most peculiar. I have frequently drawn attention to my epetition through comments on Huffington Post. As a result, some people have signed it. One criticised me for not giving it enough publicity. (I sent more than 100 Letters to the Editor drawing attention to my epetition; not one, as far as I know, was ever published.) Two gave the following reason for not signing: it has no chance of getting the required 100,000 signatures. One wouldn't sign because of the unfairness whereby he is required to have an annual income of at least £18,600 in order for him to live in the UK with a foreign (non-EU) wife, while men from other EU countries do not have to prove they have an income in order to live here with their foreign (non-EU) wives! I wrote back that it is a scandal, and informed him that constraints on British men having foreign (non-EU) wives is a direct result of the European Court of Human Rights' decision that foreign men be allowed to live and work in the UK through marriage ("The Times, 29 May 1985, page 1).