Citing her experience of secret hearings, she described Nick Clegg’s support for the government’s justice and security bill as a betrayal of the party’s guiding principles.
Rose said her decision to resign had not been “taken lightly or without great sadness”. She told the Observer: “The very first sentence of the Liberal Democrats’ constitution states that they exist to build a ‘fair, free, and open society’. The vote in favour of secret courts is an attack on the heart and soul of the party.”
In her resignation statement, Rose said: “The right to a fair hearing, and the right to open justice, are among the most fundamental of all our basic constitutional rights. I just cannot see what purpose is served by the party, if it is prepared to support the bill. I have therefore decided, with great regret, to resign my party membership.”There is more on Jonathan Calder’s Liberal England blog.
Henry Porter’s column in the Observer is also well worth reading.
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