Is Hamish right to stand?
Saturday, June 14, 2008 
I see that "rebel landlord" Hamish Howitt wants to stand against David Davis in the Haltemprice and Howden by-election. Hamish, who spoke very eloquently at the Forest reception at last year's Conservative party conference, describes the former shadow home secretary as a "hypocrite" who is "standing up for terrorists while failing to stand up for ordinary working class smokers".
Anyone who knows Davis will confirm that he is the last person to stand up for terrorists. The point, surely, is that anyone detained for 28 (or 42) days without charge has to be considered innocent because there is insufficient evidence with which to charge them. Even when charged they remain innocent until proven guilty (although, if the charges are sufficiently serious, they can rightly be held on remand). That's what this particular debate is all about and it's fundamental to the British way of life.
I like Hamish very much, and I sympathise with the stance he has taken in Blackpool where he runs two smoker-friendly bars. At the very least, however, and before he confirms his candidature, he should seek Davis's view on the smoking ban and find out whether it is something that could be embraced by the latter's civil rights' campaign. What we need, in my view, is a broad civil rights coalition. What we don't need is something reminiscent of the famous scene in Monty Python's Life of Brian:
"We're the People's Front of Judea! The only people we hate more than the Romans are the fucking Judean People's Front."
There is an opportunity, here, to make a point about the smoking ban and the war on tobacco, but I'm not convinced that standing against David Davis is the best way to do it. It could turn the by-election into the very farce that Gordon Brown, Labour and the media are predicting. If that happens, the only people who will benefit are the government.
Above (at the 2007 Conservative party conference): yours truly, Roger Helmer MEP, Hamish Howitt and former MSP Brian Monteith
Reader Comments (21)
Members of my Executive Committee have spoken with Hamish today. Our understanding is as follows: Hamish will engage with Mr Davis on the smoking ban issues and if he is assured that Mr Davis will fight our corner under the same civil liberty erosion ticket, then Hamish will not stand. Furthermore, the name Hamish has chosen to campaign under, Freedom to Choose, is purely coincidental and strictly speaking, has nothing to do with F2C. Hamish made the decision after talks with Nick Hogan and Dave West.
My Exec and I are discussing this turn of events and we hope to formulate a policy over the weekend.
David Cameron has made it clear to people who have asked him that he has no interest in repealing the smoking ban. The pro-choice smoking movement needs some publicity. How else do you propose we get such an amount of Press and TV coverage? I don't think Hamish is going to make a fool of himself. He comes over very well and will do a lot more good than harm. Even the antics of Fathers for Justice don't seem to do their cause any harm. If we don't die of smoking related diseases, we will die wondering.
I say good luck to Hamish. Anyone who has the guts to get up and put their money where their mouth is, should be applauded.
Whether he has any chance at all is another matter, but if he fights on a "sensible platform", and not just on one solitary issue, at least he might get across that people are interested in getting back their freedom to choose things for themselves.
Good luck Hamish.
Given what appears to be an embargo on reporting the smoking ban in the media, if Hamish runs, I bet that no national newspaper or TV channel will report it.
Rather than stand against Davis, Hamish should push David relentlessly about the ban. I went to Belgium yesterday to buy cheap tobacco and even when I wasn't smoking, I was treated like a common criminal, when I had to go through Customs. I was interrogated for about 10mins, which seemed like 42.
Davis is certain to win the by-election, so don't Hamish and other smokers carry placards saying that they support Davis, in his campaign for our Freedoms and Liberties?
No, no and thrice no! The stand that David Davis has taken is rightly or wrongly seen as one of principle. An attempt to hi-jack the debate on a single issue would be enormously damaging.
Frank Davis and Chas sum up respectively why the effort would be doomed, and what the best course of action is.
Lobby David Davis to death and beyond, but don't engage in something which may be seen as mischievous at best, and malign at worst.
I agree, Mark.
I can't see how David Davis could refuse to include the smoking ban under the civil liberties banner. Although in the public mind it might not carry the gravity of 42 days detention, Mr Davis, himself, seems not to differentiate between degrees of erosion, having cited, on Andrew Marr's show, bin snooping as another example. It is surely up to us to write, as was suggested on an earlier thread, and let him know the strength of feeling among smokers, tolerant non-smokers and others adversely affected by this ban. If he relies on the MSM for information he will be ignorant of the damage that is being done.
I believe that he called HMG "gutless" for failing to fight in the by-election, for failing to give the British people a referendum on the Treaty and for bottling out of the call for a general election last October. They are, of course, also gutless and morally bankrupt for peddling the myth that, while smoking is so dangerous that smokers must be treated as deviants, it is not so dangerous that they shouldn't continue to screw billions annually from us. Their broken manifesto pledge is just one of a number of broken promises and they are simply untrustworthy. (Oh God, I'm ranting again.)
I admire Hamish for his commitment to exposing and standing up to this thoroughly nasty legislation but if he stands against David Davis then the smoking issue will be seen as something that falls outside the ambit of civil liberties rather than as an example of their erosion.
PS sorry - was ranting in my last post. My intended meaning was that HMG is gutless for peddling the inconsistency...
Nicely put Joyce,
Don't misunderstand me, my admiration for Hamish and the other rebel publicans is boundless. They've been deliberately martyred by the health mafia and their soulless acolytes, but to detract from Davis' intention will be wilfully misconstrued by the media, and probably by the public as well.
How likely is Davis really to add the smoking ban to his list of complaints, and to give it much oxygen (so to speak)?
This isn't going to be a "normal" by-election, so I think Hamish standing would be a great opportunity for publicising the misery and malcontent the smoking ban has caused.
As Frank points out above, God knows we need the publicity. A visitor to these shores could be forgiven for thinking we were all madly in favour of the ban, given how hard it is for other views to get air time.
I say, Go Hamish!
Rose.
We could get the publicity by putting up posters and/or leaflets in doors, stating that smokers support Davis on his stand for our rights. The local media could be sent copies of the posters/leaflets. Would Davis speak against our support for him?
You need publicity because people to these shores would think we are in favour of the ban?
Then some bright spark says lets put posters up on doors saying that smokers support Davis.
How many people have you got who are willing and able to do that? You would need thousands of posters and many many able and willing supporters to do the work.
And of course Davis wouldn't just align himself with smokers because they say they happen to like him. You are being very naive with this approach.
Nigel
I made a suggestion, which people may or may not agree to. Have you a suggestion on how we can use the by-election?
Chas. We're in the ballpark (much as I loathe jargon), let's lobby Davis. Bombard him with the truth and see what he has to say in reply.
He's proved that popularity isn't his Holy Grail, let's see how his libertarian stance reacts to a little gentle pressure...
Mark.
I stated earlier about how I was treated by Customs. I have written to David Davis, my own MP and two MEPs detailing my interrogation. I am hoping for replies.
David Davis' campaign site is here:
http://www.daviddavisforfreedom.com/index.cfm?fa=contentGeneric.home
I'm a bit puzzled where David Davis stands on the smoking ban. As far as I can see, it says on publicwhip.org that Davis voted for the ban in division 163, and did not vote on division 164. which would have allowed exemptions for clubs. Yet I've read that he was against the ban. So which is it?
If Davis voted for the ban, then Hamish should stand against him. It's quite simple.
I cannot understand how a terrorist is allowed to stay in this country and recieve benefits to live, under the human rights act. But smokers who are hard working tax paying citizens cannot get this smoking ban repealed under the human rights act. So all in all terroists are treated better then ordinary law abiding citizens. CRAZY
I agree with Pat, but it is coming to the stage where the ordinary law abiding citizen can be jailed for a petty offence i.e in ireland from next monday provisional licence holders driving without a full licence holder will be jailed if caught more than once and I would add, this is a country without proper transport and none in rural areas. So someone has to take a stand thats why I would cheer on David Davis, otherwise we may as well start rebuilding the berlin wall only we'll have to rename it brussels. After all if he had made a stand on the smoking ban alone he would have been fired from govt by the pc brigade. Hopefully he'll take up smokers rights when the time is right, as votes are very important to him.
Ann i wouldn't hold your breath. I cannot think of one politician that has any balls to stand up for smokers democracy. They are all in the job to feather their own nests and sod the rest of us.It is my life and if i choose to smoke thats up to me i am dammed if i am going to be told what to do with my life. These smoking fascists should keep their bloody nose out of my buisness this government take my money and then try and tell me i should give the habit up. The quicker they are knocked from government the better the hypocritical morons.