Protest and survive

There are some good comments on Iain Dale's blog after Iain mentioned the Forest e-card yesterday (see below). It's a bit long-winded (he must be one of us!), but the following from 'Dick Puddlecote' is worth reading:

"I sent my e-card a few days ago but it won't do any good seeing as Cancer Research UK have probably done what they did before the Smoking Ban Experiment ... instructed their 3,600 staff to contribute by writing letters and Christmas Cards (ASH boasted about it in their document "How Advocacy Forced a Government Committed to a Partial Ban ..." or words to that effect.

"Google it, it's very enlightening. It's an object lesson into how to circumvent democracy when John Reid was trying to uphold the 2005 Manifesto Commitments of his own party against outside pressures.) This time the CRUK staff were only required to click a few buttons on their computer to agree with their employers. Easy peasy in comparison.



"It's also no surprise that the massive majority of e-cards are supporting these proposals as it's simply a case of the Labour Government supporting itself and patting itself on the back for its wonderfulness.

The e-cards to reply to the DoH have been available on Smokefree sites for months now and guess who funds them ... yep, the DoH. Forest are a bit of a fly in the ointment and an endorsement by Iain Dale is even more unwelcome (well done Iain). 



"Here's how it works:

 (1) The DoH think up some looney proposal and have to pretend to ask the public in order to exhibit some semblance of democracy.
 (2) The public aren't actually told about it unless they are avid watchers of smokefree sites so therefore will have formed an opinion one way only anyway.
 (3) The smokefree sites are told of course seeing as they are paid for by the Labour Government (see below)
. (4) Labour pass the measures and can say in front of the cameras that x% of stakeholders are fully in agreement with them about this. No fiddling at all. Not in the slightest. Perfectly above board.
 (5) Labour receive congratulations from the pharmaceutical industry and NO MONEY WHATSOEVER IN DONATIONS TO AID THEIR LACK OF PARTY FUNDS (I want to make that absolutely clear)

.

"Re point (3), this was the response received from Vicky Mills of Smokefree NorthWest in answer to how they were funded.

 "We are part funded by the Department of Health and part funded by all thePCTs in the NW."

... so that will be the Labour Government then.

 Labour pat Labour on the back for a job well done.

 How low has this country sunk when these morally bankrupt people are actually passing laws on how we live our lives without transparently asking anyone for permission but themselves?"

I agree with much of the above, but I still think it was worth sending the e-card - and any other form of response. (A big thank you to everyone who took the time and trouble to do so.) I think we all know what the outcome of the "consultation" is likely to be, but that's no reason to roll over and play dead.

It's important that we voice opposition to what this government is doing. (And not just this government. Politicians of all parties support some of these measures.) We are up against a well-funded, well-organised opponent and that makes our task very difficult, but it shouldn't deter us.

Whatever the result of the consultation, the government is in desperate trouble. In this situation, nothing is certain. After all, who is to say that Labour will still be in power to implement the proposals?

The fight goes on. To register your support for our work, please click HERE.

Update on Tuesday, September 9, 2008 by Simon Clark

We believe the Department of Health has received in excess of 20,000 submissions; a submissions summary report will be published on December 8.

Stand and deliver

Closing date for submissions to the consultation on the future of tobacco control in the UK is Monday September 8. The consultation document proposes to ban the display of tobacco in shops, and ban tobacco vending machines. Some anti-smoking campaigners want to go even further - plain packaging, for example, for tobacco products.

In recent weeks the anti-smoking movement has come out all guns blazing and is actively encouraging members of the public to write to DH. Cancer Research has launched a campaign called "Out of sight, out of mind" and is asking people to send an email to the Department of Heath. ASH, which is part of the Smokefree Action coalition, is urging people to send an e-card that is available on the SFA website. The aim, of course, is to demonstrate "the strength of public support" for more anti-tobacco measures.

Our job is to encourage people who oppose such policies to stand up and be counted as well. We have created our own e-card and and have launched it today on the Forest website. The DH has confirmed that it will accept responses using this facility, so our next task is to bring it to the attention of as many people as possible.

This is where we need your help. Apart from sending your own e-card, please send the link to family, friends, work colleagues - smokers and non-smokers - anyone who may feel strongly enough to respond to the consultation. It literally takes a matter of seconds. Click HERE, and pass it on.

Note: if you would like to add the banner above to your own website or blog, with a link to the Forest e-card, please get in touch.

Media matters

This week's PR Week reports that "Smokers' lobby Forest will seize on this week's announcement that cigarette machines could be banned with a media offensive later this year. Forest is planning a huge proactive media drive as the one-year anniversary of the smoking ban looms."

Huge proactive media drive? Well, we'll do our best. Story HERE.

Revolt in style - again

Following the success of our Revolt In Style dinner at The Savoy last summer, Forest is once again joining forces with Boisdale to highlight opposition to the smoking ban.

Proposed events include a large reception (Revolt In Style II) and a small (but perfectly formed) Cigar Terrace Party on (where else?) the cigar terrace at Boisdale. The latter will be co-hosted by the new Campaign for Separate Smoking Rooms (patron, Boisdale MD Ranald Macdonald!).

Ranald is currently in California (his business empire now stretches to Moscow, Washington and beyond) but I caught up with him last night and (wearing his CSSR hat) he gave me the following quote:

“We don’t wish to reverse the smoking ban but we do want sensible revisions that would enable businesses such as Boisdale to offer customers what they want. The smoking ban is unnecessarily draconian. We support restrictions but we know there is a demand for well-ventilated smoking rooms and, together with Forest and the CSSR, we will continue to press our case.”

Details of all events and initiatives will be published on the new Forest website - coming soon.

Help smokers come in from the cold

Yesterday I met a smoker who - in the words of Ronan Thomas (HERE) - is down but not out. Mark Harris wants to visit 1000 pubs in 90 days. The aim is to highlight the impact the ban is having on many pubs and clubs and on customers who are forced to stand outside if they want to smoke.

As I have said before, anyone can sit at a computer and bang out a few words on the internet. (I'm not knocking it, but it's not enough. If you are going to write, you must also write to MPs, councillors, local and national newspapers etc.) Unlike most people, Mark is prepared to go that extra mile to get his message across. He is passionate about the issue but his aims are moderate and practical.

One thousand pubs in 90 days is an ambitious plan and he needs help - financial, logistical and moral support. I don't know if Forest can help him. Resources are tight and if we support third party initiatives they have to be part of a short, medium or long-term strategy that is well-planned, well-coordinated and has clear, realistic targets.

Mark's project is called Inn The Cold and he has set up a website HERE. Offers of help (including accommodation, local contacts etc) are welcome. For more information email mark.harris@innthecold.com. And watch this space.

Matters of fact

Yesterday's "I Want A Referendum" protest is reported HERE in today's Daily Telegraph. It is also commented upon by Iain Martin HERE. As Martin notes, this good humoured, well-mannered event was overshadowed on the day by a small group of anti-Heathrow activists who climbed on the roof of the Parliament buildings (not as difficult as it sounds, actually) before unfurling banners and phoning Sky News on their mobiles. Needless to say this excited the media much more than 2,500 protestors standing in an orderly queue to lobby their MP.

From what I could see, the referendum protest was very well managed. Protestors were given placards, balloons and stickers to identify themselves. At one point the queue ran several hundred yards from St Stephen's Entrance to the Victoria Tower Gardens. Volunteer stewards were on hand to help, advise and reclaim all placards and balloons before people entered the security area and, from there, the House of Commons itself.

On the down side the event was non-party political but that didn't stop a handful of UKIP supporters showing up with UKIP banners. Likewise, there were a few eccentrics with their own, handmade, placards, but nothing to frighten the horses. The biggest problem was the average age of the protesters. Martin writes that they were "of all ages" - which is true - but the overwhelming majority were 60+. (The picture, above left, that appears on the IWAF website this morning is not representative, believe me!)

All this is food for thought if we want to organise our own lobby of Parliament. I am told that information about the event was sent to a mailing list of around 250,000 people. It was widely publicised on numerous political blogs and websites. Despite this the number of "working" men and women who turned up could be counted on the fingers of one hand.

It's a familiar problem. What I don't understand are those who say, "I can't get off work". Surely, if an issue matters so much to you, you will give up a day's holiday to attend a one-off protest? Or am I being naive? Or is it part of a wider malaise? The reality is that most people - especially younger generations - love to whinge and moan, but they are rarely willing to stand up and be counted. 

Yes, often they've got young families to look after, but that's still an excuse. If you really, passionately, believe in something - especially something that is being taken away from you - you will make the effort to protest, in person. If you're not prepared to do that - even once - then it can't really matter to you. Can it?

Walk this way

I shall be popping along to the House of Commons at lunchtime to observe the lobby of Parliament being organised by the I Want A Referendum campaign. We're looking at the possibility of a similar event on July 1, the first anniversary of the smoking ban in England. If we go ahead we will need the active support of everyone who is opposed to the current legislation. It is no longer enough to be a laptop activist. It's time to speak with your feet.

A very British protest

Following a meeting at the ICA in London yesterday, I took advantage of the bright winter sunshine and walked to Green Park station via Lower Regent Street and Piccadilly. As I approached The Ritz Hotel in Piccadilly I couldn't help noticing, on the other side of the road, the West End branch of Aeroflot, the state-owned Russian airline. Twenty-four years ago this very office was the scene of a most unlikely demonstration. I should know because I was there. In fact, it was my idea.

At the time I was the British representative for a Frankfurt-based human rights group whose primary interest was supporting Russian dissidents and re-uniting German families separated by the Berlin Wall. In 1984 the most prominent Soviet dissident was Andrei Sakharov. Dr Sakharov, a Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1975, had been exiled to the closed city of Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod) after criticising the Soviet war on Afghanistan.

It seemed a good idea to demonstrate on his behalf. The Soviet embassy in Kensington was too well guarded so we decided to stage our protest at the next best thing - the London office of Aeroflot. There were just eight, possibly ten, of us, but everything was meticulously planned. We did our homework, noted the big plate glass window at the front of the building, and decided that the best thing to do was to demonstrate inside the building where we could nevertheless be seen by passers-by and the massed ranks of journalists and broadcasters who, naturally, would be there to record every second of this hugely important event.

We hired Soviet military uniforms from a theatrical costume shop in Camden (recommended by a friend who worked for the BBC); we made posters and banners; we even hired a beaten-up Ford Transit (no windows, no seats) to get us to our destination - in uniform - without being seen. We were deadly serious but we were also crying with laughter as we crouched in the back of that van as it crawled up Whitehall, past Trafalgar Square and on to Piccadilly.

At 11.00am precisely two "customers" walked nonchantly into the London office of Aeroflot and sidled up to the counter. The "plan" was to keep staff occupied with questions like "How do I get to Tokyo via Moscow?" and "Is it cheaper to fly to Washington via Leningrad?". It worked. Staff were sufficiently distracted they failed to notice - until it was too late - that a slightly larger group of people had also entered the building and were now standing in the window waving placards while bellowing their support for someone they had never met and knew very little about.

The police were called, but here's the funny bit. Today you might expect a crack team of armed officers to be on the scene within minutes. In 1984, however, it took at least half an hour for the Met's finest to come to Aeroflot's aid. To be honest, we were slightly disappointed. We wanted the police there pronto to give the protest a bit of an edge. Thirty minutes is a long time. We were beginning to feel a bit stupid. This wasn't going to plan.

But there was a reason for the Met's tardiness. A police officer told me later that when the airline rang 999 Aeroflot staff assured them there was no cause for concern because "They [the demonstrators] seem like very nice people"!!! How British is that?!

Postscript: the demo wasn't a total waste of time. Channel 4 News did in fact send a camera crew and we were featured on the evening news. Flushed with success, several members of our team went on to bigger and better things. One became a hotshot PR director at a leading London hospital; another became a journalist and currently works for the London Evening Standard; a third became an influential apparatchik within the Conservative party; a fourth is a prominent libertarian and an outspoken critic of the EU. And Sakharov? He was allowed to return to Moscow in 1986. In March 1989 he was elected to the new parliament and co-led the democratic opposition. Nine months later, in December 1989, he died of a heart attack, aged 68.

Public enemy number won

Evidence today that "public outrage" can have an effect on public policy. The Times reports that "The number of drivers caught by speed cameras has fallen for the first time, according to government figures which reveal that widespread complaints about excessive enforcement have finally caused the police and local authorities to retreat."

I won't bore you (again) with my own dark thoughts on speed cameras, but there is a lesson here for all of us. Full story HERE.

Bristol protest march

Paul Toole (above) leads a protest march against the public smoking ban. Following protests in Wells and Glastonbury, marchers gathered in Bristol yesterday where they were joined by local students. Story HERE. Paul and his partner Chris now plan to take their protest to London in the new year.

On the march

Good luck to Paul Toole, Chris Elliot and others who are demonstrating in Bristol today against the public smoking ban (see HERE). Check here later for pictures.

Coach for hire!

Final call ... if there is anyone in London and the South East who wants to take part in the protest march against the smoking ban in Bristol this coming Saturday, October 20, please contact us NOW!

If there is sufficient interest we will hire one, two or even three coaches to take marchers from central London to Bristol and back. Cost: £10 per head. To reserve your seat call 07071 766537 or email contact@forestonline.org. 

More details HERE and HERE.

Protest and survive - the sequel

Paul Toole and Chris Elliot, who masterminded protest marches against the smoking ban in Wells and Glastonbury in the summer, are organising a third rally - in Bristol on Saturday October 20th.

Marchers are invited meet outside La Tasa Restaurant, 1 Clifton Heights, Bristol BS8 1EJ at 1.30pm. The march itself begins at two, ending up at College Green, outside the Council building. For full details call Paul and Chris on 01749 672747, 07885 437854 or 07722 852224. Report HERE.

If the event is a success, the pair hope to organise further marches in other cities, the long-term goal being a large-scale rally in London itself. 

What's the point?

I've lost count of the number of times I have been asked to publicise a petition on the Downing Street website. I'm not unsympathetic, but I refuse to play Downing Street's patronising little game. I am pleased to read that Iain Dale (left), Britain's premier political blogger (and a friend of The Free Society), feels the same - see HERE ('The pointlessness of No 10 petitions', Monday August 13). 

Protestors take to the streets

More photographs of the Glastonbury protest march on Saturday August 11 can be viewed HERE. Update HERE.