Freedom and the welfare state

Last week I had dinner with Shane Frith, director of Progressive Vision, a new classical liberal think tank, and his colleague Mark Littlewood. Mark is former head of media for the Liberal Democrats, and before that he worked for the civil rights group Liberty.

On today's Free Society blog, Mark addresses a fundamental truth when he writes:

If the essential premises of the welfare state – universal healthcare free at the point of use from cradle to grave and the education of children paid for and controlled by the state – continue to go unchallenged then as night follows day, our own lifestyle choices will be abdicated to the state too.

Unless individuals are obliged to bear direct personal financial responsibility for their own actions, the state will inevitably seek to ban – or at least deter – activities that lead to increased public expense or diminished revenues.

If we really want to roll back the nanny state, we need to tackle the cosy, welfarist consensus that gives rise to it.

Full article HERE. Comments welcome.

Lunatics, asylum

No, it wasn't a dream. I really did read this in yesterday's Bolton News.

Bolton Primary Care Trust spokesman, Debbie Collinson, said: "One of the problems with the smoking ban is that it has made smoking high profile. Getting rid of packs of 10 cigarettes will make them that bit harder to obtain because it will be so much more expensive. There is also the old adage of out of sight, out of mind, and if cigarettes are removed from view I think it'll make a real difference to the number of young people who start smoking."

Let me get this right. Government policy has resulted in smoking becoming "high profile". So, rather than amend the smoking ban, they now intend to ban the display of cigarette packets - in much the same way as some campaigners want to ban smoking in outdoor areas to cut down on "noise pollution" and litter which are the result of ... the smoking ban.

Is there no end to this lunacy? Story HERE.

Labour vote "heavily bruised"

On the back of yesterday's fuel tax demonstration, the Press Association has quoted Brian Iddon, MP for Bolton South East:

“I’m getting complaints from our core Labour vote that they feel the Labour Government is just hitting them left, right and centre. They are heavily bruised at the moment.”

Dr Iddon, adds the PA, cited the ban on smoking in public places and rising alcohol and food prices as other causes of anger.

The message, I think, is getting home, but it is more important than ever that you write to your MP to illustrate the depth of feeling on this issue. It only takes a handful of letters on a single issue to make MPs sit up and take notice.

Eric Layman 1943-2008

I am sorry to report the death of Eric Layman. I don't suppose any of you will have heard of Eric. Born in New Westminster, British Columbia, in 1943, he was a poet and writer who lived in Toronto from 1957. In 2001 he wrote "The Smoke Police" which was subsequently set to music by fellow Canadian Matt Finlayson whose band, The Intended, featured it on their excellent CD Route 101.

Three years ago, when I was in Toronto, I met up with Matt who proved extraordinarily generous with his time. Not only did he give me a guided tour of the city, he also took me to see Niagara Falls and invited me for dinner at his home where I met his family and, I'm delighted to say, Eric Layman. We had a lovely evening and I enjoyed their company enormously.

Eric died last month, aged 64, and a memorial service took place on Sunday. Matt, who was MC, was one of many friends and colleagues who paid their respects and his spirits were raised, he tells me, when he read THIS obituary in the (national) Globe and Mail.

To this Matt adds, "My good friend Eric Layman, poet and writer, was one of Canada’s best kept secrets. He was as good as any poet that has come out of Canada. I saw Eric at many poetry readings over the last 25 years and he never failed to impress. He has left a very substantial body of high quality work. I will continue to champion his work. There will be a number of poems which I will use in a recording session in June for a new album."

To view some of Eric's poems click HERE. The lyrics to "The Smoke Police" - with comments by Eric himself - can be found HERE.

You can purchase and download "The Smoke Police" HERE. Warmly recommended.

Scotland leads, England follows

Hot on the heels of the announcement by the Scottish government that it intends to ban the display of tobacco in shops, UK health minister Alan Johnson has announced that the Westminster government is considering similar moves.

Johnson's comments - on yesterday's Andrew Marr programme on BBC 1 - have been picked up by many of today's newspapers. Comments by Forest are featured in the Financial Times, Independent and Daily Mirror, to name a few.

Update on Monday, May 26, 2008 by Simon Clark

See also THIS post by the Telegraph's Alex Singleton.

Update on Monday, May 26, 2008 by Simon Clark

I shall be discussing this issue on Five Live from 10.00pm tonight. Some bank holiday!

Article of the week

Candidate for this week's best article is "A cruel and unusual ban" by Ken McLaughlin, senior lecturer in social work at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Writing for the excellent online magazine Spiked, Ken comments on this week's High Court ruling that psychiatric patients detained in high-security hospitals have no "right to smoke". He concludes by observing that:

"Today, exaggerated claims from health campaigners on the dangers of passive smoking have been mixed with a broader risk-averse outlook, and once again it is to the detriment of those confined in long-stay mental institutions. At least the inmates of the old asylums could have a cigarette; now they cannot even enjoy that small mercy."

Full article HERE.

Quote of the week

It's been a busy week for everyone at Forest. Best moment, perhaps, was seeing this headline (left) on the front page of the Scottish Daily Mail on Thursday. It was inspired by a quote from Forest's Neil Rafferty (a former Sunday Times man) who said: "We will soon be living in a country where pornographic magazines will be on display in shops and not cigarettes."

Cameron: the way forward

In response to the Crewe and Nantwich by-election result, I have just received the following email:

"Once again the clearest expression of revulsion from this authoritarian and interfering government. But not a word in the media about the things that have really infuriated many - the ban that prevents us having a cigarette with our pint, even in a PRIVATE club. And the prospect of ever nastier action against people who just want a pint even without a smoke."

I couldn't have put it better myself. The problem is, the Conservatives don't get it either. Driving home from London today I listened to David Cameron call for an end to "bossy, interfering government".

For some reason, he and his colleagues don't seem to understand that, for many people, the smoking ban (or, at least, the savage extent of the ban) is symbolic of the worst excesses of "bossy, interfering government".

Ultimately it comes down to argument and persuasion. Between now and the next general election, we have to convince the Conservatives that the smoking ban is still an issue for many people and there are more votes to be gained than lost with a promise to amend or, at the very least, review the legislation.

For the moment, I suspect they think the benefits of revisiting the issue are outweighed by the disadvantages. Cameron, after all, wants to be perceived as forward not "backward-looking" (a term he used to described Labour today).

Amending the ban will be seen, in some people's eyes, as "reversing" the ban (ie "backward-looking"). Our job is to persuade Cameron and his team that amendments to the ban (well-ventilated, licensed smoking rooms, for example) offer a liberal, non-bossy way forward from the mess Labour has got us into.

The race to ban cigarette displays

I have just appeared on BBC Breakfast to discuss the Scottish government's plans, announced yesterday, to ban the display of cigarettes in shops and the sale of 10-packs. Similar proposals have been put forward by the UK government which is about to launch a public consultation on the subject.

Needless to say, with Britain having a devolved political system, the SNP government wants to be seen to "lead" the way and thereby justify its existence.

When the announcement was made, my colleague Neil Rafferty was in an Edinburgh studio giving an immediate reaction on Holyrood Live (BBC Scotland). I rather liked his comment that: ""We will soon be living in a country where pornographic magazines will be on display in shops and not cigarettes."

There is more coverage of the story - and Forest's reaction - HERE and HERE.

Welcome to our new website

The new Forest website is up and running HERE. It's a slimmed down version of the old one which was originally envisaged as an online magazine for smokers - but that proved a bit too ambitious.

Design-wise, the new site is not a major departure, but we've cleaned it up, improved the navigation, and removed a lot of the stale, older copy.

The new site is a work in progress (ie it's not finished!). We will add features - including, later in the year, a video player and library. We will continue to upload information - without overwhelming you - on a variety of smoking-related issues.

A new feature, which we are still working on, will help and advise you how to take action. We've also added a news archive that will complement the newsfeed that appears on the home page.

There's even a message from me, HERE. All feedback, including constructive criticism, welcome.

Invitation to Smoke-Free England?

The directors of Forest and Boisdale of Belgravia cordially invite readers of Taking Liberties to a party to mark the first anniversary of the public smoking ban in England.

The event - with cocktails, canapes, speeches and live jazz - takes place at Boisdale on Tuesday June 24 from 7.00pm.

Bring a friend but places are limited and by invitation only. RSVP Georgina at Forest (events@forestonline.org) with your full name and address and we will send you your FREE ticket/s.

Smokers (how can I put this?) are especially welcome! 

My night with Girls Aloud

Tonight I shall be at the O2 Arena (formerly the Millennium Dome) to see Girls Aloud. I know, I know, I'm far too old for this sort of thing. Actually, it's a freebie. I've been invited (by a company that shall remain nameless) to join them in their private suite ("where a buffet supper and refreshments will be available from 7.00pm").

There are, it seems, some perks working for Forest. This is one of them.

David Cameron: I'm alright Jack

I am assured by a very reliable source that the following story is true. "Call me Dave" recently visited the offices of a leading national newspaper. What, he was asked, is the first thing you will do if and when you become prime minister? Reverse the ban on fox hunting, he replied, without hesitation.

What about the smoking ban, someone else enquired. I don't smoke, said Dave. So that's alright. For him.

Pet hates: cyclists

What is it with cyclists? I've no problem with them going through a red light if the road is clear. But I object to them ignoring a red light if pedestrians are legitimately crossing the road (as I was this morning!).

Worse, when I popped in to one of my favourite coffee shops in London, what did I find, propped against my regular bar stool? An effing bicycle, that's what! And on the table, where I normally spread my morning papers, was the owner's crimson cycling helmet!

The perpetrator, needless to say, was sitting at another table several feet away, sipping on a skinny mocha latte, reading the Guardian and looking incredibly smug. (OK, I made that bit up. He was reading the Independent.)

Next time I'll drive my car into the shop and park it next to him. See how he likes it.

Thanks, but no thanks

Is it just me or is there something rather spooky about this email which (I think) is trying to sell me a mobile phone:

Dear Simon,

I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to send you this e-mail regarding a brand new product we've developed that could be of massive benefit to the Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco.

Via our secure website you can view the live location and history of your people's movements, minute by minute across the UK & Europe. Other benefits of the phone are:

• The time your employee spent at a customer's site
• Whether they went to site at all
• What time they arrived
• General visibility of your vehicles and people
• Validating overtime claims
• Monitoring vehicle speed
• Performance monitoring

Our customers think our product is fantastic! It operates just like vehicle tracking but without most of the downsides and a lot more on top. It's a communication and navigation tool for your staff, with covert live tracking built in.

"Covert live tracking"? I think I'll give it a miss.