THE three major opposition parties in Redditch – Redditch Labour, Redditch Green Party and Redditch Liberal Democrats – have united to hold a rally against the decision to prorogue Parliament to force through a No Deal Brexit.
It will be held in Redditch town centre around the Bandstand this Sunday, September 1, from 1pm.
Everyone who believes that to suspend parliament in an affront to democracy is welcome to attend.
Rebecca Jenkins Labour’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Redditch said: “62 per cent of people voted to leave in Redditch in 2016 and I respect that decision.
“But the British people didn’t vote for no deal and they didn’t vote for our democracy to be suspended to ram no deal through.
“The proroguing of Parliament by Boris Johnson and his party is obscene and must be challenged.
“We can’t talk about ‘democracy’, ‘Parliamentary sovereignty’, ‘taking back control’ and in the same breath ask the Queen to suspend parliament and prevent debating a huge issue facing Redditch and the whole of the British people.”
Andy Thompson from Redditch Liberal Democrats said: As a party we have always been pro-European and outward looking.
“For me this has gone way beyond whether we remain or leave.
“This goes right to the heart of the tenants of a good, strong, stable democracy.
“It is setting a precedent, and our system is based on precedents, that future governments can just ride roughshod over Parliament and become a dictatorship.
“Therefore it is really important that we make a stand to protect our Parliamentary democracy against this threat.”
Claire Davies of Redditch and Bromsgrove Green Party said: “The recent move by Boris Johnson to suspend parliament at such a critical time, is not just a case of playing games with parliamentary procedure, it is denying democracy, which is the one thing that people have been so passionate about throughout the whole Brexit process.
“To have a Prime Minister and his followers to make excuses for this action, when weeks ago they were saying that shutting down parliament was (in the words of Bromsgrove MP Sajid Javid) ‘trashing democracy’ is, quite frankly, shameful.
“People are gathering on the streets, as their appeals to conservative MPs go unheeded. Everybody needs representation, not just the 0.13 per cent of the population who voted for Boris Johnson and his coup.”
Bill Hartnett, leader of the borough’s Redditch Labour group: “I am against this outrageous decision to shutdown Parliament and it should be reversed.
“This is setting a dangerous precedent – Parliament is supposed to hold the Government to account how can they do that job if parliament is closed?
“If we sit by and just let it happen without saying anything: What will it be for next time? … How long will it be for next time?
“You may be one of the 72.21 per cent that voted in the referendum in 2016.You may have voted to leave or you may have voted to remain – You may even be one of the 27.79 per cent that did not vote at all.
“Whether you voted or not, I would say that the shutting down of parliament is not right, it goes against natural justice and it is in an attempt to hinder and obstruct the democratic process.”
