Friends push for policing bill amendments
'A draconian bill that threatens the fundamental rights of citizens and communities to have their voices heard by the powerful.’
Friends were among those who gathered last week in one final push against the controversial policing bill.
As Huddersfield Quakers rallied against the bill on Saturday, ‘kill the bill’ demonstrations took place in cities including London, Bristol, Cardiff, Coventry, Newcastle, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield and Plymouth.
There was also a socially-distanced protest in Parliament Square last week, organised by the Green Party. The opposition came ahead of a crucial debate on the bill on 17 January at the House of Lords.
Jenny Jones, who has been leading opposition to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. in the House of Lords, said: ‘The Government is trying to take away our democratic freedom to protest, but in the next few days we have a unique opportunity to stop some of the worst measures outright in the Lords.’
Quakers in Britain tweeted the legislation is ‘a draconian bill that threatens the fundamental rights of citizens and communities to have their voices heard by the powerful’.
On the same day, 12 January, Britain Yearly Meeting convened a joint letter to peers. Thirty-one leaders of faith and belief organisations signed the letter encouraging peers to attend the debate on part three of the bill on 17 January, which was happening as the Friend went to press. This was the last chance that peers had to amend the bill.
The letter renewed calls for peers to vote for amendments to reduce the impact of the bill on the right to protest, and to vote against new government amendments that make the bill even more draconian.
