Legislation

Does the government understand that passing legislation is sufficient? Douglas Carswell says on his blog that the government is to ban things that are bad.

This highlights the government’s failure to understand legislation. By passing an act of parliament you need society to accept, and the courts to enforce it. Simply passing a law does not mean that everyone will obey it, as he points out the success of ASBO’s show how legislation alone has failed it needs enforcement

A few years ago, I heard Lord Hurd speak; he raised the issue that an incoming conservative government should not legislate for two years thereby allowing legislation to settle down and be incorporated into the country and not produce a raft of new legislation. Obviously this is not completely possible but repealing legislation should be an important cornerstone of an incoming government.

The way that Labour has worked since 1997 is base legislation on announcements, press releases and comments that it can make in the media. Thus policy is created with the view to a headline and to show that they are taking a matter serious, not as an action to an outcome. Thus they have passed an act of parliament so they think the problem will now go away. This concept is fatally flawed as it does not take into consideration the way that it is implemented in society.

The concept of banning things that are bad shows a government that is running out of steam and looking for cheap headlines.