August 29, 2008

"You know from bitter experience that if you give anyone in authority any kind of power they will always, always, always abuse it.

"In this case, the scope for abuse is almost unlimited. Any villain can pull on a hi-viz jacket, slap a sheriff ’s badge on his lapel, arm himself with a clipboard and a fake two-way radio and start stopping cars and demanding entry to people’s homes.

"How will anyone, especially the elderly and vulnerable, be sure who is ‘accredited’ and who isn’t?

"Labour has trashed the notion of privacy, torn up the idea that an Englishman’s home is his castle.

"A standing army of inspectors and enforcers has statutory power to demand entry
to our property. Our private records, bank accounts, emails and phone calls are an open book.

"Town Halls use laws designed for anti-terrorism operations to sift through people’s rubbish, mount Spooks-style surveillance operations against people suspected of living ten yards outside a school catchment area and use satellite technology to spy on anyone guilty of adding a conservatory without declaring it to the tax department."

Richard Littlejohn on absolutely brilliant, blistering form today.