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Dave signing a Book of Commitment in the Commons | Auschwitz-Birkenau |
A constituent tells me about the very sad case of a teenage girl, Cassie McCord who was run over and killed when a driver lost control of his car. The driver was incapable of driving properly and had been warned by the police previously.
People can be stopped from driving if they don't have insurance or tax but there's a legal loophole that prevents the police from taking away their keys if they cannot safely drive.
Cassie's friends and relatives have launched a campaign to close this gap. Their epetition at the Number 10 website urges the Government to change the law so that the police can temporarily suspend the driving licences of motorists whom they feel are unfit to drive though any such powers should be used sensitively and appropriately. If the epetition is signed by 100,000 people - a relatively easy target - then it could be debated in Parliament.
There is no easy legislative answer to all eventualities and it only applies to a small minority of drivers. I ask all readers to consider signing the epetition which is at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/21244 If such a move could save just one life it would be a welcome change.
A major event this week concerns a far greater number of lives. This Friday is Holocaust Memorial Day for which I last week I signed a Book of Commitment in the Commons.
It is 67 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Nazi concentration and extermination camp and site of the largest mass murder in history. The obscenity of the Holocaust against Jews and others is seared into my mind as I grew up in its immediate shadow. I visited the camp a couple of years ago with local pupils and the full force of it was horrifically evident to us all.
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Dave signing a Book of Commitment in the Commons | Auschwitz-Birkenau |
But the Holocaust obviously fades for later generations and remembering that bigotry and persecution led to the murder of six million people is essential for making sure such atrocities never happen again.
Thousands of events will be held across the country this week, remembering all the victims of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides. This year, people will also be encouraged to take a stand against racism and prejudice today - and to speak out against hatred wherever they encounter it.
Newcastle Chronicle and Journal
| Promoted by Paul Foy on behalf of Dave Anderson, both of St Cuthbert's Church Hall, Shibdon Road, Blaydon, NE21 5PT |