Big Brother Watch

WATCH: Alex Deane speaks at 'An Unwarranted Intrusion?'

WATCH: Harry Snook speaks at 'An Unwarranted Intrusion?'

WATCH: Dominic Grieve QC MP speaks at 'An Unwarranted Intrusion?'

An Unwarranted Intrusion?

Last night Big Brother Watch teamed up with The Centre for Policy Studies to host an event discussing the accumulation of entry powers by the state. 

Research released by Big Brother Watch in December last year revealed that there are nearly 15,000 officers in local councils nationwide who can enter private property without requiring a warrant or police officer escort. You can read the full report Barging In by clicking here. This report built upon the 2006 Centre for Policy Studies pamphlet Crossing the Threshold by Harry Snook, which detailed the number of ways the State can enter a private home as of right.

To debate the power of entry at last night's event - chaired by Jill Kirby, Director of the Centre for Policy Studies - were:

• Dominic Grieve QC MP – Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
• Henry Porter – Novelist and Columnist
• Harry Snook – Author, Crossing the Threshold
• Alex Deane – Director, Big Brother Watch

We will be posting videos of each of the speeches from the event throughout the day and I would urge you to watch all four speakers. Each clip offers tremendous insights into the speaker's expertise and serve as a fantastic analysis of the erosion of liberty and how the current government has intruded into the public and private sphere.

Perhaps the most important development from the event, however, was Dominic Grieve's commitment to two key policies for a Conservative Government:

- The first was his announcement that he would like to see it compulsory for any state inspector to have to apply for a warrant from a JP before exercising power of entry.

- The second was his desire to introduce a 'Repeal Act' to get rid of some of the ridiculous and inappropriate legislation that permits state inspectors to enter our homes.

These two policy commitments from the Shadow Minister for Justice are absolutely critical if a Conservative Government is to restrict the power of the state over our private space. Big Brother Watch intends to keep a close eye on the progression of these commitments and will be ready to hold Dominic Grieve to account should the Tories win the next election. 

The videos of the speeches will be posted shortly.

By Dylan Sharpe

The Official Launch of Big Brother Watch

As many reading this will be aware, Big Brother Watch has been up and running since mid-September 2009. Our creation was trailed in the Sunday Times and our first blogpost appeared on our newly-created website soon after. With three major pieces of research released and regular appearances in the media and on various civil liberties platforms, we thought it was about time we presented ourselves in front of the great and the good in Westminster.

On Monday night, the official launch of Big Brother Watch took place in the salubrious surroundings of Vanilla in Central London. Around 150 people from politics, the media, civil liberties and beyond attended, and judging by the comments on the night and in various blogs written afterwards (see here and here), it was a great success.

We were keen to use the event, not only to raise awareness and thank those who had already played a part in making Big Brother Watch a success, but also as a statement of intent about how we want to continue. As part of that aim, we were delighted to welcome our two special guest speakers from opposite ends of the political spectrum.

When it comes to defending civil liberties and our right to privacy and freedom in Britain, Tony Benn and David Davis MP can be considered among the most important and respected names in the country today. In the current political atmosphere in which principle is often ignored for ambition, both men have shown outstanding statesmanship in standing-up for what they believe and crossing the political divide to show solidarity with the right cause.

The speeches given by both at the event are below (we apologise in advance for the poor lighting) and a longer video of the event is now available on our YouTube channel. We hope you enjoy listening to their pearls of wisdom and continue to support Big Brother Watch!

By Dylan Sharpe

Big Brother Watch at Conservative Party Conference

Big Brother Watch is off to Conservative Party Conference and over the course of the event we intend to be in all the key debates and meetings, providing up-to-the-minute details of what is being said and relaying them to you all through our Twitter feed.

For all those who use the social media tool 'Twitter', please follow Big Brother Watch at @bbw1984.

Big Brother Watch will also form part of the TaxPayers' Alliance Conference Stand, which will be located in The Westminster Village Fête in the Freedom Zone, which can be found in The Bridgwater Hall, Choir Circle Foyer (1st floor).

As we previewed last week, Alex Deane, Director of Big Brother Watch, will be speaking at an event in The Freedom Zone, kindly provided by our friends The Freedom Association.

Alex will be in conversation with Douglas Murray, Director of the Centre for Social Cohesion discussing the question, "Civil liberties and security - are they compatible?"

The event will be at 1.00 p.m. on Monday 5th October in the Barbirolli Room, Bridgewater Hall.
 
Once again, we hope to see you all there.
 
We also recommend you come along to the events being hosted by the TaxPayers' Alliance, which are available to view here.

We will still be blogging as well as twittering, so do continue to visit www.bigbrotherwatch.org.uk for all the latest news.

By Dylan Sharpe

Alex Deane in conversation with Douglas Murray

Alex Deane, Director of Big Brother Watch, will be speaking at an event in The Freedom Zone at Conservative Party Conference, kindly provided by our friends The Freedom Association.

Alex will be in conversation with Douglas Murray, Director of the Centre for Social Cohesion, discussing the question, "Civil liberties and security - are they compatible?"

The event will be at 1.00 p.m. on Monday 5th October in the Barbirolli Room, Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street, Manchester M2 3WS.

For those who have never been to The Freedom Zone, there is always plenty of opportunity for members of the audience to contribute to the discussion and, being outside the security zone, the meeting is open to all - no conference passes needed.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

By Big Brother Watch Team