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Reacting to the launch today of the Government’s consultation on expanding facial recognition uses by police and private companies, Sian Berry, who is the Green MP spokesperson for Crime and Policing, said:  “Artificial intelligence surveillance carries profound risks to human rights, and the Government is being completely reckless about the risk of its hardline policies – including mandatory digital ID and scrapping juries – creating a toolkit for authoritarians like the racist far right to cause terrible harm in future.   “The EU has already put strong controls on the use

Responding to proposals from the Justice Secretary that jury trials should be scrapped except in the most serious cases, Green MP Sian Berry said: “This is yet another assault on our rights from an increasingly authoritarian government. This proposal would scrap a fundamental cornerstone of our justice system which has been in the place for 800 years. “For David Lammy to describe the right to trial by jury as ‘not a right’ is a disgrace. The Government must fund our justice system properly – not make people pay for Labour

Responding to news that the government is backing Heathrow’s £49 billion proposal that will require the M25 to be moved, Green MP Siân Berry said:   “This Government is so pathetically in the pocket of Heathrow bosses and the most wealthy frequent flyers, that it will support this ridiculous and costly plan for expansion, despite the miserable disruption it will cause to everyone else’s daily lives. “These plans will trash our vital climate targets, and meanwhile cause misery on the roads, all for the benefit of the very richest people. “This

Green MP Siân Berry has once again published a log of her official meetings with campaigners, community groups, businesses, and other lobbyists, and is reiterating her call for other MPs to follow suit.   The latest release shows Sian held over 40 meetings to discuss policy with representatives of different local and national groups from 5 July to 4 October this year.  Currently, while substantial gifts and hospitality must be declared by all MPs, and Government ministers must record and release details of all official meetings, there is no requirement for

Green MP leads cross-party condemnation of Labour’s digital ID plans   Green MP for Brighton Pavilion Siân Berry is leading cross-party condemnation of the Government’s plans for mandatory digital ID cards with a motion that warns against the growth of checkpoint Britain.  The Early Day Motion (EDM), calls on the Government to scrap its plans to introduce a mandatory digital ID scheme for all workers.   Supported by Liberal Democrat, SNP, Conservative, Independent and other MPs, the EDM states that mandatory ID is fundamentally at odds with British values and civil liberties,

“This awful decision is a triumph for lobbying over logic. Despite clear reasons to reject this proposal based on noise, climate change emissions and transport gridlock, the Transport Secretary has decided to side with Gatwick bosses and plough ahead with these reckless plans.   “The excuses found to blast loopholes through conditions on resident noise and traffic gridlock set out clearly by the Planning Inspectorate earlier this year make a mockery of every hard-working resident group, environmental organisation and local council that engaged in good faith with this process.”  “Undercutting this

“This is an important part of following the Nolan principles of public life and working without fear or favour to vested interests”  Siân Berry MP has released a full log of her first year of official meetings with campaigners, unions, community groups, businesses and other lobbyists, while calling for other MPs to follow suit, and for new rules on MP transparency as part of reform of the Lobbying Act.[1]   Currently, while substantial gifts and hospitality must be declared by all MPs, and Government ministers have to record and release details

Reacting the Government’s Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment Bill presented in Parliament today, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion Siân Berry said:  “With this Bill the Government is making a cruel, unnecessary and callous political choice. Recklessly pushing this Bill through parliament shows that ministers are still not listening to the millions of Disabled people who will be catastrophically affected by these reforms about how their daily lives really work.  “Disabled people already disproportionately struggle to get by and, by ripping away essential PIP support, ministers are aware they are

A cross-party group of MPs will be reintroducing a Bill that makes breathing clean air a human right into Parliament at the start of July. ‘Ella’s Law’ is named in memory of Ella Adoo Kissi-Debrah whose death was the first in England to be officially attributed to air pollution.  Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, Siân Berry, so far backed by cross-party Labour, Liberal Democrat, SNP and Independent MPs, will present the new Bill to the House of Commons with a ten minute speech on Tuesday 1 July.  The proposals in

“Disabled people will be infuriated listening to Liz Kendall talk about cutting their support as if it was in any way in line with Labour’s values. “Cutting £5 billion from their support betrays the principles of the welfare state, which needs more funding not deep cuts, and the Government has many other options for funding the social security net sustainably without plunging hundreds of thousands into poverty. “It is clear the Government isn’t listening to Disabled people at all. If it had, it would have heard loud and clear that