So what did I do all day ? [5 November]
I (with Anne Brummer) inhabited the Corridors of Power. Well, actually, it’s more accurate to say we hung around the cafés of power in Portcullis House and the Houses of Parliament.
It was a long lobbying day, and we had encouraging meetings on the Badger Cull with MP’s from (nearly) all parties – 2 Labour, 3 Conservatives, and one Green. Plus some other interactions which just happened spontaneously. I am coming to the conclusion that in the future, with regard to our campaign for animals, political parties will be less important than individuals. Save-Me has always carefully guarded its non-alignment to any party, and it has long been my feeling that animal welfare, like human civil rights, should be above politics. There are MP’s in the HOC at present from all parties who either have been with us from the start, or who are beginning to realise that we just might be right, and Owen Paterson just might be making a fool of himself (apparently with the approval of David Cameron, but for how long ?)
Our one excellent diversion was a visit to the very cellar where Guy Fawkes was discovered with the explosives which were designed to blow up Parliament. How appropriate on Guy Fawkes Day. One wonders what public feelings were really like towards the Government of that day. Certainly our feelings today are extreme disappointment and frustration.
But we are no longer so alone. Dissatisfaction with the failure of Owen Paterson’s badger cull is now rife among all parties in the House. We shall see where this takes us. But, strangely, although attempting to stop the 8-week extension is tempting, History may record that it was this which finally confirmed the absurdity of the cull. The one thing which was always going to expose the ineffectiveness of this deeply politically motivated plan was – watching it happen. It’s just tragic that more badgers have to die in the process. It’s a national disgrace, which future generations will pin directly on David Cameron.
Bri
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