Jez Smith wrote:
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we dont have a written constitution in england so we dont have any legal protection from what is known as the 'royal perogative' being invoked at any time for any reason,

Actually, UK freedoms were enshrined in documents like Magna Carta and the Bill of rights. Our "constitution" is no less real beacuse it is not written down.

What REMOVED the protections of Magna Carta were things like the 1914 Emergency Powers Act etc, introduced during the Great war and never rescinded in full. Of course lots of things there are for "protection" and "safety", forgetting that, as an Amercan patriot said, that those who trade freedom for safety end up with less of either.

Our current government is accelerating the trend introduced then. Quite how identity cards stopped the Spanish bombs beats me. Or 9/11, since the US drivers license is a de-facto identity card.

Steve