We imagine that Isle of Wight MP, Andrew Turner won’t be best pleased with the news announced today.
Earlier in the year we reported of Isle of Wight MP, Andrew Turner’s outrage at the idea of those incarcerated at her majesty’s pleasure having the right to vote.
“I do not believe that those who have committed crimes serious enough to warrant a custodial sentence should be allowed to vote.” he said.
How has it come about?
It’s reported that failure to comply with a 2004 European Court of Human Rights ruling, allowing prisoners the right to vote, could cost the UK taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds in legals costs and compensation claims.
The government are taking the decision to ‘through the towel in’ as one paper described it.
Mr Turner told us back in April, “If you commit a crime you lose some of your rights whilst you are in prison – that should include the right to vote. Rights should come with responsibilities – including not breaking the law.”
We’ve put in a request for a comment from Mr Turner today and will add to this story once we hear back.
In the meantime, if you want to read more on the issue, it has been widely reported across the media.
Image: Ben Chaney under CC BY-SA 2.0
