Readers may be aware of the Parliamentary petition to 'Make it a Criminal Offence for MPs to Mislead the Public' which has attracted about 63,000 signatures so far.

The government has already responded, essentially saying that it is up to Parliament itself to apply any sanctions after investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. I suspect that few members of the public will be reassured.

In order to justify keeping sanctions 'in House', Parliament relies on a clause in the English Bill of Right 1688 (or 1689 depending on the calendar used) which states,

"That the freedom of speech and debates or proceedings in Parliament ought not to be impeached or questioned in any court or place out of Parliament."

However in our crazy unentrenched constitution the Bill of Rights can be repealed as easily as any other statute. It is worth remembering how the Bill of Rights came to be. Basically it was a deal negotiated between a Parliament, fed up with Catholic monarchs claiming the 'divine right' to absolute rule on the one hand, and William of Orange and his wife Mary on the other hand who agreed to assume the monarchy but with limited powers.

At that time Parliament had cause to fear the arbitrary actions of the King. I very much doubt whether either party to the agreement would have contemplated how over time the situation would reverse to the point where the Queen reigns but does not rule. The danger now is of an Elective Dictatorship.

Confidence in Parliament is at rock bottom. I have asked Mr Drax to seek to get the above clause removed from the Bill of Rights, in order to restore the reputation of Parliament and to allow effective sanctions to be employed.

David Smith

Weymouth