Dear Glenda

You will be aware of the the Coroners and Justice Bill which has its Second Reading in the House of Commons on Monday.

Specifically I am asking you to oppose clauses 151-154.

It feels rather odd that they are included at all as these clauses have nothing to do with coroners or court procedure. These clauses run roughshod through the protections of the Data Protection Act and are a threat to the liberty of every person in the UK. These clauses provide for "information sharing orders" to be made by a Secretary of State or Minister, which in turn allow all information (even if provided on a confidential basis) held to be shared between departments, private companies, and foreign governments.

No explanation is given as to why this power is needed. If passed into law, this would permit Ministers to amend any statute without any debate or scrutiny.

I am calling upon you, please, to do the following:

- Scrutinise clauses 151-154 (Part 8 of the Bill)
- Call on the government to give Part 8 sufficient parliamentary time for proper debate
- Oppose the proposed change to the Data Protection Act, so as to do your bit to protect liberty, privacy and confidentiality.

Additionally, I ask you to vote against clause 7 (presumption of inquest without a jury), clause 10 (juries not to be able to give an opinion) and clause 12 (holding inquests in private). These clauses, if passed, will undermine confidence in the inquest system, its transparency and accountability, and will undermine the valuable contribution which ordinary members of society have to matters such as deaths in custody.

I very much hope you will be able to support the rights and freedoms of the individual by opposing clauses 151-154, and the importance of scrutiny of inquests by opposing clauses 7, 10 and 12. I’d be very grateful if you would let me know your response to this Bill.

Many thanks in advance

Ed Fordham