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Foundations of Freedom. Which are the foundations of freedom ?. What is the significance of the magna carta ?. Magna Carta Memorial at Runnymede near Windsor. Why is freedom valuable?. Why freedom is important for the British society?.
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How does the British state protect citizens freedom?David Cameron’s speech about freedom • Life in the globalised twenty-first century world presents great challenges to our government. The first is to protect our security. • The rise of international terrorism, mass movements of people, the transformation in communications technology makes it easier for terrorists to plan and coordinate their campaign. • All of these things make it harder for government to protect his citizens. It's hard to make that crucial judgement: how much freedom should we forego in order to be safe? In a number of speeches and articles over the past twelve months I have looked at the three key areas where we need action to fight terrorism: international relations, domestic security, and community cohesion. The government is responsible for the general welfare of citizens and gives protection to the most vulnerable in society. The government takes on the responsibility to pay for public services including the health system, the armed forces, the environment and benefits if you are unemployed, homeless or need to stay at home to look after a relative.
Friedrich Hayekand Freedom Friedrich Hayek is the political philosopher most closely associated with Thatcherism. According to Hayek, all freedoms depend on economic freedom. If a society concentrates economic power in the state it will soon loose political and intellectual freedom. Freedom comes in different shapes. Hayekwants freedom for enterprise, b)freedom from state control. Roger Scrutonsays that conservatism is mainly about authority, whilst liberalism is about freedom Bertrand Russell says that liberalism is about individualism as opposed to collectivism. Hayekconsiders liberalism to be the defence of individuals from the collectivist state. This does not mean, however, that he is in favour of a weak state. A strong state is necessary to defend individual rights, especially economic rights Theories of Freedom in liberal democracies • Liberal Democracy is a phrase often used to describe Western democratic political systems, such as Britain, Australia, the United States, Canada and other nations. • It is generally agreed that liberal democracies are based on four main principles: - a belief in the individual - a belief in reason and progress - a consensual theory of society=mutual benefit association - a suspicion of concentrated forms of power, whether by individuals, groups or governments
The impact of bodies on the freedom of UK citizens • 1.For example, public authorities may limit your right of movement if you are legally detained because you have mental health issues, in order to protect the rights of others or the interests of the wider community • 2. Another example of restriction of freedom is applied to those being under DUI House Arrest. The rules are fairly basic and simple; they cannot leave their house without previous authorization. • 3. Also no one has access to a person’s private property without his permission or against the wishes of the landowner, otherwise he becomes a trespasser and the owner has the right to ask him to leave. • 4. The right to freedom of expression may be restricted as is necessary "for the protection of the reputation and rights of others." That means that the law does not guarantee the right to publish defamatory statements that injure others' reputations. • 5. A state should not impose on its citizens a duty to express information or opinions which they do not support or consider false or useless. Like the right to speak, the right not to speak cannot be absolute: citizens must still fill in their tax forms, pharmaceutical companies must disclose the side-effects of the medicines they market, and witnesses must testify in court. Guaranteed by an Act of Parliament in 1998, these freedoms have existed under common law for more than 700 years. However, in some cases these freedoms may be limited, as paragraph three of article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights shows: “3. The above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any restrictions except those which are provided by law, are necessary to protect national security, public order, public health or morals or the rights and freedoms of others, and are consistent with the other rights recognized in the present Covenant.”
May 2014 Update In 2012, 147,000 EU migrants came to the UK, while 38,000 UK citizens emigrated to other countries in the EU – indicating that a balance of 109,000 more EU migrants came to the UK than UK citizens emigrated to take up residence elsewhere in the EU. Migration of UK citizens to EU countries & EU citizens to the UK
REFERENCES: Magna Carta, Clause 39 Office for National Statistics, Fig 1 Migration of UK citizens to EU countries & EU citizens to the UK Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 12 BIBLIOGRAPHY: Amnesty International UK, (2001) Freedom! Human Rights Education Pack William L. Miller (1995), Alternatives to Freedom Arguments and Opinions, Pearson Education www.bbc.co.uk (accessed on 23/05/2014) www.theguardian.co.uk (accessed on 23/05/2014) http://migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/commentary/eu-shuffle-how-does-freedom-movement-eu-affect-migration-and-uk (accessed on 23/05/2014) http://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/human-rights/what-are-human-rights/human-rights-act (accessed on 23/05/2014) http://www.freemovement.org.uk/european-commission-warning/ (accessed on 23/05/2014)
