John McDonnell MP

John McDonnell MP (Labour) MP for Hayes & Harlington

Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill

Part of the judgment proposes that the Government provide exceptions for persons whose communications are subject to an obligation of professional secrecy. That does not seem to be covered in the Bill or in the draft regulations.

Electronic Voting

Signed an Early Day Motion in 2002 Prevention of fraud in electronic voting systems

That this House believes that no electronic system of voting should be introduced into any British election unless it is accompanied by a verifiable paper trail for every vote cast, which if needs be can be used to address any concerns that may be raised that such electronic systems are faulty, defective or used fraudulently.

Identity cards

John McDonnell MP wishes to scrap the ID card program the BBC reports in Labour MPs threaten own manifesto 12 June 2009

Among the policies Mr McDonnell wants to see is the restoration of trade union rights, more council houses, an end to public service privatisation, scrapping the Heathrow third runway, freezing and then abolishing student fees, scrapping Trident and ID cards and electoral reform.

He said: "If Labour is to stand any chance of surviving at the next election real change has to be visibly underway and progress demonstrated at the latest by the autumn. If we go beyond November without real change, what hope is left of Labour not only remaining in government but surviving as an effective political force at all?"

Signed Early Day Motion 263 Identity Cards 06 June 2005

That this House believes that a convincing case for the introduction of compulsory biometric identity cards and a national database has not been made, that the risks involved far outweigh any discernible benefit, that the introduction of identity cards will fundamentally change the relationship between the citizen and the state, diminish personal privacy and threaten civil liberties, that the present proposals do not provide properly costed, proportionate or effective solutions to the problems they are claimed to solve; and calls upon the Government to shelve plans for their introduction.

Internet Censorship

Signed an Early Day Motion Freedom of Expression and the UN Internet Governance Forum 30 October 2006

That this House notes with concern that internet repression is hampering freedom of expression across the world especially in Iran, Vietnam, the Maldives and China; urges companies in China, including Microsoft, Google and Yahoo, to reveal which words they have banned from blogs or have filtered out of web searches; requests that they make public all their agreements with the Chinese authorities and publicly call for the release of cyber-dissidents jailed for expressing peaceful opinions online; welcomes Amnesty International's irrepressible.info campaign to ensure that the internet remains a tool for political freedom, not repression; and urges the UK Government to make strong representations at the UN Internet Governance Forum in Athens in November to ensure that the internet remains a tool for the free flow of information and respect for human rights and that freedom of expression is a key component to any future agreement on internet governance.

Freedom of Information

Signed Early Day Motion 2699 Freedom of Information 10 December 2006

That this House welcomes the finding of the Constitutional Affairs Committee (HC991) that the Freedom of Information Act has `already brought about the release of significant new information and....this information is being used in a constructive and positive way' and the committee's conclusion that it sees `no need to change' the Act's charging arrangements; views with concern reports that the Government is considering changing these arrangements to permit an application fee to be charged for all requests or to allow authorities to refuse, on cost grounds, a significant proportion of requests which they currently must answer; and considers that such changes could undermine the Act's benefits of increased openness, accountability and trust in the work of public authorities.

DNA database

Signed Early Day Motion 1697 Use of the DNA database 27 Febuary 2006

That this House expresses its concern about the retention of DNA data taken from children aged 10 to 18 years who have never been charged or cautioned with any offence; notes large regional differences in retention policy between various police forces; and believes that this imbalance is being further exacerbated by the Government's unwillingness to issue clear guidelines to chief constables about the removal of innocent children from the National Police DNA Database.

Database State

Signed Early Day Motion 210 Data Intrusion 21 November 2006

That this House notes with concern the increasing incidence of data intrusion or data rape, as it is increasingly becoming known, the process whereby personal and hitherto confidential data is transferred to central databases established by the Government which can then be made available to third parties, such as police and security services, without consent being required; notes that the operation of the new national medical database will require medical records, which until now have remained in the confidential custody of general practitioner practices, to be uploaded to the Spine, a computer which will collect details from doctors and hospitals; supports the British Medical Association in its demand that patients should be asked for their explicit permission before their files are transferred; further notes with concern the reports of plans to establish and expand national databases in relation to the identity card scheme, DNA and the national census; and calls on the Government to establish a legislative framework which will safeguard access to personal data which has as its foundation not only the requirement for explicit consent but the right to know which agencies have a right to, and have requested access to, personal information.

Also see NHS, Identity cards and DNA database.

Open Source Software

Signed Early Day Motion 179 Software in Schools 21 November 2006

That this House congratulates the Open University and other schools, colleges and universities for utilising free and open source software to deliver cost-effective educational benefit not just for their own institutions but also the wider community; and expresses concern that Becta and the Department for Education and Skills, through the use of outdated purchasing frameworks, are effectively denying schools the option of benefiting from both free and open source software and the value and experience small and medium ICT companies could bring to the schools market.

Communications Bill

John McDonnell has expressed his interest in the introduction of the Communications Bill.

Reference

News

2006-02-14 - The Guardian - Labour ID card rebels

Summary: Diane Abbott MP (Hackney North & Stoke Newington), Katy Clark MP (Ayrshire North and Arran), Jeremy Corbyn MP (Islington North), Gwyneth Dunwoody MP (Crewe & Nantwich), Mark Fisher MP (Stoke-on-Trent Central), Paul Flynn MP (Newport West), Ian Gibson MP (Norwich North), Kate Hoey MP (Vauxhall), Kelvin Hopkins MP (Luton North), Glenda Jackson MP (Hampstead & Highgate), Lynne Jones MP (Birmingham Selly Oak), John McDonnell MP (Hayes & Harlington), Robert Marshall-Andrews MP (Medway), Linda Riordan MP (Halifax), Clare Short MP (Birmingham Ladywood), Alan Simpson MP (Nottingham South), John Smith MP (Vale of Glamorgan), David Taylor MP (Leicestershire North West), Robert Wareing MP (Liverpool West Derby), Mike Wood MP (Batley & Spen)

2005-10-18 - BBC - ID card vote: rebel Labour MPs

Summary: Twenty-one Labour MPs voted against the government on the introduction of ID cards, slashing the government's majority to 32. John McDonnell was one of those MPs.