Rugby people critical of Government regulation

A survey undertaken during October has shown that many people in Rugby are highly sceptical of the new plans proposed by the Government to introduce large scale vetting are barring schemes throughout both the public and private areas of peoples lives. 62.5% of people questioned said that they felt that the Government intruded to far into their personal privacy.

Meanwhile, more than half said that the new vetting and barring scheme was contrary to the principle of being "innocent until proven guilty." The survey was conducted over the phone, on the doorstep and online.

Mark Pawsey, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Rugby spoke about the results of the survey:

"What this Government is doing is deeply troubling to most people, and our survey has shown that. We fully acknowledge that childrens safety must be the highest priority but this Government is presiding over a total abdication of personal, moral and social responsibility. They are sowing deep divisions in the general public and accelerating a gradual breakdown of trust in our local community and I find this unacceptable."

Mark continued:

"The vast majority of people I spoke to said that they felt that parents who volunteer to help with school trips or charitable work should be made welcome and thanked, not treated as if they are paedophiles. In Rugby we have many volunteer organisations such as Scouts, Girl Guides and many school clubs in the area. They need to be supported, not criminalised."

Mark concluded:

"The Conservative Party has laid out it's objections to the Governments proposals very strongly. David Cameron said very clearly that what is needed is a more community based solution and not layers of Government legislation acting to break up our society. We will oppose the vetting and barring scheme just as we oppose the Governments drive to legislate into people's houses. We need to put responsibility and community back into the local area, now more than ever."