el Reg has been pissing on the bonfire of one of those silly parliamentary committees on alledged rights.

Now look at some of the proposed new “rights” set out in the annex to the parliamentary report:

Everyone has the right to have access to appropriate health care services, free at the point of use and within a reasonable time…

Everyone has the right to have access to further education and to vocational and continuing training…

Everyone has the right to adequate accommodation appropriate to their needs…

These really aren’t Rights at all – rather, they are an expression of the conviction that the current model of the British welfare state is somehow inevitable and proper. In linguistic terms – note the liberal use of words such as “appropriate” and “reasonable” – they are a bureaucrat’s wet dream, setting out in no uncertain terms not the scope of our aspirations, but the limit to our freedoms.

It’s nice to see that I’m not the only one who isn’t massively keen on the idea of a vaguely left wing and very statist shopping list being passed off as a bill of right that we should all be expected to get on board with.

I’m normally a fan of el Reg and their way with words. I’m also generally a fan of my way with words. But, in this instance I’ll follow the advice of TLG and let someone better speak for me. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the wisdom of the late, great and lamented Acidman:

I have just one question: Why is it that the more imaginary “rights” people invent, the less personal freedom I have?