Howlett Watch #2: The Deportation of Majid Ali

A correspondent wrote to new Bath MP Ben Howlett concerning the fate of Majid Ali, the City of Glasgow College student who was forcibly deported to Pakistan in June. Majid had been applying for asylum since 2011, claiming that his family home was raided and uncle and cousin shot dead because of their political beliefs, and that his brother had been abducted by the government. Hundreds of students protested and many more were opposed to his deportation, including Nicola Sturgeon of the SNP, the First Minister for Scotland. Majid has not been heard from since, and reportedly told his lecturer that he was scared hours before being forced onto a military plane. It is thought that he is either dead or was abducted on arrival.

Ben's reply is as follows:

Dear XXXX

Thank you very much for your recent email. My sincere apologies regarding my delay in replying.

I am very sad to hear of the case of Majid Ali, however I have every faith in our Home Office team and in the difficult decisions made by Theresa May and her staff. I will continue to support the decisions made by the Home Office as I believe that they act in the best interests of the British people. The abuse of the student visa system - a system that was installed to encourage international students to study in our great country, and rightly so - cannot be tolerated.

Thank you again for getting in touch. Please do contact me again with any questions or concerns.

Best wishes

Ben Howlett
Member of Parliament for Bath


We question the ethics of Mr Howlett on this matter. There was a very clear risk of danger to this young man's life, and it is highly likely that his worst fears have been realised. How can Mr Howlett continue to support an institution that would knowingly send a young person to their potential death? What is this great country he refers to? It is surely not the United Kingdom under the rule of the Conservatives. To even consider mentioning the abuse of the student visa system in this instance is abhorrent. If Ben Howlett had any concern for the wellbeing of human life, he would oppose the actions of the Home Office on this matter. After only two months, Bath's new MP has disgraced himself.

We'd rather not have to keep writing these posts, but it appears that we are going to be doing so for some time if Mr Howlett continues along these lines. If you have received a response from Ben Howlett that you are not satisfied with, please send it to standingstonesblog@hotmail.co.uk and we'll consider publishing it.
Mr Howlett's contact details are as follows:

Address: 96 Sydney Mews, Bathwick, Bath, BA2 4ED

Phone: 01225 338555

E-mail: ben@ben4bath.co.uk

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Howlett Watch #1: Fox Hunting

Anti-hunt campaigners in Bath have written to new Conservative MP Ben Howlett concerning proposals to repeal the hunting ban. In response he sent out identical letters to all those who wrote to him, several of which have been passed to our team.


Dear XXXX

Thank you for contacting me about the Hunting Act 2004.

I appreciate the strong feelings that many people have on this issue and I share your concern for ensuring the welfare of all animals. Your views will therefore be incorporated into my consultation on this matter.

The Prime Minister has said that a majority Conservative Government will give Parliament the opportunity to repeal the Hunting Act on a free vote, with a government bill in government time.

I have always made it clear that the current law is not working and therefore I would vote in favour of repealing the hunting act in a free vote. If the law is repealed, I will work with my colleagues from across the House to replace it with legislation which works better for all those concerned.

I do hope this clarifies my position on this matter.

Best wishes

Ben Howlett
Member of Parliament for Bath


We fail to grasp Mr Howlett's logic. Surely, while not perfect, the Hunting Act at present reduces the amount of fox hunting undertaken, and that by repealing it, therefore making fox hunting legal, more foxes would be killed in this barbaric fashion than at present. If Mr Howlett is truly concerned about the effectiveness of the current legislation, surely he should be voting to keep it, while working on more effective legislation to replace it.

We therefore call upon the people of Bath to question Mr Howlett further, and to organise protests if he sticks to this approach.

Suggested questions to Mr Howlett (the more people that send these to him the better - please send your responses to standingstonesblog@hotmail.co.uk and we'll publish them):

- Do you agree with the practice of hunting foxes with dogs?

- What, in your view, is problematic with the current legislation?

- If you are opposed to hunting foxes with dogs, why do you think that repealing the ban without immediately replacing it with more effective legislation is a good idea?

Mr Howlett's contact details are as follows:

Address: 96 Sydney Mews, Bathwick, Bath, BA2 4ED

Phone: 01225 338555

E-mail: ben@ben4bath.co.uk

It has also been brought to our attention that Mr Howlett likes the page "Tot AlHunt"on Facebook. These hunt supporters say on the subject of the badger cull:
'There is a need to cull badgers in the United Kingdom due to the fact they spread TB to cattle. This case has been made well elsewhere. Our position on the matter at Total Hunt is that it is also a legitimate sport to cull badgers. Badger digging is a popular British field sport which has unnecessarily been criminalised.'

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