Statement of Intent
We, the Libertarian Party, hold that each and every adult is the sole and sovereign owner of their life and legitimately acquired property; and that they will be free to live in whatever manner they so choose, so long as they do not infringe upon the freedom of others to do the same. We further hold that the defence of the individual against force or fraud by others should be the single function of government.
What The Libertarian Party Stands For
- Individual liberty, freedom and the self-responsibility that comes with it.
- Free enterprise and Honest Markets for the prosperity and opportunity they bring.
- Small Government and low taxation.
- Rule of Law applied without fear or favour.
The qualities of life shown above have slowly been accrued over the centuries by the bravery, courage, sacrifice and blood of our forebears. Much of this has been eroded in recent years. We wish to restore these hard-won freedoms to the United Kingdom, and this is why we formed the Libertarian Party.
Freedom is distinct from the idea of "rights". People have freedoms, yet each freedom comes with the responsibility not to encroach upon the equal or superior freedoms of others. If someone has a "right", which might be better described as an "entitlement", it comes with an obligation upon a third party to furnish that entitlement. An example of a freedom is the freedom to learn. An example of a right is the right to an education. We are for Freedoms and Liberty, not "rights".
In regards to the role of the State, we believe there is a need for Defence and the apparatus of law enforcement such as Courts, Prisons and a Police force that upholds Rule of Law with the consent of the People, not as a tool of the State. This is why we might be described as Minarchists, for we believe in a small State, one that does not interfere or tell you how to live your life, but will defend you against those who may try to do so.
Rule Of Law
The concept of Rule of Law is distinct from just being ruled by laws. Rule of Law encompasses, amongst other things, property rights, due process, equality and transparency. It also includes the notion that there should be as few laws as possible and that those that do exist be as simple and clear as possible, and predictable in their application.
Property rights are corporeal (your body), intellectual (your ideas, thoughts, beliefs), physical (possessions, land) and capital (your money or other financial assets). Due process includes trial by a jury of your peers, habeas corpus and no detention without charge. Equality is where the same laws apply to all without fear, favour or special cases. Transparency is open and visible decision-making and accountability.
We feel that Rule of Law is one of the vital yardsticks by which we measure our policies and will conduct ourselves once elected. As Rule of Law encompasses Capital Property Rights, it is an obligation of the State to preserve the value of currency and not devalue it by inflation or debt.
Working With Human Nature
Libertarianism has been criticised for being cold and heartless, but it is actually quite the reverse. It both presumes that Mankind is charitable, and it aims to reconnect the giver with the receiver, to make each of us accountable to ourselves for what we do or don’t do to help our fellow Man and to make the support of such people the direct result of our voluntary acts. The current Welfare State demands money under pain of imprisonment and yet disenfranchises the givers from the receivers, providing the former with no say as to how the appropriated funds are spent and the latter without the knowledge that the assistance they are getting is given willingly. The State has monopolised the role of beneficiary even if it never gives a penny; all it does is transfer monies from one individual or group of individuals to another, and then at the cost of the bureaucracy involved—consuming a large percentage of the funds collected.
Protecting The Vulnerable
We are acutely aware of the Tyranny of the Majority, also known as Rule of the Mob, whereby the views of the majority or a sizeable minority dictate the lives of all others. The less the State does and decides and the more each individual does and decides for themselves, the lesser the Tyranny of the Majority. As is readily apparent, a large State—even one born of Democracy—can descend into this form of Tyranny; in fact Democracy gives such Tyranny the appearance of legal respectability, when in fact it has none.
Policy Goals
We aim to move as soon as practicable towards a Minarchist Libertarian State. Below, the phrase "long term" suggests actions that may take place over a number of Parliaments (e.g. a decade or more), whereas "short term" means within the first Parliamentary session of a Libertarian Government (within 5 years).
In Law and Order, our focus will be on Rule of Law, and the pressing need to repeal oppressive, unnecessary, contradictory or discriminatory legislation; particularly, in the short term, areas such as drug use, prostitution, Due Process and discriminatory law.
In Health and Education we believe that people tend, on balance, to know best what is right for them given their own unique circumstances. The short term will be to evolve the massive State run monopolies into independent, pluralistic providers where the patient/parent is actively involved in service choice either directly via voucher schemes, or indirectly via their selection of an insurance provider. In both areas it will be essential to remove barriers to new entrants to ensure that all participants are as efficient and as effective as possible, and so as not to replace a National monopoly with a provincial one. The long term goal will be that of no State provision of services or the universal funding of such. Some financial State assistance towards the healthcare needs of the destitute will exist in the form of insurance subsidy, but not the provision of services, forming part of our "safety net, not hammock" approach to Welfare.
On the Economy, our short term goal will be to reduce and simplify taxation towards consumption not income, to increase transparency and accountability, and to begin repayment of the National Debt. Our long term goal is to have a vibrant, transparent, open, honest, low-tax, sustainable and true market economy, in which the currency value is preserved and little or no National Debt exists.
In Defence, our short and longer term goal is that of Armed Neutrality provided by properly funded Armed Forces.
In Welfare, the long term goal is for this to be a safety net, not a hammock and where the overwhelming majority of welfare is provided by the voluntary sector funded directly by individuals.
Our Immigration policy will be points based whilst the State provided Welfare System exists. In parallel, we will establish bilateral agreements with countries to enable free flows of people. Longer term, and in conjunction with the disappearance of our current Welfare System, we are committed to pursuing an open borders policy towards those who would wish to come to the United Kingdom in order to contribute to our (by then) thriving economy and peaceful shores.
Constitutionally, we shall re-affirm the existing Bill of Rights (1689) and Magna Carta, whilst in the short term a new written Constitution will be drawn up. Combining the freedoms established by these documents with others secured by our forebears will have the net effect of restoring and forever enshrining vital freedoms lost to our countrymen and women during the recent decades.