Neither liberal nor democratic

Last night, the UK House of Commons voted to advance the Justice and Security Bill unamended. The bill provides for the government to use secret evidence, unviewable by the other party, in civil claims against it - basically Ahmed Zaoui rules of "evidence". The "justification"? To shut down civil claims for torture and abuse by UK troops, or complicity in the same by the UK government.

That's horrifying enough, but basically what you'd expect from the UK Conservative Party. They're anti-human rights, unwilling to accept that basic standards of justice and fairness apply to everyone, not just people like themselves. But what's really appalling is that the liberal Democrats, supposedly the UK's protectors of human rights, voted for the bill. In the process, they betrayed their own values, and what remains of their constituents. Their actions are neither liberal nor democratic, and if they cease to exist next election, no-one should shed a single tear for them.