28th Oct 2005

Dear ____MP

Democratic government can only continue by ensuring the government keeps the franchise of monopoly.

By ceding permanent monopolies to corporations, the government undermines it's own position, and the democracy which the people need to lead lives of freedom.

To take one well known example, Microsoft is a well known convicted monopolist. It is also well known the monopolistic behavior of Microsoft has not been remedied.

A graphic example of the power Microsoft hold over the people of the UK and of the government is the �500,000,000 fee Microsoft has recently extracted from funds destined for health care.

If Microsoft and other corporations are allowed to continue along the path of extracting monopoly rent, both the government and the people loose power and genuine choice. If the government and people of Britain have no choice, we have no power. Government becomes irrelevant, democracy becomes extinct.

The government of Britain needs to claw back power from corporations by making choices. Choices not based on short-term convenience but choices taken so that in 5 or 10 years time, the government and people may still have a choice.

We have monopoly legislation. Too often, the government shies away from using it. The government must turn around and wield monopoly legislation to it's fullest extent, and interpret monopolies in the broadest sense. Particularly in the areas of computers, drugs and the media.

Where the government spends money, the government must employ a policy of dispersal. No one corporation or group of associated corporations should ultimately end up with more than 20% of the government's spend on hardware, software, drugs etc. The government must not be dependent on any one vendor.

In order to exercise choice and power, the government must demand interoperability between systems vendors. Therefore, the government must demand government computer systems use file formats and protocols which have open standards, which any vendor can freely implement.

If the government will only make choices based on short-term convenience, the government has consigned itself to irrelevance and increasing frustration, whilst the power and values of democracy bleed.