Open letter to the UK Home Secretary

The UK Home Secretary is currently putting the ‘Investigatory Powers Bill’ before the Government; detractors call it the ’snoopers charter’. We are told that ‘those who have done nothing wrong, have nothing to fear’ from these powers.

I very rarely do not tell the truth
I routinely keep speed limits, and have no points on my driving licence
I have never been drunk in my life
I have never used illegal drugs or ‘legal highs’
I don’t watch porn, have never slept around or had an affair
I smoked one cigarette as a teenager, and I didn’t like it
I have no debts
I declare all sources of income and pay my taxes on time
I have never been arrested, charged or convicted of a crime
I have no involvement with terrorism other than to follow the news
I have only been inside a police station to report a lost wallet.

And yet I still do not want you reading my emails or tracking my phone calls or activities!

Although I recognise that the weight of responsibility for the UK’s security must weigh heavily on your shoulders, and I don’t assume you are particularly interested in watching me, I nonetheless do have something to fear:

You are not balancing the necessary measures to protect us from terrorism with the protection of privacy for ordinary citizens
You do not admit what the security services are doing unless forced to do so
You avoid transparency and accountability, and minimise the checks and balances to restrain the excesses of undue power
And you only make changes when the current position becomes untenable or is declared illegal.

I do not think that you are an evil person, or that you want to be a dictator. But protecting the security of our citizens includes protecting the privacy of ordinary people from unreasonable intrusion. Yet the clear trend is for increasing and intrusive surveillance of the general UK population and I do not see you trying to slow that trajectory. Rather, I see you trying to legalise after the event what has already been taking place in secret, and putting in place further loopholes that can be exploited in the future.

So, I do not trust you.

You have moved well beyond a reasonable concern for security, and I am fearful that this country, which once was known for its openness, honesty, justice and free speech, is becoming an oppressive state.

And I am fearful of that, for by your actions you are seriously eroding the security you claim to protect.

Where do you draw that boundary?

Probably without thinking much about it, we all carry in our minds ways in which we judge others to be 'like us', or 'not like us', no doubt with a grey area in the middle of 'people who are somewhat like us'.

What interests me is how very differently people make this judgement - whether their definitions of 'like me' are very narrow, or very inclusive - and the reasons that may be behind this difference.

For some, 'like me' means only those who support the same team, or (in case you think I am stereotyping sports fans) just people who have the same lifestyle or educational background, or share the same theological outlook. After all, this seems like a good way of maintaining a sense of personal security: by avoiding much difference and thus potential awkwardness.

Of course, this is also a handy shortcut to deciding whether it is worth striking up a conversation with this other person, or considering the potential of friendship with them, or even caring what happens to them at all. If they support the wrong team, come from a different background or are from the wrong side of the spiritual tracks, then there's little point wasting any effort on them. They can live in their world and I can live in mine.

There are at least two problems with this: it's a lousy strategy for building your personal sense of security, and, secondly, like it or not, we actually live in the same world.

From time to time, though not often, I admit, I meet people who seem able to relate to others who are very different to themselves, and do so very easily and naturally. They are interested in people from quite different lifestyle, cultural and spiritual backgrounds. How do they do this? Sometimes it looks like they are 'making an effort' to relate, but there are definitely some people for whom this comes naturally - they are open, curious, genuinely interested. And they tend to be people who are very secure in themselves.

It takes a considerable degree of security to relate comfortably to people who are very different to ourselves, to stay with the discomfort and to not feel somewhat threatened.

It is said of the Christian church that it is one of the few places where people of very different backgrounds come together as one, and there is some real truth in this. But Christians don't have a monopoly on personal security: there are people of other faiths or none who care deeply for others and about world issues and live this out in practical ways in their daily lives. And, sadly, there are Christians who cannot relate even to those from other branches of the Christian faith!

There's no surprise that Christians can be insecure, lacking in love or immature. In short, we're sinful; we are forgiven sinners and no more. But we are urged in the scriptures to 'Love your neighbour as yourself' (Mark 12v31) - which Jesus said was the second most important command of all - and it is made very clear that the call to reach out to 'our neighbour' is to reach well beyond just 'people like us', as the parable of the Good Samaritan makes clear (Luke 10v23f).

It's easy to love and deal decently with people like us. But if we draw tight boundaries around those we feel are like us, then it's time to get on our knees and seek forgiveness, and to ask the Lord to increase the love in our hearts. Growing in love is synonymous with expanding the boundaries of those who we consider like us.

Where do you draw that boundary? Honestly?

If you really want to grow in love and personal security, don't wait until you feel more loving or secure! Get some Godly practice in reaching out to people who are not so like yourself. It'll take some effort and probably won't come naturally at all; you'll need to ask for God's help.

But He's good at this, and by his grace you'll get better at it. And a greater sense of personal security will, in time, follow. And your heart will beat with Jesus' love.