Release Date: Monday 25 October, 2004
Release Time: Immediate

Contact Details:
Chris R. Tame, 07957 644 519, chris@libertarian.co.uk
Sean Gabb, 07956 472 199, sean@libertarian.co.uk

For other contact and link details, see the foot of this message
Release url: http://www.libertarian.co.uk/news/nr028.htm

"FIRST THEY CAME FOR THE NAZIS: HSBC AND BARCLAYS BANKS SHOULD NOT CLOSE BNP BANK ACCOUNT", SAYS FREE MARKET AND CIVIL LIBERTIES THINK TANK

"The closure by both HSBC and Barclays Banks of the British National Party (BNP) bank account is an ominous threat to civil liberties", says the Libertarian Alliance, the radical free market and civil liberties think tank and pressure group.

Libertarian Alliance Director, Dr Chris Tame commented:

"Although in a fully free society and free market any commercial organization, private group or individual has a right to discriminate against, or refuse to do business with any other group or person for any reason, good or bad, rational or irrational, the existing banking system is not a free market. It is a regulated, semi-corporatist system in overt and covert relationships with the State. Inducements and pressures from the political elite are exerted and discretely veiled. Exclusion from the banking system is a direct attack on the very possibility of an organization functioning in  modern society. Thus, to allow actually existing banks to reject a political organisation unpopular with the State is a threat to political diversity and to freedom itself."
 

"Although there is no group in Britain more opposed to EVERY aspect of the BNPs overt and covert agendas - its welfare statism, its socialist economics, its crackpot anti-monetarist currency views, its environmentalism, its social, political and sexual authoritarianism, its paternalism, its racial collectivism, its anti-free trade and anti- globalism, and its opposition to the free movement of goods, capital and labour - the Libertarian Alliance opposes both  HSBC's and  Barclay's decision, and the growing demands for the expulsion of BNP members from the civil service, the police, teaching or other professions."
 

"What can be done to the BNP can be done to any group. As the great Jewish libertarian philosopher Ayn Rand said: 'In the transition to statism, every infringement of human rights has begun with the suppression of a given right's least attractive practitioners. In this case, the disgusting nature of [those concerned] makes it a good test of one's loyalty to a principle'.
 

"The principle is political freedom and freedom of expression. First they came for the Nazis ... who will be next?".

Extended Contact Details:

The Libertarian Alliance is Britain’s most radical free market and civil liberties policy institute. It has published over 700 articles, pamphlets and books in support of freedom and against statism in all its forms. These are freely available at http://www.libertarian.co.uk

Our postal address is

The Libertarian Alliance
Suite 35
2 Lansdowne Row
Mayfair
London
W1J 6HL
Tel: 07956 472 199

Associated Organisations

The Libertarian International - http://www.libertarian.to - is a sister organisation to the Libertarian Alliance. Its mission is to coordinate various initiatives in the defence of individual liberty throughout the world.

Sean Gabb's personal website - http://www.seangabb.co.uk - contains about a million words of writings on themes interesting to libertarians and conservatives.

Hampden Press - http://www.hampdenpress.co.uk.- the publishing house of the Libertarian Alliance.

Liberalia - http://www.liberalia.com - maintained by by LA Executive member Christian Michel, Liberalia publishes in-depth papers in French and English on libertarianism and free enterprise. It is a prime source of documentation on these issues for students and scholars.

Libertarian Samizdata - http://www.samizdata.net - a topical blog set up by LA Executive member Perry de Havilland..