TOLPUDDLE MARTYRS' FESTIVAL

That this House looks forward to the TUC Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival on 15 to 17 July 2011; is shocked to learn that Maureen Lum, a grandmother and trade unionist from Australia, has been deported because her long-planned holiday in the UK included an hour's singing with the amateur Tasmanian Grass Roots choir at the Tolpuddle Festival; notes the irony that the choir sing songs re-telling the story of the six martyrs whose decision to form a union led to their transportation to Australia; believes this shameful incident highlights the ridiculous rules that require amateur performers to have a formal entertainment visa to enter the UK; and calls for an urgent review by the Home Office into these regulations.