Concerns raised over ‘Shrewsbury 24’ e-petition

ORGANISERS of a campaign to overturn 40-year-old convictions against 24 pickets, including Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson, are collecting names on paper after raising claims of interference on an e-petition.

The so-called Shrewsbury 24 were arrested and charged under the 1875 Conspiracy Act, with six sent to prison in the early 1970s, including Mr Tomlinson.

The building workers arrested believe there was government “manipulation” and have been campaigning for the release of official documents. An e-petition was launched last year with the aim of attracting the 100,000 signatures needed to spark a debate in parliament.

Campaign researcher Eileen Turnbull said that, despite widespread support, the signatures on the e-petition had remained at 28,000 for months.

Ms Turnbull said she had challenged the parliamentary authorities and was told there had been a “computer glitch”, or that not everyone who had logged on to the e-petition had actually left their details.

“We have until 27 June to get 100,000 names, so we have decided to revert to paper. We have 3,000 names after just a few hours’ campaigning, so I am confident we will get 100,000 by the end of June.”