A campainger spearheading a campaign to try and stop a so-called 'gagging law' has presented a national petition with more than 250,000 signatures to Pinner's MP.

Sue Sedgeman, of Grimsdyke Road, Hatch End, submitted the paperwork to Nick Hurd, the Conservative MP for Pinner, Ruislip and Northwood and the minister for civil society, asking he block the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill from becoming leglislation following its introduction to Parliament last July.

Campaigning charity 38 Degrees claims the bill would stop charities and campaigning groups from speaking out on some of the most important issues facing the country and the planet, even once recent Government changes to the bill are taken into account.

Ms Sedgeman, a 38 Degress member who has been a life coach for over 20 years, said: “I believe in democracy and freedom of speech. This law is wrong.

“Everyone waits for someone else to stand up and say ‘I don’t agree with it’ so I thought I would take a stand.

“I communicated to friends, family and local people to try and get them to sign the petition.

“I would like to maybe get more local people in Hatch End and Pinner involved maybe one day set up something around here.”

Ms Sedgeman handed over the petition with other members of 38 Degrees at the MP's constituency office in High Street, Northwood, last week.

She said: “I hope he will do the right thing and stand up.

“If it went ahead it would mean we would be restricted with what we would be able to do.

“We would be boxed in a bit and have less freedom.

“The government have already announced plans to water down the gagging law which is a good thing, it means that the influence is working.”

In the past months, MPs have stressed these proposals apply only for third party organisations which campaign for the electoral success of a particular political party or candidate, and an organisation campaigning only on policy issues would be exempted from these changes.

Mr Hurd said: “The Lobbying Bill is about forcing more transparency around lobbying and political campaigning.

“A number of community groups expressed concern about the implications for them. The Government has listened and made some significant concessions.”

The bill, which would create a register of consultant lobbyists and reduce the limit third parties’ election expenditure, was read for a third time in the House of Lords on Tuesday.