If you’ve signed the recent petition on leaving the EU Now, you’ll have found the reply of the Petitions Team in your email inbox. It was sent out very early this morning, and the context is the vote in the HoC yesterday (see here).
Here is the text of the email, for reference:
“The Petitions Committee (the group of MPs who oversee the petitions system) met today and agreed to schedule a debate on Monday 14 January 2019 on the following group of petitions expressing different views on leaving the European Union:
Leave the EU without a deal in March 2019. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/229963
Leave the EU now https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/221747
Walk away now! We voted for a No Deal Brexit https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/235185
Grant a People’s Vote if Parliament rejects the EU Withdrawal Agreement https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/232984
To have a second referendum on Britain leaving the EU https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/231461
STOP BREXIT https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/226509
Stop Brexit if parliament rejects the deal https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/236261
The Committee has decided to have a single debate on these petitions because it wanted to ensure they were debated as soon as possible, so they would be less likely to be overtaken by events. The Committee has included some smaller petitions because they are very similar to those with 100,000 signatures.
The debate will start at 4.30pm. You can watch it at http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Commons. A transcript will be published the following day at https://hansard.parliament.uk”
I have bolded the relevant part, to show why this reply is unprecedented.
Firstly, note the day on which the debate will take place: Monday 14th January, one day before the “meaningful” vote. Secondly, note the ‘helpful’ reason given for the debate taking place on that date. Thirdly, note the ‘fair’ way of bundling petitions, three for, four against Brexit …
Numbering the petitions from the top, here are some details:
Petition 1: 313,716 signatures
Petition 2: 66,971 signatures
Petition 3: 2,175 signatures
Petition 4: 127,782 signatures
Petition 5: 1,781 signatures
Petition 6: 107,442 signatures
Petition 7: 23,444 signatures
This gives a grand total for Leave signatures of 382,802 and Remain signatures of 260,449 signatures at the time of writing. The numbers will change because only one petition is closed, the others are still live and people can still sign and are signing.
I ask – are they having a laugh? Just look at the demands of the Remain petitions! Isn’t it interesting that two of those petitions demand to stop Brexit and two demand a 2nd referendum or “People’s Vote”, to be debated just one day before the Remain Parliament votes on Ms May’s ‘Deal’?
The defeat of the Government by “Tory Rebels” – that’s the Remainers – yesterday in the HoC shows how the wind is blowing (see e.g. here): if Ms May’s deal is defeated, there will be either a vote for a 2nd Referendum or Ms May will ask for an extension to Article 50.
That is defeating our clear vote for OUT by parliamentary shenanigans, aided and abetted by all the Remainers. While I don’t have a crystal ball I can predict that our dear MPs debating all those petitions will come up with the recommendation to have a 2nd Referendum should the HoC reject the WA. “it’s what the people want, innit”, they will say …
You can find the members of the Petitions Committee listed here, where you will also find information on how the Committee works. Quoting from that site:
“Debates scheduled by the Petitions Committee
If your petition is debated, it means that MPs can discuss your petition, ask questions about the Government’s position on the issue, or press the Government to take action. A Government Minister takes part in the debate and answers the points raised.”
This means that MPs can attend the debate and that the Government, represented by a Minister, will have to reply. So what can you do in the days up to this debate?
Write to your constituency MP!
Make yourself heard – again. This is especially important now, not just because of this Debate in the Petitions Committee but because of the HoC vote the next day: they work for us and we want OUT.
The number of signatures show clearly that there is no majority for a 2nd referendum or a People’s Vote, not even when the Petitions are so helpfully bundled by the Petitions Committee. And for good measure also follow this suggestion: write to the constituency chair of the Party your MP represents and tell them that the MP will lose your vote should they vote against the clear will of you as expressed in the Referendum on June 23rd 2016.
GET WRITING NOW!
I think it’s fair to assume how this ‘debate’ will go, considering the petitions being debated.
Expect to hear the following phrases:
-“we respect the result of the referendum and will honour that result”
-“a withdrawal agreement will see us leaving the EU”
-“a deal which is in the national interest, and protects jobs and the economy”
etc etc
The debate will be inconclusive though, and will no doubt be used as ammunition to fuel the ‘second-vote’ narrative that is being pushed, in particular by Labour.
I was however under the impression that the ‘meaningful vote’ charade was going to take place on that Monday though, unless I’ve misread something somewhere? If that was the case, the scheduling of this petition debate would have suggested that the ‘vote’ was going to be delayed (quelle surprise!) as MPs would surely be busy on that date?
I just wonder. She’s supposed to be politically astute. As measured by other politicians. Could she be playing for a ‘no deal’. For which I’ll subscribe to a statue. It does seem suspicious though.
At least she hasn’t been pandering to the drivelling twit sector of remainers. I’ve been watching PMs since the war and they always muck up straight forward clean and obvious action by pretending ” For political reasons “, and not doing things.. In reality they’re frightened.
The way our government dismisses the people of Britain is abundantly clear.
It is yet another nail in the coffin of democracy in this Country.
I just wonder what/when the final nail will be?
My MP is Oliver Letwin. One of the 20 Tory Mp’s who voted against Brexit. We only have a choice of Letwin or LibDem here in West Dorset. Even if a 3rd party existed, taking votes from the tories would not see the 3rd party elected and would let the LibDem become MP. A bit like the comparison of Remaining as we were or choosing May’s Remain Forever deal.
Unfortunately the Conservative party are banking on people still voting for them because they think we are scared of the alternative. Do not be. The rebel Tories must be punished even if we end up with MPs we do not want or the they will keep ignoring us, the electorate. Make sure you write and tell him what you intend to do and get like minded people to do the same.
You will have UKIP as a choice at the next election. I do not agree that a third party will let a LibDem in if enough people are fed up with the LibLabCon to go out and vote for the party that won the Brexit battle then you can get change. To get change needs boots on the ground delivering leaflets or helping on stalls so why not join your local branch, go to ukipsouthwest.org.uk click on Dorset and you will get all the county branches.
Referendums, petition have proven to be a waste of time in the U.K. The numbers signing petitions are tiny when the population is taken into account. Sky have been pushing their petition for T.V debates prior to election now for months with very little take up. If they can’t generate interest then who can, on the other hand I suppose that it illustrates how little influence the they have. Having seen the national newspaper headlines this morning that is probably a good thing!