Ed: This article was first published on ‘Moraymint Chatter’ and we re-publish with the kind permission of the author.
Situation
The British government has all but failed to fulfil the decision of the British people that the United Kingdom should be taken out of the European Union (aka Brexit). Under the Article 50 process we now have just 50 working days (even fewer Parliament-days, I believe) until the date on which the UK must by law leave the EU, that is 29 March 2019. Our constitutional and political systems are in chaos and nobody has the first idea of the terms under which the UK will leave the EU – known as the Withdrawal Agreement; a sort of divorce settlement. The default position is that if there is no Withdrawal Agreement then, as far as trade between the UK and EU countries is concerned, we shift to World Trade Organisation rules. In all other respects, the UK would no longer be a member of the European Union.
Like one of those scenes in a Mission Impossible movie where the screen is filled with a big, red LCD timer counting down, and you’re biting your nails to know if Tom Cruise will defuse the nuclear weapon in time, we’re all wondering what will happen on 29 March. Will the UK leave the EU with a deal? Will the UK ‘crash out’ of the EU with no deal? Will somebody pause the clock (extend the Article 50 process)? Will somebody stop the clock (terminate the Article 50 process altogether)? Nobody knows – which is an extraordinary failure of government and politics when you think about it.
The EU Referendum June 2016
Sad perhaps, but I had spent seven years before the EU Referendum of June 2016 teaching myself about the history, culture, workings and ambitions of the European Union. I did so after reading a book in 2009 written by Matthew Elliot, the Co-Founder and then Chief Executive of the Taxpayers’ Alliance (of which I’m a member); the book was entitled ‘The Great European Rip-Off: How the Corrupt, Wasteful EU is Taking Control of Our Lives’. I finished the book and was horrified. I resolved to find out as much as I could from multiple sources about the EU. The more I researched, the more horrified I became. Marta Andreasen’s ‘Brussels Laid Bare’ made me shudder, but probably the definitive work on the story of the European Union is a book written and published in 2003 by Christopher Booker and Richard North entitled, ‘The Great Deception: Can the European Union Survive?’ I read all 615 pages of the tome and by the end of it had decided that not only was the European Union a pernicious political construct, but also likely eventually – and ironically – to become the cause of the next serious conflict in mainland Europe.
I realised that the European Union was not some kind of benign group-hug which existed for the pursuit of children’s happiness, animal welfare and world peace; rather, my research told me that the European Union was in fact the mother-of-all rackets, heavily disguised and cleverly promoted as nirvana. It won’t surprise you to learn, therefore, that come the EU Referendum I voted Leave.
The Power of the European Union
The impressive thing about the European Union is that over a generation or so it has seduced member nations through their ruling political and societal elites, establishment institutions, academia, press and media organisations, big business and so on into believing that ceding national sovereignty is synonymous with prosperity. The originators of the European Union founded the institution on the basis that if you play on people’s economic hopes and fears, you can do pretty much as you like with them politically.
We shouldn’t have been surprised, therefore, that the thrust of the Remain campaign in the EU Referendum was not to espouse the untold cultural, political and societal benefits of EU membership, but rather to argue that leaving the European Union would result in economic ruin. Indeed, even now as we approach the 29 March, the British government, the political class, the BBC and much of the mainstream media, big business, Uncle Tom Cobley and all are telling us that without a Brexit-In-Name-Only (BRINO) Withdrawal Agreement, the United Kingdom is without doubt doomed. Such is the power of the European Union marketing machine; such is its hold on our society after 40-odd years of subservience to its political and legal institutions. Please don’t accuse me of making biased, unfounded assertions here, by the way. Just spend a few years like I did studying the history and workings of the EU for yourself.
What Next?
A couple of years ago, naively perhaps, I thought that the UK would indeed leave the European Union, unfettered, on 29 March 2019. Today, I’m not so sure. Indeed, I’m rapidly coming around to the notion that there’s a very real chance that the UK will remain tethered to the European Union in some shape or form: either as a full member (Brexit is cancelled), or with some half-baked associate status, ie BRINO. In this context, I fear that our politicians are right now scheming to put EU Referendum II to the electorate. It would sicken me if this came to pass, but I’m what’s known in psychology circles as a ‘Defensive Pessimist’. I look at every situation in which I find myself and ask two questions: ‘What could possibly go wrong here, and how do I mitigate the effects of things going wrong?’
From my Leave perspective, EU Referendum II would mean that things had gone horribly wrong. A second referendum would signal above all else that democracy was collapsing in the UK, if it hasn’t collapsed already looking at the extraordinary antics of our ruling elites this past 2 years and more. A second referendum would signal that the culture of the European Union had indeed infected totally our British political institutions. The EU way is to arrange matters such that if a member nation conducts a referendum and comes up with the wrong result, the people must vote again. Denmark was required to vote again on the Maastricht Treaty; Ireland was required to vote again twice: first on the Nice Treaty and then again on the Lisbon Treaty. As José Manuel Barroso, erstwhile President of the European Commission once said, ‘They must go on voting until they get it right’.
Ed: Part II of this important article will be published tomorrow here on INDEPENDENCE Daily – don’t miss it!
Big business will always nowadays go for the obvious protective stance. They have to. There is a huge disconnect between workers and the top. There is bound to be Management tells workers by eMail Workers shout back on twitter The workers just keeps on working snd the other workers put things right in the pub. This is not unusual..
Due to atrophy of the middle management, deskilling, computer dependancy ( which includes engineering and production and anything else ), happens.The net result of this is Accountants. They are singularly unsuited for this job.
One of the results ( and there are many ) is that They understand the number of customers is more in a bigger market. They even sometimes understand that increased sales tend to give disproportately larger profits. So they can spend more to get them and they become greedier. It’sonly natural.. They don’t know there’s anything else there Hence the rise of idiot Corbyn.and MacWhatever.So. Large companies. They’re dangerous To us, themselves, and anyone who relies on them.
I could go on ad nauseum but its a bit boring dealing with these people. A bit like dealing with politicians. Best not.They’re clever, but heck.
My experience would strongly suggest that those who voted to leave are much better informed about the EU than those who voted to remain. I’ve spoken to, clearly, capable and intelligent people who nothing of this institution and voted on a concept of togetherness together with the terrifying predictions of Cameron and co. ‘Come into my parlour’; indeed!
I’m old enough to have voted in the first referendum after Heath took us in. Yet it was Wilson who held the referendum and all Parties were very pro staying in. Blair’s biggest contribution was extending Common Purpose which I believe Heath instigated. LabConLib rotten to the core.
I agree with everything and look forward to the next installment. Brexit however has brought to our attention the dishonesty, mendacity and evil manipulations our parliamentarians do to get what they want, to spit on our democratic vote and we will never now go back to our innocent support for them. How do we go forward? Does democracy have a future in UK since it is not working for us now?.
Well said, Moraymint, look forward to Pt 2. Probably being somewhat older than you I came to the same conclusion after the Maastricht Treaty was bounced through Parliament by the corporate sponsored Tory party prompting me to join the Referendum Party.
The Tory party’s embrace of the European Project goes back a very long way. Lib Dems have been equally embracing of the European Project and of course Blair latterly infused the Project’s ideology into the Labour Party.
Peter Thorneycroft 1947 “It is as well to state this at the outset – no government dependent on a democratic vote could possibly agree in advance to the sacrifices which any adequate plan for European Union must involve. The people must be led slowly and unconsciously into the abandonment of their traditional economic defences……. No satisfactory economic plan for Europe can be devised without sacrifice of sovereignty by the nations concerned.” – Peter Thorneycroft, former Tory MP June 1947 (Posts held; Chancellor of the Exchequer, Chief Whip, Secretary of State for Defence, Party Chairman)
Gaitskill 1962 “The Tories have been indulging in their usual double talk. When they go to Brussels they show the greatest enthusiasm for political union. When they speak in the House of Commons they are most anxious to aver that there is no commitment whatever to any political union.”
Margart Thatcher knew the limits to the economic benefits of the Common Market /EEC as it was then but the majority of her successors, being career politicians, unfortunately, found it more beneficial to their political career to go along with the Project rather than question it – let alone leave the Project.
I am glad someone else has reminded us about Margaret Thatcher handbagging the EEC. It was about then I started to take an interest and realised that we must get out of it, whatever it called itself. But of course there was no Political Party to vote for.