Category Archives: Europe

Fiction or Fact?

Posted on by
According to yesterday’s Mail on Sunday the Education Secretary, Michael Gove, presumably taking a breather from his attempts to reform Britain’s declining schools, has declared that we need to take a tougher stance on Europe and to tell Brussels that if we had a referendum on continued membership he would vote to leave. There were no actual quotations from Mr Gove personally and most of the viewpoints attributed to him came from interviews with “friends” and “a well placed source” who gave testimony as to what Mr Gove told them. In effect this was either a non-story placed on the front page to sell copy or alternatively it was an authorised leak to convince us that the Government are, at last, going to get tough on Europe.

If it was an attempt to sell newspapers then fair enough, the fall in newspaper sales caused by universally obtainable online news would justify almost any attempt to boost sales, even stories based on hearsay. However, if it was a deliberate leak to try and convince a sceptical and disenchanted public that the Government is actually going to stand up to Brussels then that is a different matter. There is no doubt that the Conservatives, who in power seem no better or, at times, no different to New Labour, are losing support at an alarming rate.

Perhaps the Prime Minister’s colleagues and advisers are finally beginning to realise that they need to do something about it and they now realise that continued membership of the European Union is of concern to a sizeable proportion of the electorate. Let’s hope that this is the case because the continued defection of traditional Conservatives to UKIP is going to do neither party, nor the country as a whole, any favours since neither one will be strong enough to form a government come the elections in 2015.

A Day of Reckoning?

Posted on by
Next Sunday, June 17th, could be a very important day for the European Union. On that day Greece goes to the polls following the election a couple of months ago where no major party was able to form a government. Speculation is now rife that unless a stable Greek government is in place to see through the austerity measures required by Germany, and therefore Europe, Greece could leave the Euro and possibly the European Union itself. If this were to happen then the consequences could be disastrous for not just Europe but the world economy as a whole.

The question is, will Germany, as the dominant European partner, allow this to happen? Put another way can the Germans  afford to allow Greece to exit the Euro? Many individual Germans clearly feel that they should not be responsible for propping up the inefficient economies of other European countries and that their hard work ethic should not be watered down by the easy come easy go attitude of some of their European partners. If I were a German I would feel exactly the same way but the fact is, they have been led into this mess by their own government.

 There is no way that Greece should ever have been allowed into the Euro in the first place and they are not alone either. The liberals who rule the undemocratic mire that is Europe have always put their misguided dogma above reality and their dream of a politically united federal Europe has overridden every other consideration. Germany and also France are responsible for the problems now faced by Europe and whilst we can afford some sympathy for the German people none should be spared for their deceitful government nor any of the other governments (including our own) who have lied to us constantly over the last 40 years or so as they have pursued their dream of European unity whatever the cost.
Germany may well bail out and save Greece by issuing European bonds and they may well do the same for Spain, Ireland, Portugal and Italy but it will come at a price and that price is more political power to Europe and a loss of national sovereignty. As for us British, though we may suffer economically, we can at least thank our lucky stars that Tony Blair was thwarted in his attempts to drag us into the Euro and that whatever happens to the rest of Europe we will, at least, retain our independence and integrity. We can thank Blair’s former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, for that.

Europe -The Plot Thickens

Posted on by
Two important elections took place in Europe last week, with results that could well spell the breakup of the eurozone and possibly of the European Union itself.

In France Nicholas Sarkozy, the little Napoleon, received his marching orders from a disgruntled electorate tired of his vain posturing and his failure to make any headway in solving the continuing financial problems of  both France and the eurozone. His conqueror, Francois Hollande, a socialist, has made it clear that he does not support Germany’s attempts to solve the European crisis and it looks like the cosy Franco-German axis of Sarkozy and Merkel is no more.

 In Greece, the ailing country’s electorate have grown sick of the austerity measures imposed upon them by their German-backed government and have ousted it in favour of a government promising to both  inject growth into the economy and reject the international bailout plan previously agreed with the rest of the EU.
It all looks pretty serious and Europe’s problems seem to be getting worse rather than better. Surely, it is now only a matter of time before Greece defaults on its debts, leaves the euro and causes a financial collapse which will reverberate throughout the whole eurozone and beyond? Greece is looking more and more like the card to bring down the whole pack. Let’s hope that our Government are taking appropriate measures to cope with the inevitable fallout.

European Austerity Measures!

Posted on by

Last week leading economists declared that the United Kingdom is now officially back in a “double dip recession” : strange that, since most of us were unaware that we’d escaped the first dip! Basically, the country has been in the economic mire since the dark days of the “credit crunch” of 2008 and not a lot seems to have gone right since then in spite of the removal of the bungling Brown government . Sadly, the Coalition haven’t taken us much further towards the promised land and the repeated cock-ups of the dynamic duo of Prime Minister Cameron and  Chancellor Osborne don’t exactly fill the country with confidence or optimism. It really is starting to look like doom and gloom and one wonders is there anybody who can provide us with the positive, honest and competent leadership we so desperately need?

Still, we can always look to the soap opera of Europe to cheer us up and gain comfort from the knowledge that whatever happens, at least  we are not in the euro: mind you, it’s doubtful that anyone else will be soon, so disastrously is the European Union handling the economic crisis.
Here are two recent examples of European corruption; call it incompetence if you are feeling generous. Firstly, the European Commission’s draft budget was recently published calling for a 6.8% increase in spending. In the middle of the worst recession in living memory that is almost unbelievable in itself but yesterday the Sunday Times revealed that the Commission has just agreed a £10 million four year deal, with a private Belgian airline, to fly European officials all over the world on EU business. Evidently the airline’s charges work out, on average, at £16,000 per hour per flight. Why can’t these officials travel on scheduled flights like normal (perhaps there’s a clue in that word) people? Even first class flights wouldn’t approach those figures.
Secondly, the Commission’s budget states that, amongst its “tough” decisions on savings is one to cut its workforce by 1%; a tiny proportion you have to agree. However, even that turns out to be a gross exaggeration since, as Open Europe reveals in its fortnightly bulletin, the proposed staff reductions for ALL European Union institutions next year amount to a loss of only 6 (yes, six!) jobs out of 41,000 (www.openeurope.org.uk).
Of course, we know that the European Commission is unelected and clearly feels no responsibility to the likes of you and I but even so, I can’t help but wonder, what planet do these people come from?

A Shaky Coalition

Posted on by
Like Europe itself the Coalition appears to be crumbling with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, openly opposing the Prime Minister’s use of his veto last Friday and declining to take his place in the House of Commons yesterday.  It is difficult to see how the Coalition can survive where there is disagreement over something as vital as our country’s relationship with Europe and our membership of the European Union.

On Friday, the Prime Minister, in exercising his country’s veto, made it clear that he does not favour any further integration with Europe and any further erosion of UK sovereignty. In this, as repeated polls have shown, he has the backing of the majority of the country. Most of us can see what Europe is about and can see how it is falling apart. By refusing to embark upon the next stage of the journey towards full European integration David Cameron was refusing a boarding pass for the Titanic. To some that may have appeared a surprising refusal but one that will inevitably be vindicated in the fullness of time.

As this blog has stated on more than one occasion, we were deceived about Europe from the very outset and that deception has continued through and been compounded by various governments of both majority political parties. The 1975 referendum asked us whether we wanted  membership of the European Economic Community (also known, rather innocently, as the Common Market). Most of us voted yes because the idea of a mutually beneficial European trading bloc was, and still is, a good idea.

We were never asked about political union and if we had been we would have delivered a resounding no. If the government were to give us a referendum now this would become abundantly clear. Put in a nutshell, this is what the whole European crisis is about. We were deceived, we don’t want to be part of a United States of Europe and we either want to get out completely or revert to the simple trading bloc that we agreed to in the first place.

We can only hope that David Cameron and his party Grandees realise this and that he can carry his party with him. As for the Liberal Democrats, we have to be grateful that their alliance prevented a further Labour government, but if they cannot allow the Conservatives to rule effectively then maybe the Coalition should be broken up, in spite of the agreement to serve a full term. Those advising the Prime Minister should listen closely to the views of the British people and look at the results of opinion polls. Judge their time right in the calling of a general  election and the Conservatives could achieve a convincing victory and then feel free to govern safe in the knowledge that the majority of the country are behind them.

Europe No More?

Posted on by
Yesterday was a very important day for the United Kingdom and our Prime Minister is to be applauded for his courage and honesty in refusing to vote along with the rest of Europe and kowtow to the wishes of  Germany’s Merkel and France’s Sarkozy.


To have voted with them would have put in place measures that would seriously weaken and damage the interests of the United Kingdom both economically and politically and, as he said before the European showdown, David Cameron would not sign any agreement unless it was in his country’s interests. In defending those interests the Prime Minister may well have isolated himself and his country within Europe but it is a price worth paying. The fact that his was a lone voice is irrelevant since, as we all know, the majority view is not always the  right view.

We have no duty to sacrifice ourselves on the altar of European unity. The European Union is undemocratic, grossly inefficient, overly-bureaucratic and corrupt and its eventual collapse is inevitable. It is our Prime Minister’s duty to ensure that the United Kingdom is in the best possible position to weather the ensuing storm and yesterday was a positive step towards fulfilling that duty.

And So Say All Of Us!

Posted on by

A report in today’s I newspaper to warm the hearts of all right-thinking British folk “EU might be better off without selfish UK”, a quotation evidently taken from the German newspaper, Bild.

This follows Mr Cameron’s meeting with Frau Merkel in Berlin yesterday. Evidently they reached an impasse on several issues amongst which were how to rescue the doomed Euro and how to create a better Europe for us all – for which read Germany and France!

At last, our Prime Minister seems to be standing up for the UK and this in a week when he actually described himself as “a Eurosceptic”. Perhaps there is some hope for us after all.

Europe – How much further to go?

Posted on by

Europe continues to behave like a drunk staggering down the high street, tripping over a kerb, falling against a parked car and bouncing back to lean on a wall desperately trying to remain upright. The problem is that Europe, like the drunk, cannot remain upright for much longer. The only question is how bad will the damage be when the fall comes?

The Greek crisis seems insoluble and Italy looks to be next on the list in spite of the removal of the “Buffoon” Berlusconi, a title bestowed upon him by his disenchanted electorate. Sarkozy, the Little Napoleon, could be next since he too appears to lack popular support and France is looking especially vulnerable to the spreading Euro disease. Maybe Germany can hold it all together but the question is, do the German people want to? Merkel is hardly top of the popularity stakes and she may be one parliamentary vote from obscurity. What then for the European monolith?

The annoying thing about this crisis is that it was all too predictable. European integration, like the doomed Euro itself, was built on sand. The European Union has never benefited from majority support within its member states and it was always just a matter of time before the proponents of European unity were called upon to face the consequences of their undemocratic policies.

It’s quite incredible that politicians in a continent which prides itself on its enlightenment and democratic traditions can have behaved in such a manner. European leaders have never missed an opportunity to lecture other countries’ leaders, the Chinese for example, on the way their countries are run, conveniently forgetting their own actions. Politics and hypocrisy are not exactly strange bedfellows though, are they?

Events in the Middle East this year have quite clearly demonstrated that eventually the voice of the people will be heard and the strongest of regimes can be made to topple. Our continent is no different; the problem is what will be left of Europe once the Union falls and how can we recover from the economic turmoil still to come?

Europe – The Ship Still Floats

Posted on by

On September 29th I compared Europe to a sinking ship. Well, the ship is still afloat and the euro remains, though at an extremely high cost to all of us and I don’t just mean financially.

Many issues arose during the course of the last week, not least the question of a referendum on our continued membership of the EU. Most people, so opinion polls reveal, desire a referendum though they are unlikely to get one. Opponents of a referendum argue that since we elected our MPs to lead us we should just let them get on with it and do their job without interference in the knowledge that if we don’t like them we can vote them out at the next election. A good point, but the problems now facing us are without precedent.

In 1975 we were asked if we wanted to be part of the Common Market, basically a European trading group, and most of us said yes since the benefits of free trade were clear for all to see. We were never asked whether we wanted to be a part of a European Union which of course is what that Common Market has developed into. Over the years we have seen a relentless loss of sovereign power with further losses to follow if  Mr Sarkozy and Ms Merkel get their way. Isn’t about time therefore, that at the very least, we had a free and open debate on what is undoubtedly the greatest issue any of the post-war generations have ever faced?

Mr Cameron has shown this week that he doesn’t favour a debate on Europe and the fact that nearly 90 MPs defied a three line whip seems to show that he has underestimated both his party’s and his country’s concern at what is happening in Europe.

I don’t know the answer to all of this, but what I do know is that if the idealists who govern Europe are allowed to proceed without check then pretty soon the United Kingdom as we know it will disappear into a United States of Europe and no amount of peaceful debate will bring it back. Is there nobody who can provide us with strong leadership and stand up for our country?

The Ship is Sinking

Posted on by

Europe is trembling, the Euro is crumbling and the economic crisis is getting worse by the minute. So, what does the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso propose to do about it? He proposes greater integration and a further surrender of individual State’s powers to the European monolith. He feels that if the European Union had even greater power it could get us all through the worst recession in living memory. That’s always the stock answer of these European bureaucrats, isn’t it? Let’s throw more money at Europe, let’s give our unelected rulers more power and all will be well. Except it won’t.
Getting closer to Europe and surrendering further State power is akin to being encouraged to climb aboard a sinking ship rather than the opposite which, as the departing rats will tell you, makes no sense at all. But common sense is in short supply in Europe. I just hope our government stands firm and resists Barroso’s exhortations because if not we will be in considerably deeper trouble than we’re in already and the problems faced by Greece and the other spongers in the lower levels of the European Union will become ours too.

Incidentally, remember when, a few years back, proposals for the UK to join the Euro was part of a national debate and the newspapers and our television screens were dominated by vociferous and “enlightened” liberals telling us that we had to join. We had no choice, they whined, and anybody who disagreed was a “reactionary” or a “little Englander? Well, where are you people now? You’ve gone very quiet haven’t you? Do you have any comment to make on the Euro crisis?  Have you got anything at all to say? Thought not.