The worst job I was given in government was the UK’s single market Minister. I held it at the time of maximum activity, with the EU claiming it needed to hurry through a substantial number of new laws to complete the so called single market programme for 1992. They wished to regulate so many different sectors and activities in the name of freer trade. I found myself in disagreement with the underlying theory. You do not need to standardise everything to have a successful market. You do not need to lay down required methods or standards for every good and service to be offered for sale. It seemed as if the single market was being used as an excuse for a large expansion of EU power.
The EU believed in the doctrine of the occupied field. Starting from a position where member states made their own laws and enforced their own justice, the EU wished to get to the point where the EU made most of the laws and had superior powers to national legislatures to impose and enforce their preferred ways of doing things. If the EU could get any directive or regulation agreed for a new sector or area, however weak or general, it could then go on to more detailed legislation on the grounds that it had already established its competence in the chosen area.
The EU also practised code based law where they wished to set out in detail what you could do rather than the common law approach where you could do as you wish subject to specific bans or general duties to act safely, responsibly etc. To me a single market just required the enforcement of a rule their court had already established in the cassis de Dijon case. If a product was offered for sale and was of merchandisable quality in one country in the EEC then it could be offered for sale in another without further regulation or checking. Labelling would tell customers sufficient so they could make their own decisions about whether they wanted to buy a product from another country.
I found the EU was hectoring and bullying if you objected to their legislative proposals. Meetings were always being pressured to pass more laws, whether the laws made sense or were good or not. I had to spend a lot of time trying to build blocking groups of countries against draft laws which I thought particularly damaging or needless. It was never ending work as the Commission and rotating Presidencies were merciless in wanting to get laws through in bulk.When I protested that people would not want an extra law on a topic the reply usually disparaged the people, as they did not approach lawmaking in a democratic way.
Now we are out we can refine our common law system which is more useful to the rest of the world than the EU code system. It is very disappointing that so many people in the UK governing establishment are unable or unwilling to grasp and use our new freedoms, but great to know we can if we wish. The EU still wants to treat us as a naughty member who needs to obey their rules.The UK government needs to move on from the misery of compliance rows over their spiders web of controls. Time to use and enjoy our freedoms.
August 2, 2023
The extent of the political establishment’s betrayal of the British people is revealed in your quite properly saying now, in 2023, “Time to use and enjoy our freedoms”.
As for “hectoring and bullying” it sums up much connected with the Evil Empire, not least the Remain campaign here. I still find it astonishing that Remain had no positive case, rather just warned of doom.
August 2, 2023
There will be no enjoying our freedoms until we get a proper conservative government who will tackle the blob.
75% of those in Westminster would rejoin tomorrow.
August 2, 2023
Would rejoin… Sunak is signing up with his sell out Windsor Agreement. Designed to make sure GB is tied to EU through N.Ireland being used as a vassal state!! What part does JR not understand? What has he done about it? Francois and Cash spoke out and then…… nothing. Squabbling might hurt election chances! Wake up the remainers know Tories are toast but want to make sure UK tied to EU forever.
I want to know what JR and chums are actually doing to get a true Brexit. Up until now they have all failed and consistently give in to remainers. Rees-Mogg not using his TV platform to drive change either.
August 2, 2023
You’ve got a true Brexit. We left the EU three and a half years ago. Your true Brexit is rubbish – but you were warned about that.
August 2, 2023
Spoken like a Remainer.
August 2, 2023
Totally agree – we need proper conservatives, not only in parliament, but also in the BoE and our Quangos
August 2, 2023
Never a truer post, Ian
August 2, 2023
This so true we need a true Conservative government. We need people like Mr Redwood, that has fought hard to get our country back and our freedom. This will not be possible in the short time before the next election.
Unless we can remove this eu unelected man Sunak.
August 2, 2023
We were sold a common market – not a supranational, unelected, interfering, all-powerful government.
We voted to leave, but we are in limbo – half in, half out. BRINO.
Politicians reluctantly attempted to mollify the voting public, but they defer to and cling to the EU as much as possible. We have no strong leadership.
So I am not happier – because we never fully left.
August 2, 2023
Sunak pulling pints at a beer festival yesterday. Reminiscent of Ed Milliband trying to eat a bacon sandwich. Or if a Tory comparison is required, Zak Goldsmith having to use both hands to lift his pint. People can spot a phoney.
Sunak was rightly jeered at.
Despite his claim that beer drinkers will be better off, tax on booze has gone up.
I note that today ales in my local Wetherspoon are now £2.66 a pint. They were £2.57 yesterday.
August 2, 2023
https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2023/08/brewing-sector-hits-back-at-sunaks-pr-stunt-at-beer-festival/
The Brewers and pubs don’t even appreciate what Sunak has done. If it is useless to them or their clients, then cut it. These people will never be satisfied with anything.
August 2, 2023
Ian,
Real Conservatism resides in the Reform Party, end of story.
August 2, 2023
If they cannot tackle the blob with an 80 seat majority what hope is there? Sunak is unlikely to hit any of his five promises and certainly not the one to stop the boat people. He is surely is not even trying just hot air. He is not even abandoning the net zero lunacy.
The three positive claims they make after 13 years seem to be:- 1. the efficiently of their vaccine rollout, 2. net zero virtue signalling 3. achieving Brexit – are turning to merde too. The vaccines seem to have done huge net harms to hundreds of thousands just in the UK, the drive for net zero is clearly doing vast harm to the economy and living standards for zero benefit, we do not even have a real Brexit yet & Sunak’s Windsor is appalling and in the wrong direction.
Sunak clearly did not even tell the truth about the (in practice) worthless protections in it to surely dishonestly sell it to MPs.
August 2, 2023
So the latest wheeze is to keep the CE marking as it’s toi difficult to change.
Business regularly changes spec, size and packaging so why is changing to BS difficult.
August 2, 2023
Good morning.
But have we ? I still very much have my doubts.
Yes, but only within the confines of the agreements we have signed. For example, we cannot regress or change employment law. Same too with environmental law and so on.
We are also adopting laws on vehicle safety checks – Instead to an MOT every year it is proposed that it be every two years in line with the EU. Hardly a sign of a nation wishing to diverge from the EU.
So until I see REAL divergence from the EU, we have not left.
August 2, 2023
Why this compliance?
I simply do not understand. You would have thought the bureaucrats would have delighted in imposing their own standards and rules.
August 2, 2023
Our Bureaucrats have followed the EUs lead for 40+ years, it is a simple (and intellectually lazy) way to do things. They do not have to think for themselves nor be held accountable if policies don’t work. You can see this in so many instances of current public policy that have seemingly either been written on the back of a fag packet or simply cut & pasted from someone elses website (often those in Brussles one suspects).
August 2, 2023
Personally I don’t want people changing our laws just to be different from the EU.
The multitude of laws that we took from the EU became our laws because our Parliament said that they should, and so far almost all of them are still our laws because our Parliament has said that for the time being they should remain our laws; the difference is that we can now change them without needing to get agreement from the EU, but that doesn’t mean we should rush to change them for the sake of it. We will have enough to do to sort out the laws that actually need to be changed for whatever good reason.
August 2, 2023
We’re hardly “rushing” to do anything. In fact, we’re hardly doing anything. No real initiatives, just airy-fairy promises.
August 2, 2023
🙂
August 2, 2023
JR forgets ECJ applies, ECHR overrules everything! His party and govt cannot deport anyone without say so from EU. His party and govt. promised to change Human Rights Act to British etc. The last person, Raab, who was going to being changes was ousted by remain cabal. Remind us JR where British Bill of Rights is after 14 years? Cameron, May and Johnson promised to scrap ECHR to get elected then…… nothing.
August 2, 2023
indeed – BRINO
August 2, 2023
“The EU puts the case for the recommendation of 30kph (20mph) limits as the default for residential streets across the EU. Also see Press Release when EU parliament agreed on 20isplenty.
Reducing vehicles speeds in urban and residential areas to around 30kph or less is a key strategy for reducing road casualties, increasing modal shift to walking and cycling as well as reducing noise and emissions.”
To justify this 24 hours per day in all our towns they use this ‘The first town where this was deployed (Portsmouth) reduced its casualties on such roads by 22% (I wonder when this was during covid when we were locked down?)….Now some 5m people live in local authorities with a “Total 20” policy.
It seems new vehicles being made for the UK market should be recalibrated to make sticking at 20mph easier, the number of people getting caught doing 24mph and paying big fines and a day off work to avoid the points is ramping up, the clock should stop at our maximum speed limit, and we should be controlled fully on the roads to put people off driving (appears to be our future).
August 2, 2023
Horse breeders seize the moment! Legislation gradually making horse drawn transport much more attractive.
August 2, 2023
Level playing field, dear boy, level playing field
What SirJ and we should be asking is why we haven’t repealed EU laws
August 2, 2023
I can agree that possibly 90% of the pathetic bible of rules about when one can sneeze, cough, fart even, ought to be left. When exactly are we going to repeal the ones that restrict, ban and are just crazy?
August 2, 2023
It’s not about diverge for divergence state but the ability to do so if we wish to. The agreement that was negotiated and now renegotiated should have that aim. So we actually take back control of our fish, environment policy and employment etc etc. We don’t want or need EU approval. We can decide ourselves going forward as an independent sovereign Nation. Cooperation by all means but as equals not subservient. That’s what our politicians don’t get or refuse to act.
Like why are we escorting illegals across the Channel? Tow them back and tell, NOT ASK, France to secure their border (we’ve paid them millions to do so) or we will continue to tow them back. Their refusal to secure their border, identify the sources of manufacture of these boats and licence them tells me this is a hostile act by them and they aren’t serious. Why don’t they know the identity of these traffickers, it isn’t that difficult?
I think there is a secret agreement by our Government to take our quota and they haven’t got the guts to act on our behalf in the National interest. If any of my family are harmed by any of these people I will be suing the Tory’s individually and collectively for that known risk. Enough people have died by these people who we don’t know or want. Deport them. Secure Tents not hotels are good enough for these criminals.
August 2, 2023
Interesting, and difficult to disagree with the conclusion. Our problem is that time is running out and the people with their hands on the tiller will not change course. Very frustrating.
August 2, 2023
There are 5 natural systems in a civilisation that evolve based on individual decisions.
Family – DNA
Markets – Money
Government – Votes
Information – Freedom of speech
Law – Free will
The first 4 systems assume you are free to decide unless otherwise limited.
European codified law was first attempted by Napoleon to create a philosopher King who took away the people’s freedoms across Europe and turned them back into serfs. The left have been expanding on this into the other 4 systems ever since.
August 2, 2023
+many
August 2, 2023
I 100% support Conservative values of full Sovereignty (for both practical and philosophical reasons)!
But I don’t support a system that is overly-focused on the markets having more-a-less a complete free reign.
Because capitalism CAN so easily breed corruption / greed. And you can’t base a whole culture / civilisation on corruption / greed.
You definitely need some good, muscular competition (the market or the game shouldn’t be for wimps) but with a referee too who is quick and sharp in handing out yellow cards and red cards when necessary!
August 2, 2023
In fact, too much corruption / greed destabilises the economy system itself – not just the culture / civilisation based around it.
August 2, 2023
+1
August 2, 2023
An interesting observation regarding the operation of the EU, and highlighting one of the primary advantages of escaping it’s clutches. It is such a pity that so few in the establishment seem to grasp this, however they probably relish the sense of power over people that the EU mode of operation gives. To prosper this country needs to understand that in most areas the state is the problem and not the solution, and the “must do something” attitude is usually counterproductive.
August 2, 2023
It is indeed very disappointing that the UK governing establishment are unwilling to grasp and use our new freedoms, but great to know we could if we had a sensible government. Alas little prospect of a sensible government for very many years to come Sunak still heading in the wrong direction and totally ineffective where he is occasionally saying the right things.
Way past time to use and enjoy our freedoms. But Sunak’s Government is still largely travelling in totally the wrong direction.
August 2, 2023
Philip Johnston today in the Telegraph
“Soft-touch Britain punishes drivers while letting thieves get off scot-free
The whole criminal justice system is upside down. It would be dangerous if we lost trust in it entirely.”
Indeed as usual follow the money, for the police fines are good but criminals cost money so let’s not bother and just augment the problem for next year. But surely most sensible people have already lost total trust in criminal justice system?
He also make the sensible point that people concentrating on trying to keep to exactly 20mph and checking speed limits, bus lane times and cameras means they are not concentrating on real safety issues very much. You even get dangerously overtaken (and undertaken) by often death wish cyclists.
August 2, 2023
Grant Shapps on Julia Hartly-Brewer just now (Talk TV) demonstrating for all (with any knowledge of these areas) his almost total ignorance about energy, co2, electric cars, transport and lithium battery and EV cars life expectancy.
Perhaps his Poly HND in finance did not cover much Logic, Physics, Engineering, Energy storage systems, electricity generation & transmission, battery chemistry & battery energy densities. So why would any sensible PM think he was remotely suitable to be the Energy Minister or Transport Minister? He often does not even seem to understand the difference between energy and power.
Then again even Mrs Thatcher gave us a Chancellor (with few? Ed) O levels. That did not go too well either with his rather predictable ERM fiasco. Plus even the government “experts” and regulators in science, medicine gave us the lockdown and now it seems (rather vast) net harm vaccines, and the treasury “experts” and the BoE gave us QE & the current huge inflation. Their climate experts and May give us the absurd lunacy of NET Zero.
Why are we run by ignorant fools, be they Ministers or the wrong “Experts” these foolish and ignorant ministers choose?
August 2, 2023
So Sunak defends his use of helicopters and private jets “I will be flying as I normally would and that is the most efficient use of my time”. Well that is fine by me (though he is not producing much of any positive value with his time just hot air & 5+ promises that he is not remotely delivering). But does he not think that other workers might like to make the best use of their time? The workers that his government are trying to force onto public transport, bikes, EVs, heat pumps and walking or to tax to death for the sake of the UK economy and productivity?
So why does he want to make the economy so much less efficient using net zero religion, road blocking and his idiotic war on motorists. Note also that public transport, walking and EV do not even save CO2 when fully accounted for – not that CO2 is really even a serious problem. As the (now being cancelled for telling the truth) Nobel Prize winner for Physics Dr. John Clauser has sensibly pointed out. I caught Stanley Johnson talking on GBNews the other day on Climate Alarmism, the man is totally (wrong on this topic Ed) -another scientifically ignorant English graduate, like Gove & that daft Green MP for Brighton Pavilion. I think I will stick with John Clauser’s and my own views – sensible & honest scientists.
August 2, 2023
+1 LL. Right on target.
August 2, 2023
+1. Your first para in particular. Our time and money can be wasted, we’re not important in his eyes.
August 2, 2023
I read, or perhaps misread, that the Government is planning to fine car manufacturers from January next year if 22% of new car sales are not zero emissions. A levy of £15,000 per car is suggested presumably on those by which the 22% is missed.
Really?
This is becoming more sinister by the day!
August 2, 2023
Just another step to the left …..you’ll produce what the government wants and be happy
August 2, 2023
Freedom is the essence of happiness.
August 2, 2023
Are you sure about that?
Isn’t the promise of “freedom” very much the trap of communism?
Freedom from all the things that used to keep us safe.
August 2, 2023
An unfulfilled promise would be worthless as well as involving possible risk.
August 2, 2023
I’d rather be free and unhappy, than be happy living in servitude …one is real the other an elusion
August 2, 2023
What a sad story. You, by your own admission, lost every argument you entered into in the EU. Why, oh why, didn’t you resign and hand over to someone better skilled at argument? If you had, we would still be in the EU’s single market, enjoying the huge economic benefits. As it is, we are outside with no economic benefits, and yet – as shown by yesterday’s news that the UK will follow the EU’s conformity mark rather than create its own – still in practice subject to EU rules though after Brexit we have no say. What a sad story
Reply What nonsense. there were no economic gains. the UK growth fell following completion of the laws of the single market programme. All UK governments lost out in the arguments, ending up with laws we did not want.
August 2, 2023
SJR Exactly.
August 2, 2023
@ Lemming, complete and utter nonsense. Daft, vast and misguided over regulation forced on to the UK by the other EU countries and EU bureaucrats. People that we could not vote for, remove or even resist very much. Huge economic damage and totally anti-democratic. What point voting for MPs when they were largely powerless? We have far too much home grown red tape too.
August 2, 2023
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_03_7
“Internal Market: a decade without frontiers has transformed Europe – but it is only the start”
“The European Union’s GDP in 2002 is 1.8 percentage points or € 164.5 billion higher than it would be without the Internal Market.”
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/34715/12-199-twenty-years-on-uk-and-future-single-market.pdf
“Between 1992 and 2006, the Single Market is estimated to have raised EU GDP by 2.2% in (or €518 per person) and created 2.75 million additional jobs across Europe.”
Signed by Vince Cable.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/abmi/pn2
“Gross Domestic Product: chained volume measures: Seasonally adjusted £m”
1992 1280206
2022 2230625
Since creation of the EU Single Market UK GDP has increased by a factor of 1.7424, 1.87% a year compounded over 30 years.
According to the EU the Single Market has only added about 2% to the collective GDP of the EU member states, so on their estimate of its value 97% of the growth of the UK economy since 1992 has not been connected to its creation.
Beyond which, there is evidence that the gross benefit for the UK was only about half of the EU average:
https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/BSt/Publikationen/GrauePublikationen/Policy-Brief-Binnenmarkt-en_NW_02_2014.pdf
“20 years of the European single market: growth effects of EU integration”
The table on the front page, “Comparison of gross domestic product per capita in 2012 with and without increased European integration”, has a figure of 1.0% for the UK.
August 2, 2023
Fair blows the wind for France…
Your dingy awaits.
I knew a self confessed anarchist who took off post Brexit to live the EU life.
Two years the honeymoon lasted then tail-between-legs back to Blighty and benefits!
August 2, 2023
yes – unemployment has a knack of bringing reality back with a thump! Even worse when those around you ignore and make it plain you shouldn’t be there.
August 2, 2023
I am not happier now, and the reason is that thanks above all to those who have been leading the Tory party the job is not finished, and moreover we now face a fight to stop what has been done being undone.
http://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2023/07/14/my-intervention-in-the-health-and-social-care-workforce-general-debate/#comment-1398900
“The other obvious and huge economic win would be to reverse Brexit. This too needs to start by stealth immediately after taking office, with changes to Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal to promote trade and pan-EU travel and business, if not residence.”
August 2, 2023
I am more angry now than before Brexit became possible. Why?
Well we were given to understand we would have 2 hands on the triumph.
Step by step our fingers have been pulled from the grasp of victory, now that victory has all but vaporised, talk is of a gradual forced decline until we might beg for second class access.
For God’s sake Brits – get a grip and oust these lily-livered traitors from power.
August 3, 2023
MT – With whom are you going to replace them with. We do not have a Constitution like the USA and we definitely do not have a person of the same stance as Donald J Trump who is a Leader and a Winner and who loves his country.
August 2, 2023
The Neo-Marxist political term ‘systemic racism’ is used in precisely the same manner and with the same intention ie to usurp and take control of power using slander, threat and demonisation. Both the EU and the fascist Left have been extraordinarily successful in the face of Tory self-interest, capitulation and appeasement.
For all of John’s iron will in regards to the EU this nation has lost the battle against both the EU (NI carved away), and what should be criminally sanctioned, racially infused political ideology that seeks nothing less than total power to abuse those who refuse to genuflect to it.
August 2, 2023
Good morning John
Your last paragraph sums up our present situation perfectly, most of our politicians, Government and Opposition, want power, but have no wish to take control of our own affairs. There are probably a number of reasons for this, perhaps not a clue what is required, too frightened to take responsibility, wanting a back stop so they can always blame someone else, no real and relevant experience on the subject matter in hand, no passion for our Country, afraid of arguments with other Country’s. In short incapable of doing a job correctly.
For the past couple of decades it has been noticeable that when either our Politicians, Prime Ministers in Particular, travel abroad, or accept visitors here, it always but always ends up costing the taxpayer more money in one way or another, it seems like politicians when they get together like to out bid each other for popularity between themselves.
Few ever stand firm and say enough is enough.
August 2, 2023
I feel your pain. It’s extremely depressing doing a job when you believe the people in charge are making a complete Pig’s Ear of it.
“Now we are out…”
We’re not out. It should say “Now we are partially out, apart from Northern Ireland which is still controlled by the EU ….”
If we ARE out, why isn’t the Government scrapping or massively reforming VAT – an extremely complicated EU tax which particularly impacts small businesses?
August 2, 2023
Donna – ‘the people in charge are making a complete Pig’s Ear of it.’
No they didn’t – it has been establishment of their own fiefdom by steadily framing laws to deny individual thought and freedom. Building from a logic of sorts, it gradually became regulation, now dictatorial activity.
The Greek philosopher Aristotle once said, “Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man”
The EU now it has aged has the majority of citizens enslaved, they are growing up believing in ‘Big Brother’ – the leadership must be right. No need for armed struggle.
Close to fait accompli?
August 2, 2023
Donna, we were NEVER legally in! But everyone behaved as if we were. Everyone behaves as if Biden won the 2020 election.
The only thing is what is accepted de facto. John Redwood, by acting as if the U.K. was subject to the EU made it so.
August 2, 2023
+1
August 2, 2023
Thank you for the insight John. I fail to understand why so many still refuse to take advantage of our freedom from the EU.
August 2, 2023
I recently mentioned a 2001 report from the Institute of Economic Affairs:
http://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2023/07/31/the-uk-avoids-the-pile-up-of-debts-in-the-eu/#comment-1401926
It is impossible to keep proper track of all the relevant reports and articles that have been published over many years, and it was while tidying my files that I happened across this October 2001 report which I had cited as a reference in a letter to the press in 2005, and I was immediately struck by its title:
https://iea.org.uk/in-the-media/press-release/economic-effects-of-eu-membership-marginal
“Economic Effects of EU Membership Marginal”
having stuck up on my wall here a February 2020 letter in our local newspaper headed:
“Economic impact of EU always been marginal”.
The summary of that report said:
“The costs and benefits of Britain’s membership of the European Union are finely balanced say Dr Brian Hindley and Martin Howe QC in a new study for the IEA. There is no foundation for the idea that withdrawal from the EU would have ‘dire consequences for Britain’.”
“Whether there is a net cost or a net benefit from membership is uncertain but, whichever it is, it is likely to be less than 1 per cent of gross domestic product.”
“the debate about Britain and the EU should turn on politics not economics.”
“fear of adverse economic consequences should not deter a British government from seeking to change the relationship of the UK with the EU, or, in the last resort, from leaving the Union.”
Of course it was the Treasury under George Osborne who deliberately set out to whip up that fear, a gross abuse of public resources to deceive the public; if they had succeeded in swinging the referendum their way their lies might not have had a significant adverse effect, but as they lost the vote the consequences of their deceit have become potentially catastrophic for the integrity of the UK and peace in Northern Ireland.
August 2, 2023
I fear we are being slowly sucked back in to the EU bit by bit. What did we sacrifice in the back room closed door, undebated Windsor Framework. Bearing in mind the EU give nothing without ties. Did we promise never to leave the ECHR. What did we give away. Did we promise never to leave the ECJ. Any agreement with the EU comes at a price. I voted to leave and I am sick to death of those that say it has been a success when our own parliamentarians and civil servants continue bit by bit overturning the vote.
When Labour get it it will be the end of Brexit as the staunch remainers are just waiting in the background waiting to pounce as soon as they get power as with the Unions and the extreme fascist left wing of that party.
August 2, 2023
John, I agree with your sentiments. I had the pleasure of working with DECC, OFGEM, energy companies across Europe and the European Commission for many years. We achieved a lot of good. However I realised that this top-heavy regulatory and technocratic structure was too complex and at arms reach for the European Parliament or Council of members to properly control and similarly the political agenda set by the top civil servants could not be challenged by any ‘expert’ within the system.
You mention that we are now free of the EU structures and can return to common law and our former way of self-governing. However it is not happening. We have our own version of the European bureaucracies and technocracies in place. It seems that interest groups and lobbyists control the media and have inside people in top businesses, regulators and governments with revolving doors between them.
So what is wrong with a technocratic style of government run by civil servant bureaucracies in league, if not controlled by the industry they are supposed to be regulating? Is that what is in Europe? Did we really break free of this problem, or do we have our own version of this corrupt and tyrannical form of governance in this country?
How this plays out is that policies, regulation and enforcement are controlled and not run under the governance of the people. The country is instead run for the benefit of the few against the interests of the people.
You take key topics where it is clear that mass immigration of undocumented undeserving, unskilled, possibly even criminal economic migrants costing the tax payer billions a year, overwhelming our services, our housing and potentially making our streets unsafe is madness. With criminal gangs aiding cross border travel and criminal outfits masquerading as law-firms making sure our asylum system gets bogged down and does not work for their own personal profit. We have legal migration of skilled workers as the default means of filling company positions rather than training and relying on British citizens and people born here. Again immoral and detrimental to our country. We should be repelling people at the borders or at sea. All people travelling from safe countries should be returned immediately with no appeal, no discussion, just straight on a boat. The same of anyone arriving who has not been given a paper of asylum request through an application process at one of our consulates abroad. Further the points system should be about keeping people out not inviting them in. That is a disgrace too. The business lobby and lefty-no-borders civil-servants have a public/private alliance in that area as well.
Take climate change and energy policy. My areas of expertise and where I have 30 years of working experience across scientific research, the sharp end of energy policy implementation across electricity and gas industries in the UK and EU and in market design, market regulation and the forced roll out of the smart grid and renewable policies. This is an unmitigated disaster ruled for political interests, financial interests and dogmatic purposes rather than science leading policy on environmental protection concerns, and rather than practical engineering and economic assessments leading policies on energy system development or transformation. The UN IPPC and the most prestigious scientific journals don’t publish things not aligned with the climate scare politics. The universities don’t get funding and hence won’t allow open science to be done on these topics either. Everything is going wrong and everything is down to human driven CO2 emissions. This is nonsense. People like me in the field from the 80s know that what people are taught now coming up through schools to pHD level is propaganda. The same is true in the energy sector. I work in a major company in energy, but there is no way I can influence policy which is controlled by the senior people and industry panels talking about how to bring about transformation, not whether it is necessary, not whether it is truly scalable to a system/country level, whether it will make things unstable, inefficient or unaffordable. When reports are commissioned they don’t answer the question as to whether they whole GB electricity or energy system will be stable, reliable, available 24x7x365 or whether it will be affordable. They don’t look at the infrastructure build in wires, transformers, batteries, fields of solar panels and wind turbines to ask whether this is actually positive for the environment, or whether we can rely on the Chinese mining and refining supply chain, all powered by coal, gas and oil and all emitting more CO2 than if we didn’t build the infrastructure and instead burned that coal, oil and gas ourselves to power the country as we always did. Its corrupt and fallen thinking in a fallen and corrupt governance system. I sat at tables when the EU objective was a single approach to everything in Europe and one size fits all. It was a real fight to create carve outs for the UK. But what was sad was that the people 20 years younger than me working alongside me fresh out of university believed in the dogma of unity and uniformity of everything ahead of looking at what actually worked in the UK for British people. Now the same thing is true of climate and energy, border controls and most other stuff that is being rammed down the throats of the people. The people do not ever get what they vote for. They get what the elites want for them. And the BBC, ITV, C4, Sky News etc all work as the war-time propaganda agency of this cabal of special interests ever nudging people to say that the war in Ukraine is necessary, that we must give up all wealth, financial, physical and intellectual freedom in the name of saving the planet. etc.
It is time for this tyranny to stop. It is time to go back to proper honest politics, where governments are actually fully in control of what is going on, where the media and scientists are free to investigate and publish the truth as they freely see it and where the people can hold people in charge to account properly. How can people hold technocrats to account? Governments should stop creating laws and international treaties driving mass immigration and banning of all fossil fuels and then stand back to say there is nothing they can do when the secondary / tertiary legislation/regulations of Whitehall and obligatory policies are implemented by industry and local councils. That is manipulative and evil way of controlling the people.
Conservatives should:
# Promote British values, culture, civic society and community cohesiveness
# Promote British businesses employing British workers
# Promote scientific truth and policies that weigh up true costs/benefits and pragmatisms in areas such as energy policy and reduce regulation to the bear minimum >> certainly not have crazy emissions based policies and anti-fossil-fuel policies in place.
etc
August 2, 2023
Interesting post, David. Half the time, business owners are told there are no suitable British applicants because people from certain Countries have obtained recruitment positions now and favour their relatives and friends, saving key positions for them.
August 2, 2023
I can only agree with you David. Upsetting isn’t it?
August 2, 2023
Wise words David
August 3, 2023
David B -unfortunately, So true. The slow creep, All part of the Globalist Plan. We will CONTROL you.
August 2, 2023
I see the EU as Poland in the 18th century. A fine history, to be sure with lots of successful wars and fighting and power and heroes.
Now? Totally indecisive, increasingly divided, prone to take the wrong decision (immigration is driving people to the far right), backward looking and full of liberal cant.
Just ripe for dismemberment, it is virtually powerless, unable to support Ukrain. And Putin is not blind.
August 2, 2023
Since when has demanding that the law be applied as to illegals been the preserve of the so called, ‘Far Right’ ?
Since when has it been seen to be virtuous to allow over half a million people into a crowded island putting a stain on public services without ever consulting the people of these islands ?
Since when has it been morally right to provide accommodation to those illegals whilst doing absolutely nothing for our own homeless ?
There is no ‘Right’ or ‘Left’ in this debate, just right and wrong.
August 2, 2023
Would our homeless from London and other Cities accept a room on the Bibby barge? If it was H&S cleared for a certain number of residents, then put that number on it immediately.
Process them first and if they can stay they are then free to leave and find work and lodging of their own without subsidy.
August 2, 2023
The traitorous majority of 650 MPs ensured that we couldn’t leave without a deal so the EU knew they could give us any rotten deal and they did. As a result of their actions, part of the UK is now annexed, the EU are still plundering our fishing waters and of course the UK Government can’t lower VAT because they would have to exclude NI. Our borders are still open and we are not in control of them. We are still aligned to the EU in so many ways thanks to the weakness/unwillingness of this pathetic Government. Politicians of all colours have betrayed us and their best hope now is for Starmer to take us back in by stealth, joining the single market at the very least.
So we haven’t really left the EU have we John?
August 2, 2023
Indeed I mainly blame Theresa May, Speaker Bercow, Hillary Benn perhaps most but all who voted for the Benn Act. were surely guilty of treachery or high treason in my personal view.
Cameron and Osborne and the civil service were also surely guilty of gross negligence in failing to have any sensible planning ready to leave the day after the referendum result. Captain Cameron (who should have remained neutral) then abandoned ship in another pathetic & appalling act lumping the nation with the dire net zero pushing fool Theresa. This in direct contradiction of his promises to the nation.
August 3, 2023
IW – I would say 95% in westminster…….
August 3, 2023
LL – Like Hilary they never thought they would lose and it upset the “status quo”. And that is why the Globalist UK Establishment will do everything in their power to stop a true severance from the EU tentacles. It is not in THEIR interest . The people are irrelevant.
August 2, 2023
@JoolsB +1
You have it one, Parliament is fighting the People
August 2, 2023
The failure to repeal EU laws at the end of this year and allowing the EU “CE” mark to indicate a good is valid for the UK market is the final straw for me with this incompetent government. The indefinite extension of CE labelling in the UK means there will be no regulatory divergence from Brussels as compliance with its regulations is a condition to display the CE mark. Your party deserves the coming wipeout. You replaced the one leader who could win an election in the last 30 years with a guy who literally does not know what to do and can’t implement any change anyway.
August 2, 2023
John, Starmer’s lot will be far, far worse.
His stopping further developments in the North Sea will cost us £75bn in taxes and devastate our balance of payments.
Never mind all the other stuff. He still can’t make his mind up on what defines a woman !
August 2, 2023
commonslibrary.Parliament.uk 25/04/2023 ´Taxation of North Sea Oil and Gas’.
In 2020/21 companies extracting in the North Sea brought £300 m in tax to the Treasury.
In 2021/22 £2.6 bn.
OBR forecasts for the period 2022/23 to 2027/28 £8.6 bn with the present state of extraction.
How many years for the £75 bn you quote for new developments?
August 2, 2023
It’s UK business that has pushed for this sensible retention.
Imposing a change on UK businesses that the majority don’t want (the figures I’ve seen quoted are 59% in favour of keeping CE, just 8% in favour of dropping it for UKCA) that would make UK-made goods unsaleable anywhere else in the world (no other country recognises the new UKCA mark, so they could not be exported anywhere) makes no sense.
August 2, 2023
Boris could win elections and managed to survive the Covid crisis but he obviously didn’t have a clue (or possibly any interest) when it came to delivering long term economic, energy and defence policies. In other words the foundations of good national governance. As far as I’m concerned he wasted an eighty seat majority, wasn’t ruthless enough in his dealings with Europe and was often his own worst enemy, providing his enemies with ample ammunition.
I’m very happy to see him returned to journalism and public speaking, which is where his talents are clearly best rewarded. Hopefully, that is where he will stay.
August 2, 2023
I find the civil service much like the EU. In so many ways.
August 2, 2023
bureaucrats are conceptually international.
August 2, 2023
As a general rule I instinctively dislike ‘rules and regulations. That said, many are sensible and necessary. None more so than the MOT. Time was when people maintained their own cars. Most men would be under the car regularly. Nowadays cars are almost impossible for the average Joe to work on. Most people simple get in and drive and never think about the car. And in is not uncommon to see people driving cars that are 20 years old. An annual MOT is a good idea. Why make it 2 years? What’s the thinking?
August 2, 2023
MOTs are only useful on exchange of vehicle ownership
August 2, 2023
Totally agree with you as normal. The idea that the EU were perfect in imposing rules & regulations. Has never washed with me. Just look at the rotten Windsor framework as an example of over zealous claptrap! Since the referendum there has been no promotion of Brexit wins or even possible wins. Hence the remainers carry on slagging Brexit off. Appreciate the opposition want to keep their snouts in the EU gravy train. But if Tories want to be re-elected. Start churning out good news articles & examples. Re-instating our fishing industry would be a great win for starters.
August 2, 2023
It was always clear that the EU was a control freak – everything had to be under their direct control.
By creating ‘regions’ they had in place a method to manage us all when they no longer needed national governments – and they were only a requirement until the EU had full tax rising capabilities. There were many things wrong with the EU, but their know-best attitude was one of the worse – they imagined they had a God-given right to ‘rule’ because they had a good purpose behind their actions, false though it was.
While the Commission was adept at creating unnecessary new laws and regulations, the EUP excelled at turning the whole process into a factory machine – without real consideration, and no matter how the debates went, decisions were made behind closed doors.
August 2, 2023
Following on from that, I tend to agree with the DT’s Business Comment 20/7/23 around the EU Commission’s competition department’s senior position which was won but eventually withdrawn by the highly qualified American, hopefully having decided she had better things to do, after various petulant outbursts, expressions from all & sundry of worries, astonishment, dismay, petty nationalism, as one of ‘their own’ had not been allocated the job. This is indeed an empire building control freak, gravy train entity, rightly described as petty, parochial, small and narrow minded with its own Brussels world view and cast of thousands, of which personally I do not wish to be part thank you very much.
August 2, 2023
Sir John
When will the UK leave the EU?
When will the UK have its own Sovereign Parliament?
When will the Laws, Rules and Regulations inside the UK come from it own Legislators?
When will the UK be permitted to control its own borders?
On and on goes the list.
There a massive benefits to be had equally for all in the UK. They not going to happen while Parliament and the ‘Blob’ refuse to take on the responsibility for the UK, rather than fighting the people to ensure the UK retains the EU Yoke.
August 2, 2023
Correct
August 2, 2023
So if CE is the European kite mark to export to them, what is the UK worldwide symbol now? What symbol would get our manufacturers the biggest markets around the world? Is there one that all the CPTPP use or one in use in America? Would America accept a British-quality stamp or not?
August 2, 2023
There has been extra red tape in the EU that we no longer have to abide by unless we operate in the EU.
If you operate in the EU, those ‘red tape stamps’ you need take three months or more to get. Apparently, we’re not open to make licence decisions in August. If we were in the EU, these obligations would be a high cost for the UK right now.
By the way, on recent trips abroad, we sailed through passport control, the stamp took hardly any time, and we were all lined up waiting for bags for 20 mins before the bags arrived at the carousel. It seems some Countries still want our business!
August 2, 2023
It’s much worse than Sir John descibes here. The EU perceives that a UK more successful outside the EU than inside would be a threat to ever closer union. In UK Remainers cannot and do not believe the UK could ever be such a threat. The Whitehall and Westminster etsablishments have little or no confidence in the UK’s own abilities. So they have never taken the EU’s perception seriously. Remember the Tories under Cameron campaigned for Remain.
Whether true or not the EU does take the threat seriously and has done everything it can to ensure it does not materialise. It will continu to do so. Hence Von Der Leyen in NATO which is seen by the EU as an enabler of EU representation in NATO replacing EU member states, a move that has the support of Joe Biden. It will isolate the UK. Northern Ireland was taken hostage under Mrs May and now Sunak has conceded defeat by agreeing to permanent EU rule and ECJ jurisdiction in NI. The EU’s purpose has nothing to do with the Belfast Agreement: its aim is leverage over the UK and always has been. By this means it put paid to all talk of UK invoking Article 16 of the protocol. It has killed the REUL bill. The only difficult choice faced by the EU is whether it gains more by using NI as a hostage or by separating it completely from the UK. If the UK does nothing to enforce a free UK internal market, NI will separate naturally by trade diversion. The EU wins either way. Overseas it will attempt to stymie the UK’s attempts to re-establish its presence in the Indo-Pacific. French and German naval deployments quickly followed the British and various missions are busy establishing the EU as a partner to be preferred to the UK.
The EU will control post-war reconstruction in Ukraine. Indeed Von Der Leyen has already declared it is to be focussed on supporting Green Energy in Germany and the EU to reduce dependency on China. Expect UK to be shut out while German and EU industry make huge profits from reconstruction and from processing Ukraine’s vast mineral deposits, all funded by international aid to which no doubt the UK will be a substantial contributor.
It is incredible that Westminster and Whitehall have so little confidence in the UK they cannot see or understand what the EU is doing.
August 2, 2023
FJ
It was always the intention of our conniving establishment to keep us close to EU standards – It will be that much easier for us to slide back into place at the appropriate time.
August 2, 2023
I too, for the same reasons you quote, am happy to be out of the EU. Napoleonic law seems to try to drive them to sameness and across the board conformity. Our Common law only bans what is dangerous and anti social leaving us to think freely within what is not. Though I would add that we are fast norrowing the difference. Car ownership presumes guilt increasingly before you step in it.
What I find difficult to accept is EU vindictiveness directed at the UK for having had the temerity to leave. We erroniously thought the separation could be amicable and on that basis negotiated our exit which ever since has been contentious. I am convinced we should have opted for WTO trade rules and any other conventions that covered maritime and flight rules, leaving the EU to decide whether they wished a physical border set up in Eire on their own territory. Unargueably we were not helped by the traiterous behaviour of our own negotiating team and civil service who remarkably remain free of sanction.
What do I miss by now living in the UK. The freedom from pettiness that has always pervaded life in the UK. To those who have not experienced it you would not believe the difference in flying a sailplane in Spain compared to the UK. Free of bullshit but very professional. Even parking your car is free of cost and nit picking regulation. I omitt the climate and the food because they are a given, try finding fresh seafood at sensible prices in the UK. Most of all I miss my spanish friends and the growing unnecessary regulation that is involved in visiting them.
August 2, 2023
Unfortunately, the current socialist government is emulating the eu’s micro-management. All that does is accelerate the decline.
The Conservatives need to remove the whip of MPs who are intent on continuing this damage.
August 2, 2023
Sir John, you write very eloquently about how we got here. Since then, we have also adopted the EU-coded approach across many areas of domestic legislation. This approach has continued since leaving the EU, as demonstrated by the few retailed EU laws repealed. The government and civil service have yet to grasp the opportunity. Returning to the Common Law system appears more complex than you think. So I am not happy.
What is needed now is for the government to instruct the civil service and regulatory bodies on how to govern using the Common Law approach. The instructions should include the path to rewinding retained EU laws.
In a future blog, please describe the instructions to make this happen.
If necessary, you need to write this into law. Parliament should override the Civil Service’s indecision if it does not happen.
Reply Part of this was done by the EU Retained laws Act though Badenoch’s amendments diluted it.
August 2, 2023
Reply to reply
We are where we are with the EU Retained Laws Act. Badenoch had a point when she said it would have ended with many EU Laws remaining on the statute book by default. And as you say, the Act in its original form only partially solved the issue.
You and your colleagues must re-think this and work with Badenoch to get something more practical and long-lasting on the statute before the next election.
The Common Law approach for improving all regulations must be enforced across government by law. Unless stipulated, the Civil Service will default to the more intuitive and centralising code-based and standardisation ways.
August 2, 2023
It’s not just the EU who like to impose laws regulating everything though is it, the majority of UK MPs of all parties like to do that too, witness their rules on where a supermarket can display a bar of chocolate.
August 2, 2023
Roy,
Possibly because there are so many lawyers in the HoC who think laws solve perceived problems.
August 2, 2023
I fully support full Sovereignty and tough Immigration.
However, Brexit needs a strong leader, plan and the financial reserves to implement. All of these things are missing.
Problem is we don’t have the strong leaders in the Conservative Party here. The Tory Party needs to figure out a better way of attracting high quality candidates into the party, with real business experiences, not just for Brexit but for governance in general.
Need to be tough on immigration but at same time make case loud and clear that it is not about racism.
Lastly, politicians can only do so much (and if they try and do too much, they mess up). There is also a HUGE problem with our culture and civilisation (in the West in general). We’ve got to focus on how to to restore the best of traditional Conservative values to our country – such as being self-reliant, work ethic, patriotism etc – and we can have to focus on achieving that more through the churches, the arts, the media and education. Then everything becomes much easier for politicians, our taxation drops dramatically, production increases enormously etc, health (physical and mental) increases dramatically, pressure on NHS is reduced dramatically, and so on.
I’m not calling on Utopia. But that politics alone won’t solve all the great problems of this country. And not just ‘solve’ but that we thrive!
August 2, 2023
+1
August 2, 2023
Our problem, which shows no sign of being resolved, is an intellectually idle political class that finds it much easier to have its decisions made for it, rather than concentrating on finding solutions that are in our own national interests. All three ‘Major’ parties are united in this: we need a credible new one.
August 2, 2023
“You do not need to standardise everything to have a successful market.”
Yep.
That’s the difference between a manager and an entrepreneur.
August 2, 2023
On Monday one Edward Lucas wrote in the Times that Brexit “has cost 2 to 3 per cent of national income … according to a recent paper by the economist Jonathan Portes”, and today a reader supports him, saying that he “has clearly spelt out the present and (even more crippling) future costs of the UK decision made in 2016”.
Firstly Jonathan Portes is associated with UK in a Changing Europe, and back in March when he took part in an online discussion on the economic impact of Brexit that they had organised:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/economic-impact-of-brexit-virtual-tickets-529357601837
the five economists held widely different views, ranging from “no impact” to a loss of over 5 per cent of GDP; but oddly enough nobody cited the view of the EU Commission, an erosion of economic growth of around 2 per cent, or the even lower projections from three separate German research bodies.
Nor was this put in the context of a 2.4% a year trend growth rate of the UK economy since the war.
I could write a letter to the Times pointing this out, but past experience shows that they are not interested in the truth, only in pro-EU propaganda, and in any case the discussion was chaired by their own economics editor.
August 2, 2023
Hi John
We are out but there are people in this country think we can’t rule our self who think unelected foreign governments can run the UK better the world is there to be taken hope leaving the EU behind let’s start supporting our own business and buying British goods if the government buy British and councils support local businesses and the people of the UK we will create more jobs
To those that want to be part of the EU
GO AND LIVE THERE
Thank you
August 2, 2023
In practice it does not seem that we have left the EU. Less talk from Sunak and more action is what is required.
August 2, 2023
They’ve been talking for 13 years
August 2, 2023
I am also happy that we’ve left the EU but sad that we haven’t achieved brexit nor satisfied the conditions of the referendum
August 2, 2023
Banks tanking again today ….we need a change of leadership & regulation at the BoE
August 2, 2023
I am also pleased that we are out of the EU . The different languages , cultures and economic conditions that exist throughout Europe make it impossible for it to continue as a unified whole . Those countries at the bottom of the economic list in the EU want a parity that the richer ones resist ; the belief exists there that overall equality is essential . Central law making and management cannot overcome and neutralise the extremes that exist throughout the EU – this dream ceases with the everyday dawn . Because the UK is now out of the EU it will try all sorts of mechanisms to try to attract us back in ; our freedom and democracy stands us in a very different world to the EU .
August 2, 2023
Sir John,
The first big hurdle was to actually leave. But it’s like leaving an abusive partner who still knows where you live, and still knows how to exert control. If the present situation remains unchanged, then the best we can hope for is that over time the EU will increasingly diverge from the UK, thus making rejoining at some future date less likely.
August 2, 2023
The latest MoD Defence Intelligence report, released today, suggests that in the past two months Russia has likely begun forming major new military formations to bolster it’s ground forces. These include the new 25th Combined Arms Army, which when fully operational will consist of 75,000 troops combined with tanks, tracked self-propelled guns, armoured fighting vehices, artillery, attack helicopters, air defence systems, electronic warfare vehicles etc
During his resignation speech in Parliament last month, SoS Defence Ben Wallace noted that during his 4-year tenure he had obtained an additional £24billion for the MoD. This is a sum larger than the defence budgets of many other countries. So why has the British Army now been reduced to a TOTAL of only 72,000 troops? Where are the additional tanks, SPG, artillery etc that the Army so desperately needs? Why do we have less than 50 Typhoon fighters airworthy – with trained pilots available – on any one day? Why has our airlift capability just been reduced by ~40% ? Why is the Royal Navy still waiting for the propulsion repairs to four of our Type 45 destroyers?
It looks like the £24billion of taxpayers money is going to be poured into another of the MoD’s bottomless pits. Sunak, Hunt and the incoming Defence Secretary need to wake up to the clear Russian threat, sort out MoD incompetence and re-arm this country before it is too late. If Trump wins the next election he may well pull the USA out of NATO.
August 3, 2023
SG – Donald J Trump will be the President in 2024/5. And yes he will pull the USA out of NATO and one could ask the question why do we need NATO. Cannot say too much here. Truth hurts and Nothing can stop what is coming, NOTHING.
August 2, 2023
And I forgot to mention that while the Army has been reduced to 72,000, the MoD has increased staffing levels this year to 62,000. Office empire building is alive and well in the MoD
August 2, 2023
You couldn’t make that up
August 2, 2023
At referendum time, in 2016, I decided to review the benefits of joining the EU. One of the sources was “Brexit the Movie” written and Directed by Martin Durkin. It was enough to persuade me that this country was on a hiding for nothing. Well not ‘nothing’ actually, it was costing us several £Billions to belong to an exclusive club where the unelected Chairman and unelected committee had exclusivity over our very lives. Whatever they ordered, we were to obey without question even down to who we could trade with and what price we were to add to our imports. Protectionism for the originators was inbuilt. We voted to leave yet we still have those who would deny democracy.
I still cannot get a valid answer to my question of those die-hard remainers when I ask, “Why they would prefer to be ruled by an unelected cabal of foreigners who rule from a foreign country, in Brussels and are completely unaccountable to the European citizens, when they can elect their own representatives to govern in our own country from London and if they do not prove good enough, can be removed by the British citizens at each and every General Election.
Statistically, as a member, this country was paying over £10 Billions per year to Brussels for the privilege of spending £100 B more in goods than the EU sold to us thus a huge trade deficit there. Within EU members we were their largest customer yet they treated us as underdogs. Treat your best customer with derision and you’ll lose him. We’re well outta there!
August 2, 2023
If Sir John is so keen on our regaining and exercising freedom and independence from the EU why not extend that.
Vast tracts of our industry are foreign owned, which Sir John likes as ‘investment’, but don’t try to tell me we are free of their states interference in what we do.
And remember surplus cash and dividends go overseas. I don’t recall him ever listing that as a negative for us, among other negatives. We have heard about under investment on utility infrastructure for example.
And remember the French company EDF in effect controls and runs our nuclear industry. I wonder if that is why our government will not be making a decision on our own small nuclear reactors unti 1929. Yes, the decision only. They will thus never start. By then French and Chinese control will be even greater.
Reply Try reading my views before launching another false attack. I have often drawn attention to the dangers of running a large balance of payments deficit and have made man6 proposals for import substitution, When I drew up privatisation plans for Margaret Thatcher they included special shares to block foreign take overs.
August 2, 2023
At the risk of repeating myself, when will the PM & Chancellor get a grip? We do not need 530,000 Civil Servants, but our PM says there is no blob. We should cut back to 100,000 Civil Servants & refuse to employ more. We should cut all the nonsense spending on Quangos & Charities that then oppose government policy. We should drop Net Zero & all the nonsense related to it. Do the PM & Chancellor never consult with or listen to highly qualified Scientists who don’t agree with NZ?
The sheer volume of Civil Servants is one of the problems with leaving the EU. Most want to remain part of the bureaucratic monster that gives them more power than our MPs. But have no fear, Trier 2 balances will destroy the EU from the inside, it is just a question of when!
August 2, 2023
+many …gets my vote
August 2, 2023
An interesting take on the economy by the PM in interviews today. His high tax regime, that put up costs, that then added to the demand for higher wages, that caused high interest rates, with the end result of high inflation and a continuing spiral – is nothing to do with him.
As the head of the UK’s ‘Management’, it would appear, from what he said, he went missing when he was needed to do his job. Or is it speeches and interviews that is now what as classed as working? The trouble is we are all paying for this blatant ineptitude.
It would have never happened, be allowed to happen, if the UK had a Conservative Government.
August 2, 2023
We seem to have everything we voted against as conservatives.
# Higher and higher taxes direct and indirect. So the government insists on printing more money, taxing for more money and spending more money… they are one of the inputs into the inflation engine. They need to drop spending, drop taxation, drop interest rates and do CPR on the economy.
# Higher and higher interest rates supposedly to curb inflation… but inflation is driven by government money printing, excess government tax and spend and supply side costs due again to government climate energy policy destroying fossil fuel based cheap, reliable and clean sources of energy and destroying farming and food production… hence inflation… higher interest rates will only hurt people more and drive further cost of living issues not tackling inflation until people are dead. If they drive local businesses under and we import even more goods then inflation goes higher again. What idiots.
# The government is against freedoms. It is the government pushing councils to implement anti-car-policies and themselves putting in a ban on petrol and diesel car production. And worse in the current energy bill giving the secretary of state the powers to stop natural gas supplies and stop refining and distribution of petrol/diesel at will… it’s evil and tyrannical.
# The government is doing nothing to protect our borders and stop immigration. They could wipe away the evil ambulance chasing law firms tomorrow, put in place an intercept at sea and drive back to France policy if they wanted to but they don’t. They just keep lying to the public. Teressa May signed us up to the UN open borders policy and we just keep dancing to the WEF/UN tune of tyranny.
# The government’s other climate policies where they are not out-right banning stuff, just make it less reliable, more scarce and more costly.
I am not saying that Labour are any better. They are worse. Which is why our unelected PM is able to ignore the needs and wants of the people. I am beginning to vie for Richard Tice and Reform UK which is an actual Conservative Party
August 2, 2023
Its as though there’s a labour/libdem/green party in government
August 2, 2023
The PM Sunak is for net-zero, at any cost, so is the Chancellor Hunt, so is the Secretary of State Energy Security & Net Zero Shapps, and so is the Minister for net-zero Stuart …I’d like to see the views of every Tory MP on the governments policy of net-zero …ya know, transparency now that we’ve left the EU
August 2, 2023
You were not wrong Sir, as I have always said Neo-Communism by another name?
August 2, 2023
Something is very wrong with you British you think everybody is out of step except yourselves. You have left the EU but continue to complain that the EU is trying to control you – nothing could be further from the truth because truth is nobody here outside gives two figs – so now go refine your common law system and then try out one of those great new trade deals you were promised – I think it was called the sunny uplands of something like that. Bye
August 3, 2023
well you clearly do care two figs, else why come to this site?
Feel free to stop your angst!
August 2, 2023
Are any boat immigrants willing and offering to live on the Bibby barge?
These lawyers writing letters to get their ‘clients’ removed from the transfer list, do UK taxpayers pay for that legal assistance?
We should never have removed the bed pods from the Nightingale hospitals and just put them all in there. If it was good enough for the sickest Brits, then what would that problem be, fire risk (in other words, they’ll just set it on fire)?
These often young men are taking the Mick. They would be glad of the free room and board if they were truly fleeing persecution, but they’re not. Someone put a photo of a lot of homeless street sleepers in London’s Oxford Street this week, offer them a room each.
In Japan, there are tiny sleeping pods, but they don’t seem to burn down. When these barges were used to house working British men they didn’t burn down! What is the UN doing about these fleeing men’s alleged treatment in their home nations?
August 2, 2023
UK post Brexit should implement Net Zero Immigration instead of stealing skilled staff from poor countries. It is, very simply, completely immoral for liberals to take a trained doctor from a developing nation where they have endemic malaria and rickets without supplying an equivalent replacement doctor in return. Money is not sufficient. Second problem is the result then is the same as training in firms. They stop doing it. Why invest if you’re just going to get poached. Then everyone is screwed! It’s a fundamental issue, that cannot be rectified by paying money. It should be a like for like swap, or we’re depriving ‘overseas’ of a doctor. The swap is of value as each doctor learns the issues in the other area – making them both more rounded overall.
August 2, 2023
My petrol station has today put up the pump price by another 2p to £1.47 ….is the government bothered or are they more interested in the increased vat income ….under Sunak my petrol has increased by over 6p per litre
August 2, 2023
John you’re not happy only deluded if you think that this country is in better shape now than it was in 2016 before we voted to leave.
August 3, 2023
We should never have gone into something which was so obviously a lie to the people. A common market (which I have doubts would have worked to how we wanted anyhow) was a lie and I cannot understand why people think we would be better back in. There is something drastically wrong with media coverage to the masses when the majority of the country knows what a con this has been and the elite in London continue to press it on us. The EU is like a Communist plot. This is how communism is run with tying up populations in rules and regulations. The British people have never put up with this. I remember my Father saying that the Germans could never understand why we won the war (did we?) as we were so rough but that was it wasn’t it? We could adapt which the continentals cannot. That was our strength but they have made the current generations like them needing to take rules and regulations without using their brains. It must stop.
August 3, 2023
Sir JR
Interesting perspective but as usual a lot of criticism of the EU and a recommendation of using our new freedom, as usual no real solutions and future policies of what we really should be doing with this so-called increased freedom