UK foreign policy is based on two false assumptions. We can have best friend relationships with the EU , China and the US at the same time. Giving in to the demands of foreign governments buys us friends. These policies instead makes us weak , subject to more unacceptable demands.
Recognising public anger about this the government doubles up on this stupidity whilst changing the words to say this is representing the national interest.
How is it in the national interest to give the Chagos away along with billions? Whose support and favour will that buy?
How is it good to give in to the EU over fish, free movement of young people and accepting their laws? They will just ask for more.What do we get back?
How is it sensible to import more and more energy and food from the EU when we could produce our own?
How is it wise to depend on China for steel, for solar panels, for wind turbines and electric cars?
Why do we say we need to do more damage to our industry to pursue net zero to lead the world when the world does not follow?
April 21, 2025
Until we get a government run for the people by those elected we will never prosper. Ideologies like the ones forced on us at present will never end well. We keep getting short time governments and no long term plans which will help the country prosper. It starts with the schooling system which has gone downhill since the early 1960s when we started having the wrong types of teaching forced on children. If we went back to grammar schools, technical colleges and secondary modern schools we might get our act together again. Of course, running down industry has not helped as there are limited opportunities for the younger element to find jobs of all types. Most of this has happened under Labour governments so the answer is clear – don’t vote Labour or Lib Dem for that matter.
April 21, 2025
‘ Recognising public anger about this the government doubles up on this stupidity whilst changing the words to say this is representing the national interest.’
So far it has been going quite well for the government. They have not had to change course. The public anger has not had an impact. There may be articles in the press condemning the policies but they are ignored.
Other issues like illegal immigration are ignored too. Reporting on the issue is minimal.
The government are getting away with it.
April 21, 2025
Well stated Linda.
Blair initiated most of the rot that has developed, and bad education creates more of those who pursue a lifetime destined into still worse.
April 21, 2025
Well much of it happened under the last 14 years of the Conservative too and Thatcher closed more grammar schools than anyone else as PM and education Sec. Now Labour has a war on private schools too.
So deluded Ed Miliband has said (in the Observer) the government will “double down” on its environmental agenda and accused those against the move to net zero of “making up nonsense and lies”.
The dangerous nonsense and lies comes from Ed. Is he really so stupid he actually believes the drivel he comes out with?
Currently under 19% of out electricity is coming from wind and solar so that is about 4% of our energy needs on a fairly low demand day too. This even after exporting much of our industries.
JR asks:- “How is it wise to depend on China for steel, for solar panels, for wind turbines and electric cars?”
These all made using cheap coal fired on demand energy and some using slave labour. How can the UK compete in these areas? With energy 3-6 times the price Ed. When you do proper accounting EV cause more CO2 not less and even Wind Turbines cause a lot of CO2. Ed wants Solar on all the school roofs which is expensive to do any maintain and gives you most of the energy in lunchtime Summer when it is not needed and the schools are often shut for summer hols.
April 21, 2025
He goes on about energy security but this morning a quarter of the electricity is coming from foreign countries.
April 21, 2025
“all made using cheap coal fired on demand energy”
Exactly, false accounting. Who is full of nonsense?!
April 21, 2025
What exactly are you saying is nonsense?
China is rather competitive at making EVs, Solar Panels, batteries, wind-farms and much else as they have abundant, on demand, cheap, largely coal energy and cheap labour.
April 22, 2025
Sorry, I mean the quite breath-taking nonsense of importing so much manufactured using coal, then claiming the virtue of being the world leader in nut zero!
Brazen false accounting!
April 21, 2025
Starmer hails the Pope as “Pope for the poor” as opposed to Kier, Ed, Reeves, Lammy, B Philipson, Cooper-Balls… who are cearly deluded politicians who want to make ever more people poor and ill educated – with net zero, evermore taxes, evermore red tape, dire public services and evermore, largely parasitic, government!
April 21, 2025
LL, Mrs T did not shut grammar schools. Councils did, which is why we still have grammar schools.
April 21, 2025
While she was education Sec. or PM very many grammar schools were closed
April 21, 2025
@Linda Brown – Agreed they prefer to fight the People and the Nation, so look for chums abroad to pat them on the back
April 21, 2025
Simply not true. Every government of the last 60 years is responsible for the gradual ruination of this country.
April 21, 2025
MW,
‘ Every government of the last 60 years is responsible for the gradual ruination of this country.’
I mostly agree. Some governments have just been worse than others.
April 21, 2025
Peter
Agreed, but it will continue until people stop voting for the same Parties, again, again, and again and hoping it/they will change.
Manifesto’s have become simply a pledge of hope, lies, and weasel words, with very few politicians actually answering any questions put to them at all.
Listened to some of the old speeches of Enoch Powell and Margaret Thatcher recently, totally different people, but they both talked common sense and reason, unlike almost anyone from the present bunch our present host excluded..
April 21, 2025
Good morning.
Let us hope that this post does not get deleted unlike yesterdays 😉
—-
There are no ‘friends’ in international politics, just mutual interests.
Period !
April 21, 2025
We have the most anti British, incompetent government ever. I may be wrong about incompetence, it could possibly be spitefulness. 2TK appears to want to create as much destruction and division as possible knowing he is a one term government. Everything they do is detrimental to our way of life and well-being.
Stopping the winter fuel allowance (which i gave to charity) whilst proclaiming £22 billion black hole then offering Mauritius £9billion and rising to take a UK asset is reasonable
Everything about net zero is designed to impoverish us for the benefit of the chosen few. (Ecotricity for example). We have only one hope and that’s to get Farage in No.10 as soon as possible
April 21, 2025
Treasonable.
April 21, 2025
@Ian wragg +1
The Government and Parliaments personal egos stop them doing their job. Fighting not working with
April 21, 2025
Reform is now 50% OWNED by Zia Yousif. You think that’s a solution?
April 21, 2025
Ian, you say his is a one term government. But he has four years in which to rig the system. Farage should never, ever have let him in. He didn’t seem to foresee what was coming, so eaten up with jealousy of Boris was he that he developed tunnel vision.
April 21, 2025
Friendship with the EU comes with demands that impinge on our sovereignty. Northern Ireland, fishing, travel restriction, and tradw restriction come to mind. They are a breeding ground for lazy politicians and the death of democracy.
China is a very dangerous bedfellow. They are imperialist, the grave of human rights. They are intent on buying the World, which they perceive as a cheaper way than war. In all parts of our infrastructure their baubles should be shunned. Those in UK government who think otherwise, giving access to our communications, our power supplies, our universities where the attitude to free speacb is already captured, or any subsequent employment, should be treated as working for a foreign power, not the UK. Remember Hongkong, Tibet, and the Chagos Islands.
The USA on the other hand does not come with strings attached. The acceptable umbelical has been in place over many generations to no disadvantage. We can agree to disagree on some issues that arise but wlth no fundamental harm to our relationship. Vietnam for instance. Providing we come to a balanced trade agreement and stop playing games over chlorinated chicken, our bagged salad already being chlorinated, we will get on to the advantage of all. The USA are our natural partners. Only the politics and ill manners of socialism will get in the way. Now I will read what you have to say.
April 21, 2025
@agricola – correct, but the EU and China have more akin with this Government & Parliment
April 21, 2025
Correct – and don’t forget our love of the UN ….and all its various bodies
April 21, 2025
The US is probably the source of better friendship.
Some of the EU nations could be less hostile, and friendly if they weren’t bound by idiotic EU rules enforcing sameness limitations against both our and their better individual interests.
China could be treated as a distant tolerable acquaintance if it conformed to higher standards of probity and posed no risk of dominating the world in harmful economic and military control.
Peace and contentment would be more likely in an efficient competitive world without extremists intent on seizing and wielding power in enmity.
April 21, 2025
Having now read your submission you imply that to please all three we become a punter in an international whore house, with the certainty of catching a pox as a result. Absolutely correct, we are suffering chlamidia (spelling doubtful) already. In fact our government are intent on assisting with the super chinese whore house in Tower Hamlets, a safe socialist bolt hole. For the sake of variety our friends in the EU will supply many of the hookers.
Metaphor appart we should shun Chinese and EU involvement in any future sovereign UK, they do not mean us well. The US, under present leadership does. After all, we do more or less speak the same language, in its widest sense.
April 21, 2025
The move by the US and EU to protect industry from cheap imports made in China, India and other counties with low labour and energy costs comes with high inflation. China and India train 10x more STEM students whereas the graduates in the UK are largely not interested in true science and technology. Even if they are, their dopey university managers hold them back. An engineering student I met had been prevented from using a lathe for his design project for safety reasons.
Chinese products are well made and half the price of EU and UK goods. At least the US has cheap energy but the UK under ecoloons has no chance of replacing Chinese products with equivalent.
The only area in which the current generation of young British people can compete is in service industry. Most of the graduates from universities here are floundering around in cults of pseudo environmentalism and psychology.
Their future is bleak.
April 21, 2025
@Stred – well observed. It is also probably why China is one of the largest funders of our educational institutions, they can feed from them while directing them
April 21, 2025
UK Establishment Policy, post WW2, has been to build a Rules Based International Order and a One World Government. Everything they do is intended to lead towards that goal.
Those in the UK who don’t support the objective (even though many of them are not aware that it IS the objective) complain that they are not governing in the National Interest. Not least, because they are suffering the undesirable consequences in their daily lives.
The Establishment claims that it is in the national interest and of course they are largely immune from suffering the undesirable consequences in their daily lives.
April 21, 2025
@Donna – ‘national interest’ read personal interest
April 21, 2025
Agree
Rule based democracy my asrs …Illegal Immigration Act 2023, section 59, (3) Safe Countries to return ..(k) FRANCE …I wish our politicians would read and enforce the laws they make, without the approval of the EU/UN
April 21, 2025
But they’re not aiming for Rule-based Democracy. They’re aiming for a Rules-based International Order …. and a One World Government. Their aims are more aligned to China’s system of governance than the USA’s.
April 21, 2025
….and that’s scary
April 21, 2025
Another set of good points made Mr. Redwood. Clearly china is no friend of the west in general, and will use this weak UK government to its advantage. Perhaps forging closer links to countries in the old Eastern Europe, Poland for example and expanding links to our longest ally Portugal, is a way to circumvent the Brussels elite.
Whether you like the Trump presidency or not, the US is at least trying to stand up to the ever-increasing bureaucratic machine. Therefore, stronger links to the US are essential.
Sadly this won’t happen of course as labour will undermine Brexit at every opportunity and continue lying to the people of the UK.
April 21, 2025
Tony Blair was the ultimate trickster. He masqueraded as if he was acting in the national interest when all along his policies created long term damage to our country, much of it irreparable.
For example he was a ‘friend’ to the WTO which from 2000 exported the West’s manufacturing sector to China (Britain’s GDP growth has never recovered since 2000).
He was a special ‘friend’ to China (our trade deficit with them and on an aggregated global basis too) ballooned since 2000. In the process he also economically strengthened an adversary and reduced the quality of our goods with Chinese gimcrack being a substitute for what was made in Britain, Germany, France, USA and Japan).
He was a ‘friend’ to the EU and immigration soared from 1997 onwards which compressed wages for the low income segment, sent rental prices soaring and reduced GDP / capita (ie our living standards).
He was a ‘friend’ to George Bush and the Iraq war which needs know further discussion. We live with the refugee fallout from all such stupid campaigns today.
This is what happens when we have people like Blair in charge who do not act in the national interest. Instead they pander to their ‘friends’ and sell the country out.
If Keir Starmer wants economic growth back to anything resembling the 1990’s levels then he is going to have to act in the national interest, rectify the above and ditch the Nuts Zero agenda (the ultimate UN con).
April 21, 2025
@Paul Freedman _ agreed
Keir Starmer has already gone on record in the media stating that it is the WEF that he is at home with and not Parliament where in theory he would have to justify his Marxists views.
April 21, 2025
Like the King!
April 21, 2025
Yeah
April 21, 2025
Keir Starmer and the government can get away with the claim that a man can ‘self identify’ as a woman.
This will boost their confidence to say all sorts of things without fear of the consequences.
April 21, 2025
We are goverened by fools who care more for strutting the political stage, than governing the UK for the benefit of the UK’s heritage population.
April 21, 2025
Are they “fools” or is this just their deliberate plan?
April 21, 2025
The deindustrialisation and eventual destruction of the UK such policies will lead to is a common policy of the Uniparty in Westminster.
The first duty of government is to ensure the security of its citizens and maintain the strength of the nation that government commands.
I have seen no evidence of those fundamental priorities of government being met for the last three decades.
It could be argued the government’s basic duties situation have been ignored and compromised since 1972 when we foolishly joined the EEC/EU on the promise of open access to a mass market in continental Europe. That promise of open trade was never real it resulted in the closure of our key industries and the loss of of our fishing industry and unique rights of access to our own waters.
The disastrous policy of abandoning sovereignty to a non elected commission in a foreign land has done irreparable damage to our national standing in the world and eliminated much of our traditional industrial strength.
It has been an expensive lesson in how to progress failure. I just hope the reality of what has been done to the UK, is realised by those who still imagine handing power to outside forces is a good thing.
The BBC being the most blinkered of those cranky thinkers.
April 21, 2025
I’ve just read Margaret Thatcher’s book “Statecraft”, and recommend it highly. She deals with Russia, China, the Middle East, the EU and the US. In a few things, she didn’t see where we were going (it was published in 2002), but in very many cases she was astonishingly perceptive, forseeing dangers that are now verging on the existential. She talks about the overreach of “international law”, the use of climate change to further political objectives, the leftist influence pervading our institutions.
I appreciate her much more, having read the book. If only we had someone of her calibre in charge, instead of today’s apologies for statesmen.
What a privilege it must have been to work in her administration.
April 21, 2025
You do, I hope, appreciate how she, as a trained scientist, fully understood the threat of man-made global warming and would have been at the forefront of the vital and wise push for net zero
April 21, 2025
Ask yourself Scallion…by how much will the average global temperatures eventually be reduced by our Net Zero efforts.
And then ask yourself what is the overall cost of this project.
And then ask yourself what could those billions spent achieving Net Zero instead have been be spent on alleviating poverty, homelessness and care of those with disabilities.
April 21, 2025
So long as the UK fails to make the most of its natural comparative advantages, notably in energy and minerals, its decline into international irrelevance and national poverty will continue. The USA is lurching into protectionism. China dominates many manufacturing sectors, its most advanced companies demonstrating mastery of manufacturing 4.0. The EU’s legislative sclerosis slows adaptation to a changing world. There is no sign of a coherent UK foreign policy response to the new world order evolving before our eyes. Attempting to buy favours is a fools errand. The recipients will only be back for more. We face four more years of drift and capitulation under Starmer’s government. It is not a pretty sight.
April 21, 2025
Now that we have taken back control we don’t have to be best friends with anyone. The EU China or any of the rest do not demand ‘friendship’ only the US as we have seen in the past – “you are either with us or are against us” and if course our political leaders fall for it everytime – we don’t need that kind of friendship which equates to serfdom.
April 21, 2025
It is a very easy course to take if you give in to foreign governments like it is if you don’t stand up to the unions;
The government can always claim success when sorting out strike action by merely giving in to demands and showing that as a win.
They can show we’re friends with China,EU and the USA and all other countries by giving in to demands, by giving aid, by giving property away and by leading the charge for Net Zero when countries far bigger than ours are talking about it but doing nothing, because it’s not in their interests;
While the UK is worried about feeding and educating the world, housing illegal immigrants, reducing carbon emissions, and generally being a benefactor to all, our once strong industrial base is suffering, causing the UK to buy goods abroad at inflated prices and helping other countries to succeed.
The fact is, there are no friends around the world unless you are doing what they want you to do.There are no ‘special relationships’ with the USA;if the UK had chosen to put tariffs on imported goods from America 30/40 years ago I doubt if the word ‘special relationship’ would have ever been mentioned.
We have to start getting tough to protect UK interests.
Would we now have the Falklands if the current government had been in power.The only reason we have the Falklands is because of Margaret Thatcher’s stance on securing those islands and waters around it which won her world wide respect and acclaim for being one tough negotiator who was there to protect the UK’s interests.Compare that situation with the Chagos Islands today!
The UK is a very small island that is losing power across the world and we are no longer in a position to give handouts or favours to other countries.We must start looking after ourselves and our interests.
April 21, 2025
We do not need “trade deals”. We do not need foreign courts.
We need to protect our borders and security.
We need to respect other nations and mind our own business.
Giving away money, land or power to foreigners is a weird thing to do and only weirdos would do that.
April 21, 2025
Fully agree Kenneth
April 21, 2025
Labour’s transformation of our country into an unrecognisable state was begun by the Conservatives and is all but complete. Every policy you mention today is designed with that in mind. You say ‘the world does not follow’ but Germany is doing so – another country where politicians deliberately eschew the majority views. One can envisage that soon figures such as Nigel Farage being challenged by the BBC when they refer to ‘the British people’ being against a policy with the response ‘who are the British people, what groups do you mean’?
All we can do is try and be stoic, defend our interests as best we can, and accept this sadly irreversible decline.
April 21, 2025
Sir John
The only best friend this Government and Parliament needs is with the UK People the electorate and the Nation.
Working with the People of this Country they could ensure a safe, secure, resilient and self reliant Nation that is dynamic and growing. Instead they put the Socialist WEF cabal front and centre people that don’t give a damn about the UK or its People. Their personal ego has convinced them that they personally have meaning and standing as such they are more concerned with ingratiating themselves on anyone that politely listens rather than focus on the job at hand and serving those that empower and pay them.
The Government and Parliament is battling the People and refusing their job and refusing to work with them
April 21, 2025
As an individual we have to be (health permitting) independent and capable. We have to provide for ourselves and families. After that we can choose friends on the basis of getting on with someone – liking them enough to have their back and help them out – and vice versa.
It’s a shame our politicians don’t start with us being independent and capable – instead of being vulnerable and dependent on others for food, energy and goods.
April 21, 2025
Look at which country has the more logical approach to net0 – That’s who we should be following and establishing good relations with.
The EU is totally irrational when it comes to alleged climate change – like anyone in your circle of colleagues/friends you would try not to get too involved with anyone that was talking gibberish or who had a death wish.
Then you look at anyone who could so easily do you harm by removing sponsorship or one on one information – That could equate to China who once that are the fully the factory of Earth could so easily blackmail us in some way or make life very expensive.
Finally, if you are looking for a relationship in which you can easily feel comfortable, with shared interests and philosophy, you would choose someone you know, even if they have some hostile things to say about you — ONLY Friends will tell you to your face if you are being silly.
For us the only BF has to be America, for they have seen the reality of net0 and are are on a path to decency, rationality and prosperity.
There should be no other choice, except that our government is both China and the EU TO US – it has no rational approach to life, so it will choose unwisely!
April 21, 2025
Policy of this government in the workplace is driven by two similar assumptions, that it can be best friends with all the trade unions and giving in to their demands buys that friendship. It then wrongly supposes its industrial policy and strategy for growth is well-served.
It is a government that is not coping and that is becoming increasingly clear, perhaps even to itself.
April 21, 2025
This Labour Government is determined to be all things to all foreign nations, without any thought for the British, and particularly the English, people or their national interest. In Foreign Policy, as in anything else, it devoted no time at all in its years in opposition, to thinking about what would be the best way forward in the future, so it is flying pretty well completely blind. Cuddling up to the EU is an obvious safe haven, and I do not suppose any thought at all was given to the possibility of a Trump victory.
April 21, 2025
It was reported in the press yesterday that Starmer is about to cave in to the EU’s demands on fishing access and “in return” UK will be allowed to join the EU security pact. As one of only two nuclear weapon states in Europe we shouldn’t have to concede anything at all, if the EU wants us to assist with their security THEY should pay US. Far better to use fishing rights as a lever against the French to get them to stop the boats.
April 21, 2025
We need to identify France as a hostile nation, we need to close the channel tunnel, the ferries and impose restictions to air flights, cancel any fishing & energy treaties until they accept illegal immigrant returns ….We need to protect our own nation
April 21, 2025
Sir John
Whichever way you look at things that are out of kilter with our needs, and it appears they have originated and been led by those with either no experience of anything or with a jaundiced view of the World, the Country or its People.
From the wrecking ball that was Blair we have had the manipulative snake oil salesmen of the Legal Profession stoking up trouble and decline – he like Starmer is a lawyer. Playing with words, manipulating and personally getting a ‘high’ on what they can get away with it. All they time they rubbish Democracy and the notion and Government by the People for the People.
They hate Parliament as much as Parliament hates itself and its true purpose.
As big body organisers themselves they love the WEF, the egotist at the UN, WHO, the EU and all those other acronyms that want World Government, an ideal that was never in the plans of the well intentioned, until these unaccountable unelected people with personal, very personal, agendas got involved and though ‘let’s do the ruling’.
There is no Law anywhere that requires the UK to give away the Chagos Islands, Starmer, his Government and the UK Parliament have made it up to gloss over their hatred for the UK, their need to do malicious damage to the UK. That is the only thinking here.
Only yesterday, Lord Burnett, a judge and the former lord chief justice, pointed out that the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has veered into politics. You could say it wants to be our rulers without the imposition of elections. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/20/echr-veered-into-politics-uk-judge-europe-immigration/
Democracy is flawed, but it is considerably ‘safer’ than all the alternatives as these alternatives are now showing. Democracy creates real legislation that can be amended or repealed by the people as things move forward.
April 21, 2025
Just on the economic aspects, in this article yesterday:
https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/us-trade-deal-does-the-uk-have-upper-hand-with-trump-now_uk_67ff5ec1e4b051f6e26e5e36
it is stated that:
“Independent forecaster Frontier Economics estimates that the impact of the US tariffs will shrink UK GDP by 0.7%, while a closer economic relationship with the EU would see it rise by 1.5%.”.
Their study was commissioned by the pro-EU propagandists at “Best For Britain”, who actually believe that it would be best for Britain to cease to exist as an independent sovereign state. It is here:
https://www.frontier-economics.com/media/xzujflcy/final-report_best_for_britain.pdf
Firstly both those numbers are rather small one-off changes. Secondly delving into the report they estimate the immediate effects to be even smaller – indeed the effect of US tariffs would be negligible, and the one-off gain from deep goods alignment with the EU would be only 0.27% of GDP.
So how do the numbers get inflated five fold? By applying the same fallacious argument as the OBR:
“The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimated that the effects of moving from EU membership to the TCA would reduce productivity, and hence long run GDP, by around 4%. Set against this, the findings from the modelling suggest that, depending on the scenario, and on assumptions on the effects of trade on GDP in the long run, closer alignment could recover between a quarter to around half of loss estimated by the OBR.”
Now compare these dubious theoretical speculations about what might happen in the future with the empirical observation of what has actually happened since 2008, page 40 in this 2023 book, “Ending Stagnation”:
https://economy2030.resolutionfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Ending-stagnation-final-report.pdf
“Britain’s economy is 22 per cent smaller than it would have been had we continued on our pre-financial crisis trend.”
April 21, 2025
Dear Mr. Redwood,
One of the major problems facing a new government is what to do about the Civil Service. Long ago, it was strictly impartial and carried out the wishes of the government of the day. That disappeared as the Service became politicised and indoctrinated by left-leaning concepts and thinking.
British foreign policy is just an extension of the Service. It decides what the country’s priorities are and what it will try to achieve. The Civil Service’s fingerprints are all over attempts to be best friends of the EU, China and US at the same time. We could never possibly upset Johnny-Foreigner could we old boy?
Governments and Ministers of all persuasions long ago gave up trying to get the Civil Service to do what they want. If the Service decides it doesn’t like a new government, well it just finds a thousand and one reasons why things can’t be done that way. It’s a cosy relationship now with both sides aware of what the game is.
Reform of the Civil Service will be a huge challenge, for example, for a Tory / Reform coalition!
April 21, 2025
APJ :
Agreed. I beieve it will take referendums to be able to sack the Civil Service, quangos, regulators etc..
April 21, 2025
I understand the gloomy views expressed in several comments, and agree we can’t be friends with the US, EU and China. I agree that this Labour government is a disaster, as all governments since 1997.
But I believe in the UK and its people. Somewhere out there is a strong MP with proper conservative values who will rise to the top and turn it all around. They may not have a conservative label, but they will promote conservative values and make the UK great again!
The PM, some Ministers and I suspect most of his MPs can’t even accept that a woman is a biological female.
Ed Miliband, the high priest of the Net Zero religion, can’t even understand the real truth about Global Warming, Climate Change or the fact that CO2 is a beneficial gas. So, a tough few years, but the UK will survive & grow!
April 21, 2025
KfL : “Ed Miliband, the high priest of the Net Zero religion, can’t even understand the real truth about Global Warming, Climate Change or the fact that CO2 is a beneficial gas.”
I think he does understand. Whilst it is possible to awaken someone who is sleeping it is not possible to awaken somebody who is pretending to sleep.
April 21, 2025
These decisions all make perfect sense when it is accepted that Socialism depends upon making and keeping people poor.
With regard to the Chagos Islands the Labour Party has previous form. At the start of the cold war in 1946 they agreed to the USSR’s request to sell to them 55 of the new, Rolls-Royce cutting edge jet engine technology engines together with maintenance training. The USSR, who were at the time lagging behind in this technology, copied the engines and fitted them into their MIG-15 fighter which was later used against UK and US forces in the Korean war.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/07/22/attlee-ignored-warnings-send-stalin-rolls-royce-engines/
Now why would the Far Left Labour Party want to do that and repeat it again with the Chagos Islands?
April 21, 2025
Quite agree. The actions of this government are despicable.
What is most telling is that we have a government with political prisoners (in prison to be clear) and how many of them there are we do not know.
April 21, 2025
“How is it wise to depend on China for steel, for solar panels, for wind turbines and electric cars?”
Having lost the battle on the cost of renewables as our electricity price keeps increasing as the percentage of our electricity from renewables increases, they’re now saying that wind and sunshine is more secure than gas. Well, I’d rather take my chances with gas from the UK North Sea (or even from fracking?), Norway and the USA than wind turbines and solar panels (made with slave labour BTW) supplied by the Chinese, a country described by our security services as “hostile”. 50% of wind turbines beak down within 2 years and both only have an economic lifetime of around 20 years. So can we really depend upon the Chinese to supply spare parts or sell us a new set when those installed for 2030 will all need replacement by 2050? Is that security?
Oh, and the price of gas is almost back down to pre Ukraine war levels, so why are our electricity prices still so high? It couldn’t be the subsidies on renewables and the carbon taxes on gas could it? Note that the CCC, Ofgem, DESNZ and the ES&NZ Select Committee are all saying that the cost of subsidies for renwables should be loaded onto domestic gas bills. It’s the only way to make heat pumps cheaper to run (not buy or maintain) than gas boilers….
April 21, 2025
Boris Johnson’s ‘Brexit Deal’ includes tying the U.K. to Net Zero and the ECHR.
To get ‘released’ from that we need to give a lot away – probably fish etc. so Starmer is correct, before he can do anything he needs to renegotiate the deal with the EU.
The alternative is to charge Johnson and probably May with Treason and get out of that disastrous, nation-destroying treaty that way.
Before people inform me that voting for Farage’s Reform is the solution, kindly note that after his ‘democratic reforms’ to Reform, Farage owns 50% and Zia. owns the other 50%.
April 21, 2025
It’s about policies not ownership. When that changes I will consider what else is available.
April 21, 2025
“when the world does not follow”? says a lot – we have no right to expect the world fo follow – all we can do is strike out as bespoke free traders make a success of it and hope that by good example the rest will be impressed enough to follow – nothing to do with friendship
April 21, 2025
KfL,
Your second paragraph is a wish. I hope you are right, but there is no evidence this is likely to happen at the moment. From within parliament or outside it, no strong candidate(s) are emerging.
As for MAGA, that comes with a lot of caveats and strings attached. Trump and his pals will do well. Certain things will change for the better, but any claims of bringing peace to the world are nonsense. Trump may well do the exact opposite.
April 21, 2025
Sir John, you mistakenly suggest that China has made ‘demands’ on this country. It hasn’t. It’s offered to do business with us in various sectors, and has sent huge numbers of its students to be educated in British universities. If we want to be less dependent on China that’s fine, but we aren’t rejecting any demands of theirs. On the other hand both Washington and Brussels *have* made demands, as you point out, in the realm of tariffs, defence spending, and fishing rights. China does not threaten our policy-making sovereignty as a nation, whereas demands made by the US and the EU most certainly do. We should follow the same approach to them as we do with China: trade with them as much as we want to and are able to, but without accepting unreasonable demands from them.
Reply The main issue is asymetric trade with China. Businesses needing to give IP to be allowed to trade there, refusal to allow 100% foreign ownership. A business I was responsible for found Chinese making and selling look alike products in China under our brand name without our agreement.
April 22, 2025
The huge numbers of Chinese students are here largely to steal research. They are welcomed by vice chancellors out of sheer opportunistic greed, in order to finance the teaching staff and facilities.
April 21, 2025
We are not geographically located anywhere near China or the US but right on our doorstep there’s Europe and the EU. Presumably if the EU was to somehow fall apart and was then reformed remodelled with UK at its head then that would be OK, meaning it would be OK if we were the boss? Is that what this is all about?
April 22, 2025
We have a weak Prime Minister who seeks personal validation and approval. He is too jejune and uneducated in history (and geography) to know that we do not have or seek friends, we have interests. He would happily give the entire country and its people away just to buy sympathy and ensure he is eaten last.
April 22, 2025
The explanation is simple. Starmer’s Gang is on the side of UK’s enemies, including the EU and political Islam – Labour does not ‘do God’, so it cannot see this for the threat that it is. My enemy’s enemy is my friend. Starmer’s Gang is motivated by hate. It hates everything about Britain: its history, its foundations in Christianity and Judaism, its democratic sovereignty that is an immutable obstacle to transnational progressive technocracy, its freedom of expression that enables views abhorent to Socialism to be propagated. Every one of Starmer’s gang is a hardened socialist. Reeves’s heroine is Red Ellen Wilkinson, a founder of the Communist party of Britain. It has declared war on small private farmers – the kulaks – private schools and more generally on individual enterprise and private property – especially that owned by retirees, who compund their ‘sins’ by tending to vote Conservative.
April 25, 2025
Couldn’t agree more.