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Good grief! The President of the European Parliament said something I agree with! “If Brits want to leave, let them leave!”
…says Martin Schulz.
And I agree! How very nice of him to want to ‘let’ the Brits leave. He goes on to say how the UK “tests the patience” of EU politicians, presumably by being a net contributor to the EU’s funds.
Keep talking, Herr Schulz. Please, just keep talking. It is almost as if Farage himself had written this plonker’s remarks to push ever more people into voting OUT.
I believe the cry at Senlac Hill was “UT! UT! UT!”, even if on that occasion it was my Norman ancestors who had the best of the day.
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Watch out though, it could be a cunning attempt at reverse psychology: you can’t trust these continentals
Talking of politicians and reverse psychology, I wonder if Dave is trying to scupper the remain camp by providing a ludicrously small deal on threat of exit.
As I see things if Dave’s deal is the best the EU can offer when we’re threatening to leave, they are signalling that they will screw us if we remain.
Perhaps he wants to leave, but finds it impolitic to say so.
Otherwise of course he could really be dim.
It may be part conscious negotiating ploy (ze stupid Englanders sink ve must offer zem a gut deal because zey pay in much more san zey get back; ve must teach zem zey have no negotiating power at all) and part whistling in the dark (I vill not let ze loss of ze British contribution to ze budget alarm me).
FWIW, according to the article that remark isn’t actually Herr Schultz’s opinion; it is merely his report of what some of his colleagues are saying. He claims to be very much opposed to Brexit.
I did enjoy this line: “The European Parliament will support all proposals which fairly address real problems which may emerge from free movement – as long as they do not cause discrimination and undermine European values.” No, sir, we certainly can’t countenance any sort of “discrimination”, even as our society is being overrun by an alien culture, can we? And precisely what are those “values” he’s so keen to protect? The ones we’ve seen on display in Germany recently, protecting sexual molesters as long as they’re Muslims? I wonder if he’s related to Sergeant Schultz?
@Laird – the West COULD deal with the gimmegrants (no – not a typo) and their “quaint” ethnic customs but they are not the primary problem. This video is meant to be parody but summarises the problem neatly:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecJUqhm2g08
I sincerely hope that the UK votes leave and then starts to dismantle the damage done by the Human Rights Acts, the frankly malicious and perverse decisions made by the various bodies (the Court of Human Rights to name one) and start to restore what Britain once was. However, there are too many deluded people (like the woman in th video) that will fight it tooth and nail and there is no political will.
…for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health… nope.
Actually, the correct term is rapugees.
I find it interesting that in 2016 the British are more Gaullist than the French. Probably the most Gaullist of all the European nations.
I do not want to be part of any organisation where Martin Schultz is an important figure.
He is a repulsive man – an utter socialist.
Belgium got too big for it’s britches, if ya ask me. Unaccountable and arrogant, they invite destruction.
mojo – like I said: time to get some benefit for the billions we pay for Trident.
If Cameron listen to the voters we’d be out now. Over 50% at the last election voted to leave. That should have been enough right then!
Why would Cameron NOT want to leave? What does he get out of Britain staying in Europe? Is it just that he realises that Europe is Britain’s main market, so you’ll still need to deal with it somehow? Or is there some actual benefit, like Europe imposing measures that he wants, but which are unpopular with the electors, and he can blame someone else for them?
Why would Cameron NOT want to leave?
Because in spite of Eton, Brasenose, and Bullingdon, Cameron is a lefty luvvie, pro-green, pro-gay, not a real Tory at all. Even though something like 56% of English voters clearly voted to leave at the last election, Cameron cow-tows to Merkel rather than stands up for England!
That’s been my theory for years. It is political symbiosis. Britain is one of the few net contributors to the EU budget, it is clear why they want us there. What has always been puzzling is why successive British governments of both stripes are so committed to EU membership even when they have been strongly opposed to EU membership before they became the government. But, as you say, there is a substantial political advantage in being able to maintain plausible opposition to measures that will definitely be imposed and cannot be directly challenged (the European “Parliament” being nothing like a real parliament). This then allows such governments to hold the hallowed middle ground.
When you combine this with the fact that most people are utterly disinterested in politics and only get worked up when something happens that directly affects them it is easy to see why the issues that dominate the headlines do so. Benefits, spare bedroom “tax”, the NHS.
I know an anti-EU green. She stood for election once and only once (local) but she did so when the food supplements directive came in banning various dietary supplements. I think she was rather surprised to find people who agreed with her in UKIP (as I was a member at that time). Quite what she expected to be able to achieve as a local councillor when the issues she was concerned with were purely national (or now sadly supranational) I have no idea.
Gay marriage brought many people into political activism, certainly I know quite a few who became politically active in opposition to gay marriage but I imagine there were many who became politically active in support of it too. Personally I am in favour of gay marriage, provided churches are not forced to conduct such marriages. I’m a disestablishmentarian and so in my view church marriage is, or should be, no more official than a hand-fasting on a wet, windy hilltop in Wales (on a Wednesday, naturally). Disestablish the church and let any and all churches conduct marriages in whatever forms they see fit. AngryTory’s going to love this part of my comment, I’m sure!
The problem is with most people having only one or two issues that concern them, and being utterly disinterested the rest of the time, it makes them very vulnerable to the kind of political symbiosis enjoyed by HM Government and the EU cabal. So-called progressives come to see the EU as a vital guard against the evil Tories (or back in the day the evil Red Tories of New Labour). Conservative loyalists are reassured that the Conservative party is implacably opposed to whatever issue the prospective voter is hot and bothered about and would take action if it wasn’t for that dreadful EU. Each individual Tory MP assures us they would naturally support withdrawing from the blasted thing if it weren’t for all the horrible side effects that would result. And so the building pressure of a deeply unhappy electorate gets safely vented through a thousand safety valves.
The Scottish referendum is going to look like a dry-run for the nastiness that will be directed against the “leave” campaigns in the forthcoming EU membership referendum. If anyone really believes we have any chance of winning that referendum they should visit their GP for a psychological evaluation.
Again: something like 56-60% of the English electorate voted to leave at the last general election. Over 80% of Scotland voted to stay in the EU, and 55% of Wales (if anyone cares).
Perhaps Samcam doesn’t want to “break up the union” with the idea that when England votes to leave the EU (and unless the polls are skewed and votes rigged, we will go!) Scotland will say “no” and try to leave the union. Well a real Tory simply wouldn’t tolerate that from the Scots. What are they going to do? Take over Faslane and threaten London? The Scots had their chance (a chance the shouldn’t have been given) and that’s over and done.
Getting out of the EU, and then getting rid of the pernicious EU and Labour socialism we’ve put up with since 1945 is the only hope left for England.
The media coverage will become hysterical in the run up to the referendum. We’ll have every major business leader trotted out to say that leaving will be a disaster and it will be nice responsible conservatives that reluctantly vote to stay. I really doubt this referendum will have any kind of good outcome for eurosceptics. The issue will be considered settled for another 50 years.
I don’t know, perhaps the sight of Europe jumping off a cliff while simultaneously slitting it’s own throat will have a salutary effect on the British voters.
perhaps the sight of Europe jumping off a cliff while simultaneously slitting it’s own throat will have a salutary effect on the British voters.
I don’t care about the Scots & Welsh commies – but the English voters have already made up their minds: OUT! OUT! OUT
As I write, I am wondering if Mr Cameron will fail to get a deal (I know, the EU has more fudge than a pretty Cornish village), and then refuse to hold a referendum on the basis that as there is no deal to put to a referendum, there is no point in having one.
We are now told that former US citizen, current Mayor of London and MP Mr Boris Johnson will campaign for the UK to leave the EU.
I wonder if this rare display of courage in a politican is a calculation in that he is hoping that a victory for the ‘Leave’ side would lead to Mr Cameron resigning as PM, and a vacancy being created for him?
Michael Gove gave an eloquent statement the other day about why he supports Brexit. A sample:
This is getting interesting.
Well now some French politician appears to be threatening to, in effect, ‘weaponise’ the migrants should the UK leave the EU, by stopping border checks at Calais and allowing the migrants to go to the UK. Quite why they are not safe in France is a mystery.
Oddly just after a US General has said that Putin and Assad are using migrants to destabilise Europe (a dusted-off old KGB in all likelihood).
So, the response is easy, shut the Channel Tunnel with the traditional method of dealing with problems in the Pas de Calais area, such as Mimoyecques, even if it has to be done within UK airspace and at the UK end, and stop all ferries from France, and let Belgium be the entrance point from the continent. Cheaper fags too in Belgium than France last time I checked.