Never mind “£eft” versus “Right,” for I don’t sit permanently in either, although I would never vote Conservative. There seems to be, in our mainstream media, a definite bias towards staying in the E.U. What I find distressing is that, more than 3 and a half years since we voted to leave it, precious little factual information about what the E.U. is, how it works, what it does and what it is supposed to do has been circulating, in order to fuel proper debate so, I ask myself, why is it that so many people are determined to tear up the democratic contract that we have with each other? Where is the debate? Where is the persuasion? This is lacking on both sides but most noticeably from those who want us to remain. I hear and read lots of horror stories but with no facts to support them, only conjecture, supposition, hypothesis and guesswork, under the guise of evidence, accompanied by extreme and hyperbolic language. There is no reasoned or rational debate.
Again, as was the case during the Referendum Campaign, rather than telling us why we should stay, or what is of actual benefit of remaining in the E.U. and providing evidence, we are being frightened, in order to prevent us from leaving. That is neither reasoned, nor rational, unless, or of course, one is merely scared of the unknown and afraid of change, which his understandable but not what I would call rational and certainly not an excuse to rear up our contract of democratic citizenship.
Why does our Party wish to hand over control of workers Rights to a foreign power, ad infinitum? Surely, the Rights and protections, which have, yes, been hard won, are for US to defend, safeguard and preserve? If we outsource them to the E.U., we lose control of them and our Trades Unions become impotent, thus obsolete. My Union has already lost a great deal of power and it is not affiliated to any Party; some of that is as a result of Margaret Thatcher’s anti-Trades Union legislation but some is as as a result of E.U. legislation. E.U. £aw supersedes U.K. £aw and I was informed, last week, that new rules will apply, which will reduce the turnaround time – the break between shifts (a.k.a lunch/ dinner break) – from 1 hour to 20 minutes, as per the European Working Time Directive. A Conservative Government might wish to take a wrecking ball to workers’ Rights but will not be in power forever and as per our Constitution, a £abour Government would not be bound by its laws and could undo that which the Conservatives did. If our Rights are handed to the E.U., we could not.
There is more to life than the E.U. More people in the world than in the E.U. More opportunities than within the E.U. More of everything than within the E.U. so, why saddle ourselves to it, with no ability to change course and chart our own destiny, if we so choose, particularly if it is to our benefit, or that the rules that apply to others are to our detriment? This, I don’t understand.
I have yet to hear a convincing case as to why we should remain in the E.U., or subject to its laws. What can we do better in the E.U. that we can’t do as an independent nation? As I have said, on many occasions, there has been international and intergovernmental cooperation ever since there have been nations and governments, why should that change, if we are no longer in the E.U.? Why do we NEED to be in the E.U.? I fail to see how being aligned to the E.U. Single Market, or Customs Union, ad infinitum, will benefit us in the long term. All that I see are knee-jerk reactions to what might happen in the short term but as I see with the climate change hysteria, no long term plan. At least, if we leave those institutions, we have a choice and can change course, if necessary, have flexibility. If we are tied to them, forever, we have no choice. It would be like going down with the Titanic, instead of being on one of the lifeboats, should the worst happen.
There are other websites that do give a different perspective. You don’t have to agree with what they say, or support their politics etc. but it is useful to get a different viewpoint, hear from a broad spectrum of commentators, from various sections of society; from union people, lawyers, politicians, scientists, economists from across the E.U. and political spectrum and see that this isn’t one-sided, that there are legitimate and worthwhile reasons to want to leave the E.U. but I don’t see this in the mainstream media.
I feel that the arguments have become about the person rather than the subject; plying the Man, not the ball. Rather than focusing on the Prime Minister, whom I am sure has few, if any, friends here, we should be examining the arguments and the subject of the question, which I have long since encouraged: the E.U. It might, at the very least, stop us from attacking each other, because we might have a greater understanding of each other’s points of view and the validity if each other’s opinions, instead of insisting that those who disagree with us are wrong. I wonders, sometimes, if that is a deliberate ploy.