INSIGHTS ON IVOR Part 34
Part Thirty-Four
In 1957 politicians from France/West Germany/Italy/Belgium/Holland and Luxembourg met in Rome and signed The Treaty of Rome. This Treaty encompassed what was also called The Common Market/The European Economic Community (EEC) and was the forerunner of what eventually became the European Union (EU).
This historic Document was followed by five more in later years each one containing many adaptations and new ideas all with one basic aim behind them. That was to bring all the European countries together working for the common good as a Union of Nations or The United States of Europe as many called them.
This common market of trading partners was designed to make it easier and cheaper by eliminating much of the current time wasted dealing with all the red tape involved in exporting and importing to each other. Naturally many of us thought that sounds a sensible idea so our Government of the time signed Britain up and we joined the club.
With the passing of the years and more treaties written into the constitution we ended up with a European Parliament hell-bent on creating a United States of Europe,
this meant that all member countries would cease to make their own rules of self-government and therefore would be subservient to new rules inflicted on them by a European Parliament, made up of unelected politicians from any of the eligible European member countries. This concept of thinking that one cap fits all was considered by many people as completely misguided and unrealistic.
I remember wondering how on earth can unelected foreign politicians sitting in some European Parliament make decisions which might have a disastrous effect on a small village or community in Britain. Equally, why should we in Britain impose our views on other countries as to how they run their own affairs?
Jumping ahead here I must tell you that this mad state of affairs sadly has gone on for many years afterwards until the whole European Union fiasco climaxed in 2016 when the then UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced there would be a referendum on June 23rd that year when the British people would have a free vote as to whether the UK remained a member of the European Union or left it. We were promised that whatever the result of this historic vote the decision of the people would be carried out. After a bitter struggle throughout the country, the final result was that 51.9% of the people voted to leave and 48.1% to remain. This decision surprised many people and thousands found it hard, or even impossible in many cases, to accept it. The people who voted for Britain to remain within the EU claimed the opposition didn’t understand what they were doing and demanded a second referendum whereas the Leavers retaliated by saying the Remainders should accept the decision of the majority of the people in what was after all a Democratic Vote. A new word, BREXIT, entered the vocabulary. This was an acronym for all those voting for Britain to exit the EU. By this time David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister and Theresa May took over the role. It’s interesting to note that Theresa May herself voted to Remain but, all credit to her, in a speech she made after the Referendum result, she famously assured the country that as far as she was concerned Brexit means Brexit. From that moment in time rightly or wrongly she has worked tirelessly towards achieving that goal. It has been an almighty struggle with arguments and disagreements from not only the European politicians in Brussels and the Labour party in Britain but also amongst her own Conservative party members in Parliament. As I write this it is July 2018 the bare fact is that Britain is scheduled to leave the EU in March 2019. Trying to find a deal acceptable to the 27 members of the EU and Britain for an orderly departure can only be achieved with major compromises on both sides which is still proving very difficult to obtain.
--End of Part Thirty-Four--
In 1957 politicians from France/West Germany/Italy/Belgium/Holland and Luxembourg met in Rome and signed The Treaty of Rome. This Treaty encompassed what was also called The Common Market/The European Economic Community (EEC) and was the forerunner of what eventually became the European Union (EU).
This historic Document was followed by five more in later years each one containing many adaptations and new ideas all with one basic aim behind them. That was to bring all the European countries together working for the common good as a Union of Nations or The United States of Europe as many called them.
This common market of trading partners was designed to make it easier and cheaper by eliminating much of the current time wasted dealing with all the red tape involved in exporting and importing to each other. Naturally many of us thought that sounds a sensible idea so our Government of the time signed Britain up and we joined the club.
With the passing of the years and more treaties written into the constitution we ended up with a European Parliament hell-bent on creating a United States of Europe,
this meant that all member countries would cease to make their own rules of self-government and therefore would be subservient to new rules inflicted on them by a European Parliament, made up of unelected politicians from any of the eligible European member countries. This concept of thinking that one cap fits all was considered by many people as completely misguided and unrealistic.
I remember wondering how on earth can unelected foreign politicians sitting in some European Parliament make decisions which might have a disastrous effect on a small village or community in Britain. Equally, why should we in Britain impose our views on other countries as to how they run their own affairs?
Jumping ahead here I must tell you that this mad state of affairs sadly has gone on for many years afterwards until the whole European Union fiasco climaxed in 2016 when the then UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced there would be a referendum on June 23rd that year when the British people would have a free vote as to whether the UK remained a member of the European Union or left it. We were promised that whatever the result of this historic vote the decision of the people would be carried out. After a bitter struggle throughout the country, the final result was that 51.9% of the people voted to leave and 48.1% to remain. This decision surprised many people and thousands found it hard, or even impossible in many cases, to accept it. The people who voted for Britain to remain within the EU claimed the opposition didn’t understand what they were doing and demanded a second referendum whereas the Leavers retaliated by saying the Remainders should accept the decision of the majority of the people in what was after all a Democratic Vote. A new word, BREXIT, entered the vocabulary. This was an acronym for all those voting for Britain to exit the EU. By this time David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister and Theresa May took over the role. It’s interesting to note that Theresa May herself voted to Remain but, all credit to her, in a speech she made after the Referendum result, she famously assured the country that as far as she was concerned Brexit means Brexit. From that moment in time rightly or wrongly she has worked tirelessly towards achieving that goal. It has been an almighty struggle with arguments and disagreements from not only the European politicians in Brussels and the Labour party in Britain but also amongst her own Conservative party members in Parliament. As I write this it is July 2018 the bare fact is that Britain is scheduled to leave the EU in March 2019. Trying to find a deal acceptable to the 27 members of the EU and Britain for an orderly departure can only be achieved with major compromises on both sides which is still proving very difficult to obtain.
--End of Part Thirty-Four--
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