Quick Brexit facts read by Ministers, ex-Ministers, MPs, MEPs, Councillors, legal and financial experts, local campaigners, and the general public - From reliable, official sources
SOUND-BITE FACTS - BREXIT NEWS NOVEMBER 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
IMPORTANT FACTS FOR BREXIT
The patronising EU Council President Donald Tusk
PRESIDENT TUSK’s SARCASTIC REPLY TO MPs
Tusk replies to a letter from 80 British MPs in condescending tones, telling them “the only source of anxiety and uncertainty is the decision on Brexit”
On Monday a cross-party group of MPs wrote to EU Council President Donald Tusk, asking him to settle the question of the rights of existing immigrants from EU countries, by agreeing that the rights of British people living in EU countries will be maintained post-Brexit.
In an extraordinary reply yesterday, President Tusk rejects the request and accuses the British people of being the cause of the anxiety felt by over 4 million Europeans. There are over 3 million EU citizens living in the UK and over 1 million British citizens living in other EU countries.
Lowlights of President Tusk's letter :
On the MPs’ argument: “the only problem being that it has nothing to do with reality”
“the only source of anxiety and uncertainty is the decision on Brexit”
Says sarcastically that MPs’ concern “bodes well” because “we assumed the main reason for Brexit was rejection of free movement”
Citizens will become “bargaining chips” until there are “precise and comprehensive solutions”, ie until the full negotiations start.
Please read President Tusk’s reply to MPs for yourself. It gives ample demonstration of the nonsense that British negotiators will be up against.
We believe it shows that a ‘take it or leave it’ stance – albeit phrased in diplomatic terms – is the sensible approach. Anything less and the EU will prolong negotiations interminably.
Our editorial policy hasn’t changed since June. We called for the UK to declare unilaterally that the rights of all existing EU citizens living in the UK at that time would be guaranteed. The EU might want to behave petulantly, but that’s no reason for the UK not to adopt the high moral ground on this important issue.
At the weekend Professor Minford kindly gave us an exclusive and far-ranging interview on the subject of Brexit.
Prof Minford is founder of 'Economists for Brexit' and has researched and written widely on the EU for over 30 years. He is Professor of Applied Economics, Cardiff Business School, having previously been a Member of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and one of the HM Treasury’s Panel of Forecasters (‘Wise Men/Persons’) in the 1990s.
Scroll down if you missed Part One.
Don't miss Part Two, coming shortly!
06.15am, 30 Nov 2016
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
British Advocate General says EU court may take 8 months to decide on Article 50, under ‘accelerated process’
In a bizarre interpretation of international law, the British Advocate General working at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) told Sky News that:
“If you join the club and you wish to leave the club, you leave in accordance with the rules when you join the club … the rules of this club are the ones contained in Article 50, and the interpretation of those rules is a matter for this Court (the ECJ).”
Ms Sharpston added that the ECJ has "ultimate authority" over Article 50.
We may not be lawyers, but in general terms surely disputes are never ultimately decided in law by one of the parties to the dispute?
The Article 50 appeal case starts in the Supreme Court on Monday. If the Supreme Court decides to refer the matter to the ECJ, Advocate General Eleanor Sharpston said that under an ‘accelerated process’ it could take eight months for the EU court to decide the case.
The Court consists of 28 Judges – one from each country – and 11 Advocates General, of whom Ms Sharpston is one. The Advocates General assist the Court and are responsible for presenting, ‘with complete impartiality and independence’, a formal opinion in the cases assigned to them.
Ms Sharpston spent her childhood in Brazil and then her adolescence and half her life as a practising lawyer in continental Europe.
We’ll leave you to decide which way you think she voted in the Referendum.
The pro-Brexit legal group, 'Lawyers for Britain', has won the right to join the fight in the Supreme Court next week
They have now been granted permission by the Supreme Court to intervene in the Government’s appeal against the High Court’s Article 50 decision as an organisation seeking to make submissions in the public interest.
In their announcement they say :
"In intervening in the appeal, we believe that we are seeking to represent the wider interests of all who participated in the Leave campaign and of the 17.4 million people of this country who voted to leave the European Union.
"The referendum was authorised by Parliament to give effect to a clear and unequivocal pledge in the General Election manifesto of the winning party that the people would decide (not merely advise on) the question of our membership of the EU. We believe that the outcome gives rise to a clear and unambiguous constitutional mandate to implement the people's decision to leave which must be respected by government and Parliament, and reject the suggestion that the referendum was merely 'advisory'."
The summary of their arguments is as follows:-
"First, even if the European Communities Act 1972 did by implication impose a restriction on the prerogative power of the Crown to withdraw the UK from the Communities (if withdrawal was permissible under international law, which was at the time doubtful, see Costa v ENEL (Case 6/64) [1964] ECR 585, 594), the effect of the European Union (Amendment) Act 2008 (“the 2008 Act”) was to negative any such restriction on the exercise of the wholly new explicit power of withdrawal from the EU under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. The 2008 Act:
(1) inserted the Lisbon Treaty, and accordingly Article 50, into the “Community [renamed EU] treaties” to which the ECA 1972 gave effect; and
(2) in section 6, imposed explicit Parliamentary control over the exercise of the prerogative to invoke several powers introduced by the Lisbon Treaty, including Article 48(6) TEU on simplified treaty revision, but not over Article 50 on withdrawal.
Parliament must have been aware of the important new power in Article 50 and decided by contrast that its exercise should not be subject to Parliamentary control. The European Union Act 2011 further elaborated the system of Parliamentary control over prerogative acts and thereby further confirmed Parliament’s intention not to fetter the prerogative in the exercise of Article 50.
Secondly, and in any event, the effect of the European Union Referendum Act 2015, read against the background of the ECA 1972 and the 2008 and 2011 Acts, was to negative any such restriction which might otherwise have arisen, if the result of the referendum was a majority to leave the European Union. As Lord Dyson MR recently held “the referendum (if it supports a withdrawal) is an integral part of the process of deciding to withdraw from the EU” in accordance with the UK’s constitutional requirements as referred to in Article 50: Shindler v Duchy of Lancaster [2016] EWCA Civ 469 at [19]."
Lawyers for Britain have our wholehearted support. We thank Martin Howe QC and his colleagues for their kind permission to quote from their work.
The technical glitch which kept us from reporting yesterday has now been solved.
Pleased to report we're now viewable again on your smartphone, as well as your laptop, tablet or desktop. The news will start again shortly.
Facts4EU.Org, 03.40am, 30 Nov
FACTS4EU.ORG
IMPORTANT FACTS FOR BREXIT
This is the news.... Except when it's not
WHO IS IN THE EEA?
The Sky News political editor doesn’t appear to know
The political editor of Sky News, Faisal Islam, just defined the European Economic Area as being Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway and Iceland.
Not even close, Faisal. The EEA consists of the 28 EU countries (which include Luxembourg) plus non-EU Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland. That’s 31 countries in total.
Sky’s political editor seems to think the EEA is only composed of non-EU countries. Strangely, he also appears to think that Luxembourg (the country of EU Commission President Juncker) is one of these.
Meanwhile, the BBC isn’t any better. A senior BBC political correspondent just told viewers that the UK can’t start any trade talks until it leaves the EU. Not true of course.
One might have hoped that Sky News and BBC News would have known more about all of this.
FIRST WITH REBUTTALS AND IMPORTANT FACTS FOR BREXIT
The High Court
‘UNBELIEVABLY, A NEW LEGAL CHALLENGE TO BREXIT
‘British Influence’, (Remainers), are now seeking a judicial review to force the UK to stay in the European Economic Area (EEA) after leaving the EU.
The Director of ‘British Influence’ told Sky News that he’s trying to be ‘helpful’ and to ‘speed up Brexit’. He said that the people voted to leave the EU, not the Single Market, despite all evidence to the contrary. He argues we must stay in the EEA and the Single Market.
He claimed EEA membership gives us:
Control of our own borders Our laws not being governed by the European Court of Justice
This is all nonsense. Here’s what the EEA themselves say about this :-
“The EEA Agreement provides for the inclusion of EU legislation in all policy areas of the Single Market. This covers the four freedoms, i.e. the free movement of goods, services, persons and capital”
“the common rules of the EEA Agreement are updated continuously with new EU legislation”
In other words, it is not correct to say that continued EEA membership gives us what we voted for. Freedom of movement remains and we would still be subject to EU laws.
Leave means Leave. These legal challenges need to be called out for what they are: deliberate attempts to subvert democracy. This is yet another legal attempt to frustrate the democratic will of the British people.
EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker - no friend of democracy
‘NO SINGLE MARKET WITHOUT FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT’
Extraordinary TV interview with EU Commission President on Saturday
ON BREXIT :
“There is a ‘red line’ as the British say. If the UK, with its export industry and financial services wants to fully benefit from the advantages of the single market, if they want direct access to the internal market, our British friends must respect the founding and driving principles of the internal market.”
“It is unimaginable that there could be access to the benefits of the single market, if, for example, the principle of the free movement of workers is not respected. That won’t work.”
ON DEMOCRACY : ‘NOT WISE’
“Regarding referenda on EU membership, I think it is not wise to organise this kind of debate.” “The British have had their say by universal suffrage. I hope others do not do the same.”
ON THE EU : ‘EU IN LAST CHANCE SALOON’
“The European Union is entering a ‘last chance’ phase because the gulf between Europe’s citizens and the public and political action of the EU is growing ever wider.” Q: “What is the European Union’s biggest weakness?” A: “The lack of love, we do not know a great deal about each other.”
ON THE FRENCH ELECTIONS :
“Madame Le Pen will not be the future president of the French Republic.”
You’ve been told. Single market access is not available to the UK without freedom of movement. (It doesn’t matter that a great many non-EU countries already have this.) Allowing European people to have their say is ‘not a good idea’. Le Pen has no chance. And we should all love each other.
Why are you a leaver? Why are most 'experts' Remainers?
Prof Minford is founder of 'Economists for Brexit' and has researched and written widely on the EU for over 30 years. He is Professor of Applied Economics, Cardiff Business School, having previously been a Member of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and one of the HM Treasury’s Panel of Forecasters (‘Wise Men/Persons’) in the 1990s.
At the weekend Professor Minford kindly gave us a lengthy and exclusive interview on a wide range of subject matter connected with Brexit. This is Part One.
1. 'THE CIVIL SERVICE DOESN'T LIKE LEAVE'
Q: You’re Oxford-educated, you’ve worked as an advisor for the Treasury, and you’re now a university professor... Shouldn’t you be a Remainer? What went wrong?
A: “My opposition to the EU dates from the late 1980s when [then EU Commission President] Delors changed direction towards a single market, towards a uniform regulatory regime, towards setting up the Euro, and towards a superstate. I’ve studied all aspects of it since then...
... and I just said ‘Wrong, wrong, wrong.' 'This is completely the wrong direction for Europe to take.’”
Q: Why do the professions and the Civil Service tend to favour Remain?
A: “I think the economics profession attracts people who have the desire to change society in some way and have idealistic views about that. The EU is identified with becoming more and more interventionist in everyday life, pursuing socialist intervention in the labour market, climate change of course, anti-free market finance, quite pro-corporatism. The regulations coming out of Brussels always favoured large corporations and were essentially corporatist in nature. There was a general bias in the profession towards these policies and so they felt Europe was on their side and they tended to support everything Europe did.
"As for the Civil Service, it dislikes change almost by professional instinct...
... and so it has thoroughly disliked this idea of leaving the EU”
They really can’t get their minds around – or don’t want to get their minds around – what life would look like without it. They certainly haven’t been able to get their minds around the idea of free trade with the rest of the world and getting rid of EU protectionism. That’s the stumbling block."
Q: Will we truly leave the EU in your opinion?
A: “Yes I think we will. There’s no way in which they can deny the democratic outcome. If they were to try, there would be complete uproar in the country.
"There has been this tectonic shift in public opinion. The penny dropped with an awful lot of voters that by leaving they would get control of the impoverishing effect of this unskilled immigration. That really is very serious for a lot of these communities. The cost that I talked about – the £3,500 per year per adult immigrant [1] – falls on our poorest communities. That was a big issue economically.
[1] The Professor's comments about the cost of EU immigration are in another part of this interview.
"The other big issue is the cost of living and I think the penny dropped there too. The EU pushes up the cost of living. The exchange rate has fallen of course which has an inflationary effect but it will slowly drift back up. I would say over the next 2-3 years the exchange rate will go back up and when we come out you’d be left then with just the pure benefit of not having the EU's effect on prices.
"People are also clear about the sovereignty issue, the control of our lives, and laws.
"What you’ll get will be shows of resistance, there’ll be a lot of parliamentary committees asking questions which is all very healthy, and there’ll be lots of debate. But the government will get its way to do the negotiation."
DON'T MISS THE CONTINUATION OF THIS INTERVIEW, COMING THROUGHOUT THIS WEEK
You don't want to miss his views on Brexit, the opportunities ahead of the UK, how trade should be organised, how the EU has become a 'ruinous project', the manner in which we should leave the EU, the cost of EU immigration, and other topics.
[Source: Facts4EU.Org Interview With Professor Patrick Minford ] 28 Nov 2016
Francois Fillon, favourite to be next French President
Marine Le Pen - very unwise to dismiss her chances
MONSIEUR OU MADAME LE PRÉSIDENT ?
France’s choice in next year’s presidential elections now looks clear
Yesterday in France, the final primary for the presidential candidate of the French Les Republicains party took place. Former French PM Francois Fillon saw off his rival by a majority of 2:1 and now becomes the favourite to win the presidency.
Thatcherite, proposes €100 billion spending cuts, 500,000 public job cuts
Wants to take on unions, abolish 35-hour working week
But very pro-EU, wants a Eurozone government, and EU defence forces
Generally tough on Islam, wants to control it and the operation of mosques
Very pro-Russian, anti-sanctions over invasions of Crimea & E. Ukraine
Wanted the EU to form alliance with Russia, Assad and Iran against ISIL
For many years French politicians have promised to tackle the unions, onerous labour laws, and the appalling bureaucracy. The people always claimed to be in favour, but in reality never supported anything so nothing much has happened.
All polls predict that the final round of the elections next year will now be between Fillon, and Marine Le Pen of the Front National, with Fillon winning.
Does this kind of complacency by the establishment sound familiar ? In a world that has seen the underdog Leave side win the UK’s Referendum on EU membership, and underdog Donald Trump win the US presidency, it would be very unwise to write off Mme Le Pen.
It’s possible that when the French get better acquainted with some of Fillon’s ideas, particularly on the economy, an early bet on Mme Le Pen winning might seem like a wise move.
[Sources: Le Soir, Le Monde, Le Figaro, Le Parisien ] 28 Nov 2016
Our pieces get picked up by MPs asking questions in Parliament, by mainstream journalists, and by thinktankers.
Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH A BIG BREXIT BRAIN
Professor Patrick Minford CBE
"THE EU HAS GONE EX-GROWTH"
"We just have to accept that the EU is a ruinous project. The Euro itself is a ruinous project. The centralisation that’s going on in the EU in order to save the Euro will also be a ruinous project."
Yesterday we interviewed Professor Patrick Minford at length. Prof Minford is founder of 'Economists for Brexit' and has researched and written widely on the EU for over 30 years.
He opposed Nigel Lawson’s policy of shadowing the Deutschmark
He opposed joining the disastrous Exchange Rate Mechanism
He opposed adopting the Euro
He opposed the Social Chapter
The vast majority of his profession disagreed with him on all these things
Yet he's been proved right on all counts
COMING TOMORROW
We will be publishing the interview with Professor Minford in a series of articles, starting tomorrow morning.
He tells it like it is and is fascinating to listen to. You don't want to miss his views on Brexit, the opportunities ahead of the UK, how trade should be organised, how the EU has become a 'ruinous project', the manner in which we should leave the EU, the cost of EU immigration, and other topics.
[Source: Facts4EU.Org Interview With Professor Patrick Minford ] 27 Nov 2016
Two former prime ministers seem to have forgotten what democracy means
John Major
Tony Blair
THE TYRANNY OF THE MINORITY...
And the majority are starting to get angry
This week, two former Prime Ministers, John Major and Tony Blair, talked of a second referendum. John Major even referred to ‘the tyranny of the majority’.
The above shows the number of votes for the winning side in the elections of the last 30 years
3.3 million more voters voted for Brexit, than for any government in the last 30 years. It was the single biggest mandate in the UK, ever, for anything.
“It can be stopped if the British people decide that, having seen what it means, the pain-gain cost-benefit analysis doesn’t stack up,” Tony Blair told the New Statesman.
“The tyranny of the majority has never applied in a democracy and it should not apply in this particular democracy,” John Major told the Times yesterday.
Above, we show them both what a majority really looks like.
Today we are interviewing Professor Patrick Minford of 'Economists for Brexit' and the Cardiff Business School.
We propose to include a 'Reader's Question' - send your suggestion here. Tomorrow you can read what this eminent and respected economist has to say about a post-Brexit Britain.
Lord Sassoon, Chairman of the China-Britain Business Council
EXCLUSIVE: BIG BREXIT OPPORTUNITIES IN CHINA
In another exclusive for Facts4EU.Org, the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) talked to us about the opportunities for British businesses post-Brexit.
In an exclusive interview with FactsEU.Org, James Sturla of the China-Britain Business Council said :-
“Despite any uncertainty that there is surrounding the future of the UK-China relationship in light of the EU Referendum, the fundamentals for the two countries to strengthen this relationship remain.
"Tremendous opportunities for UK companies exist across China in a very wide range of sectors. The UK remains a very welcoming destination for Chinese investment and there are ever-growing opportunities for partnerships between the UK and Chinese companies, not just in our respective domestic markets but around the World.
"This is especially true as China’s economy is transitioning to a more consumption-driven model, and is moving up the value chain more than ever. China needs the goods and services at which the UK excels and as such the China-Britain Business Council believes the opportunity should not be missed.”
The CBBC is the Dept of International Trade’s delivery partner in China, seeking to assist UK companies doing, or seeking to do, business with China.
CHINA FACT BOX
The People’s Republic of China is the largest country in the World, with 1.38 billion people. In terms of population it's 21 times larger than the UK and more than 3 times larger than the EU.
It is the world's second-largest economy according to the IMF and the World Bank. China is also the world's largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods.
In its 59 years of existence, the EU has failed to do a free trade deal with China. The UK now has the chance to do this, ready for implementation when we leave the EU.
Survey by China-Britain Business Council shows 95% post-Brexit confidence
88% of UK firms: Chinese trade deal is either ‘very important’ or ‘important’
73% believe it is possible to achieve a deal in less than 5 years
95% stated that reduced tariffs would be positive for their industries
56% said Brexit would create ‘many more’ or ‘more’ business opportunities with China
The overall message from this November survey of British companies trading with, or planning to trade with, China is positive.
“In summary, current sentiment towards the opportunities for UK-China cooperation is overwhelmingly positive… There is a clear message from respondents that an efficiently negotiated Free Trade Agreement is important to making the most of the opportunities between our two countries.”
Former Tory Minister tells Remain’s experts to “cheer up”
The OBR and the IFS showed their Remainerist colours again in their pessimistic forecasts for the British economy over the last 36 hours.
The OBR forecast a £59 billion extra borrowing requirement ‘due to Brexit’
Yet their pre-Referendum forecasts have been proved to be completely wrong
The IFS forecast the biggest squeeze on living standards since the 1920s
Yet their pre-Referendum forecasts were completely wrong
Before the Referendum we produced numerous articles showing how these ‘expert’ organisations had been wrong over and over, how they are part-funded by EU money, and how they are peopled by very highly-paid pro-EU elites.
As former Single Market Minister John Redwood MP said of the OBR: “Their forecast is too low, their borrowing forecast is too high, and we will get good access to the single market once we are out of the EU.”
"They’ve got their Brexit gloom glasses on. They’re underestimating the speed of growth in future years. They should cheer up."
Professor Patrick Minford, distinguished economist at Economists for Brexit said: “These official forecasts have been horribly wrong this year, and there is no sign that they are learning their lesson and focussing on the data, rather than vague guesswork about emotions.”
GOOD NEWS - EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENT QUITS BEFORE BREXIT NEGOTIATIONS
President of EU Parliament Martin Schulz will be gone by January
EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENT QUITS
Anti-British German with dictatorial style will leave Brussels in January
Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament since Jan 2012, announced yesterday that he will not be around for the Brexit negotiations.
Former bookseller Schulz is also head of the Socialists in the EU Parliament
He will run for election to the German Parliament, the Bundestag
He will be regional lead candidate, so his election as German MP is certain
Good news : His clear anti-British bias during EU debates will be over
Bad news : He looks almost certain to run for Chancellor of Germany
Good news : He’s unlikely to defeat Merkel
Bad news : He’s likely to lead the SDP in a coalition government with her
"I will remain engaged in the European project. European integration is one of civilization’s most successful projects," he said in his statement.
Overall, it has to be good news that this man will not be around in Brussels for the Brexit negotiations.
In our opinion, having had to watch him preside over the EU Parliament for the last four years, whoever replaces him as President can only be an improvement.
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important and Unique Facts For You
May's Cabinet table if it represented the people
The sad reality
Captain Mainwaring wouldn't have given up.
And neither must we.
REMAINERISM STILL DOMINATES OUR LIVES
You and we worked so hard and hoped so much, and we won the Referendum against all the odds.
On 24th June, once the champagne was all drunk, here at pro-Brexit Facts4EU.Org we ran eight pieces that day, including items with well-researched information to steady the world markets.
Over the weekend we called for Article 50 to be invoked immediately, as we feared exactly the legal and political backlash which has happened. Unfortunately we were voices in the wilderness. Other campaign organisations decided to take a rest.
We didn't stop.
WE WON THE BATTLE, NOW WE MUST WIN THE WAR
We strongly believe we can win and leave the EU properly and completely. But we believe equally strongly that we won't achieve a true, clean exit from the EU unless we stand firm. Our Prime Minister was a Remainer. She appointed a Cabinet of 74% Remainers.
We don't have to take to the streets, man stalls, and deliver leaflets, but we do feel there's a need for people like us to provide immediate facts to combat the creeping Remainerist agenda we see in every part of the Establishment.
WILL YOU HELP US?
This site is read by mainstream journalists, MPs, MEPs, political advisors, and thinktankers. For the last year we've churned out detailed and well-researched pieces using official sources. No-one has ever questioned our credibility and our information has been used widely. Yes, we're pro-Brexit, but we deal in facts - especially those which are uncomfortable for the Remainers and Brexit-deniers.
In the last 7 days donations have totalled £20. We imagine few readers would work for that. We certainly can't afford to.
Are you part of a major organisation?
Would you like to team up? Do you need the best pro-Brexit research team out there, who punched out fantastic information day-after-day during the Referendum campaign, used from Scotland to Cornwall on stalls, in debates, slideshows, in Parliament, and door-to-door?
Are you a patriotic person who believes in a clean Brexit?
We hate to ask, but can you help with a contribution?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
EU Parliament gives green light to EU force, BEFORE the UK leaves
Huge costs from next year, big implications for UK armed forces
In 2014 on the BBC, arch EU-lover Nick Clegg said the idea of an EU Army was a "dangerous fantasy that is simply not true".
In March of this year we produced clear evidence that it was already happening.
Yesterday the EU Parliament agreed the implementation of the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy. When approved by the EU Council, this firmly establishes the EU army together with an EU-wide foreign and defence policy.
Ignoring the increasing disillusionment of the European people with ‘more Europe’, it’s clear that the EU elites are ploughing ahead with their vision of a United States of Europe.
We hope you enjoy the articles and interviews which follow, on this important topic.
“I’m quite clear that the intention of the European Union is to set up its own defence organisation which - I believe - they hope will eventually replace NATO.”
Distinguished Royal Marine officer who led 3 Commando Brigade and as British Land Commander led the amphibious assault to retake the Falkland Islands, now Visiting Professor at the Department of War Studies, King's College.
When it comes to defence of the Realm, who would you rather trust?
RT HON NICK CLEGG MP
“The idea of an EU Army is a dangerous fantasy that is simply not true.”
Former EU Commission bureaucrat, lobbyist, MEP and MP, who led his party to a crushing defeat in the 2015 General Election and was Party Spokesman who helped to lose the EU Referendum.
Yesterday evening General Thompson spoke exclusively to the Editor of Facts4EU.Org about the EU and its plans for the future defence of Europe. Here are some highlights :-
FACTS4EU.ORG EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH MAJOR GENERAL THOMPSON, CB, OBE
Commander, British amphibious assault forces, for the retaking of the Falkland Islands
Q: What are your views on the intentions of the EU and its ‘European Defence Union’?
A: “I’m quite clear that the intention of the European Union is to set up its own defence organisation which - I believe - they hope will eventually replace NATO.”
Q: Do you think the EU has the capability - financial and operational - to fulfil that role going forward?
A: “They do not have that operational capability and in order to replicate what NATO provides, they would have to fill a 75% gap in the finance, which at the moment is borne by the United States of America. This would mean that members of this new organisation would have to increase their defence budget by a very large magnitude in order to fill the gap that would be left if they withdrew from NATO and tried to set up something which replicated it.”
Q: How do you feel the issue of defence was dealt with during the Referendum campaign? Did the British public get a fair view of the implications for defence of a Remain or Leave vote?
A: “I think defence was not talked about to the extent it should have been in the run-up to the Referendum. I believe this was mainly because the Remain side wanted to close down discussion on defence. They knew they couldn’t ‘win it’ and therefore they turned their energies to what they believed would really frighten the public, which were matters like the economy and employment. That’s why defence was given a back seat in the run-up to the Referendum.”
Q: How do you think the officers and men you commanded would react if we stayed within the EU in some form and became part of the European Defence Union? How would they feel if the United Kingdom combined forces, materiel, procurement, and command with other nation states within an EU structure?
A: “I can’t speak for others, but my view is that I’d be extremely worried because the European Union is run in such a way that those who run it are not answerable to an electorate. Men and women who have put their lives on the line want to feel that the people who send them into places of danger are answerable to the public whom they serve and not to some faceless oligarchs who are not elected by the public.”
Major General Thompson is a man you listen to. He impresses with his calm and measured tones, and it’s immediately obvious why our servicemen and women put their lives in his hands for over 30 years.
We know who we’d rather believe in a choice between Mr Clegg and General Thompson.
[Source : Exclusive Facts4EU.Org interview with Maj Gen Julian Thompson, CB, OBE – 22 Nov 2016 ] 23 Nov 2016
WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
You can contact us with your views about our articles and we'll publish them here, or you can post your comments at the bottom of the page using Disqus.
We also consider longer articles for a special page we have for this purpose.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important and Unique Facts For You
Jean-Claude's army is on the way
UNIONISED EU ARMY, OUTSIDE NATO
EU Parliament agrees “the establishment of the European Defence Union is a matter of urgency”
Yesterday the EU Parliament agreed a motion calling for :-
“The European Defence Union to be launched as a matter of urgency”
The integration of significant parts of the armed forces of member states
Soldiers, sailors and airman to be unionised
Forces deployable “in cases where NATO is not willing to act”
“The EU should aspire to be truly able to defend itself and act autonomously”
“The set-up of an EU Operational Headquarters”
Major European Defence Research Programme, budget of €1/2 billion per year
Preparatory budget of €90 million in 2017, plus a military start-up fund
35% of total defence spending in collaborative procurement
Member states to commit to spend 2% of GDP on defence
We read through the 10,000 word document and the direction of travel is very clear, despite claims by the EU’s ‘Rapporteur’, Estonian Urmas Paet, that it did not recommend an 'EU Army' and insisted it was not a 'parallel structure' to NATO. Nonsense.
The motion calls for the EU to “take concrete steps towards the harmonisation and standardisation of the European armed forces, in order to facilitate the cooperation of armed forces personnel under the umbrella of a new European Defence Union”.
It was passed yesterday with 369 votes in favour and 255 against, and 70 abstentions.
Can you imagine the British Forces under the command of a German, French or Belgian General?
The German military is already 'fusing' with the Dutch military
THE EU ARMY - EVEN BEFORE THE REFERENDUM
EU has already created: the European External Action Service, the EU Institute for Security Studies, the European Defence Agency, the EU Military Committee, the EU Military Staff, the Eurocorps, and the EU Battle Groups
Discretely, the EU has been building everything it needs to run a combined military under the EU flag
German 1st Panzer Division took over Dutch 43rd Mechanised Brigade
German Rapid Forces Division took over Dutch 11th Airmobile Brigade
Dutch agreed to combine naval forces with Germany
The EU's stated intentions and official policy on Defence
2007 - BBC: “The European Union has quietly acquired what might be described as a standing army.”
2015 - Jean-Claude Juncker, President of EU Commission: “The European Union needs its own army." "Such an army would help us design a common foreign and security policy.”
On announcing German takeover of Dutch forces in April 2016, the German Defence Minister, Ursula von der Leyen said: "This collaboration shows the extraordinary depth of the partnership with the Netherlands... Dutch and German [forces] will live, work, train and exercise together in the future. They become a fused entity." "This is the path to a European Defence Union," she added.
On ‘Europe Day’, 9th May - President Daul (largest party in EU parliament) said: “Today more than ever, the peace of our continent cannot be safeguarded without a common and functional security union, including a European army.”
The EPP is the largest political party - 75 member-parties from 40 countries, members include Angela Merkel, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, EU Council President Tusk, 7 EU and 5 non-EU heads of state and government, and 14 members of the European Commission.
Finally, the Lisbon Treaty's express policy is for an 'EU Defence Union'
[Sources: Official websites of European External Action Service | EU Institute for Security Studies | Eurocorps | European Union Military Committee | EU External Affairs Sub-Committee House of Lords | Also BBC News 2007, Guardian 2015. | EPP Press Release 09 May 2016 | And German Defence Ministry ]
Our pieces get picked up by MPs asking questions in Parliament, by mainstream journalists, and by thinktankers.
These articles generally take many hours of research, writing, editing, coding and production. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
"O BREXIT, MY BREXIT !"
Have you had your say yet? This is rapidly becoming one of our most popular pages. Your chance to describe to Ministers the Brexit you voted for.
5 simple questions - Read the opinions on the new 'O Brexit, My Brexit !' page and then submit your thoughts.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important Facts For You
Extraordinary news from New York
NEWS UPDATE 08.00am :
"There is no vacancy", said Downing Street. "We already have an excellent ambassador to the US".
Now there's a surprise....
TRUMP BACKS FARAGE FOR UK AMBASSADOR TO US
During the night, the US President-elect tweeted the following:
Mr Trump says : "Many people would like to see @Nigel_Farage represent Great Britain as their Ambassador to the United States. He would do a great job!"
[Textual analysis : Throughout his Presidential campaign, Mr Trump frequently used "many people" as a euphemism for "I". The government might want to read Mr Trump's tweet in this light.]
The position of Her Majesty's Ambassador to the Court of St James is of course in the gift of the Queen, but in reality it's decided by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. It is highly irregular for a foreign head of state to make any suggestion as to his preference. The current incumbent, Sir Kim Darroch, has only been in the job since February so this may come as a surprise to him.
We can only imagine the apoplectic reactions from the exclusively pro-Remain senior mandarins at the Foreign Office when they saw this tweet from the US President-elect.
Doubtless the Head of the FCO will have been immediately called away from dinner.
Regular readers know that Facts4EU is non-party, but we thank Mr Trump for his intervention. The thought of all those ardently pro-EU Foreign Office mandarins choking on their claret is rather too delicious for us not to enjoy it immensely.
What would Britain look like if we'd voted Remain?
“People voted for Brexit, but not what Brexit looks like”
How many times have you heard this?
Next time, perhaps pro-Brexit MPs and Ministers could answer :
“And if we’d voted Remain, what would the EU look like?”
“How many countries will be in the EU by 2030?”
“Who will have left and who will have joined?”
“How much money per week will the UK be paying into the EU by 2030?”
“Will the UK be forced to give up the rest of its budget rebate by then?”
“How many non-EU economic migrants will have entered the EU by 2030?”
“What proportion of the UK’s armed forces will be part of the new EU Defence Union?”
“Who will the UK’s security services report to when part of the new EU Security Union?”
“How many migrants from the EU will be working in the UK by 2030?”
“Will the Single Market, already 24 years old, be completed by 2030?”
“Will it include all services (79% of UK economy) by then?”
“Will the new Digital Single Market be completed by then?”
“Will the Euro still be going by 2030 and how many countries will be in it?”
“Will the EU ever be able to negotiate free trade deals with the world’s largest economies like USA, India, China, etc?”
“How much better off per year will UK families be by 2030?”
Did any Remainer ever spell any of this out? If they can’t even say what being in the EU will look like when we’re still actually in the EU, how can they possibly ask the detail of what Brexit will look like?
Brexit means our own laws made and adjudicated in the UK, full Parliamentary sovereignty, a free trade deal with the EU without tariffs, able to do trade deals with other countries, no financial contributions to the EU, cooperating on security and defence but not part of the EU’s structures, and deciding fully on our own immigration and border controls.
In other words, a fully-independent and free country. That's what the British people voted for.
Open Britain's campaign video tanks. Their spokesman was previously Nick Clegg's Press Secretary...
Update : The Guido Fawkes website has found a press release sent by Stronger In on 11th May. In it the very same spokesman reports Boris saying that Britain will leave the Single Market on Brexit – priceless!
‘OPEN BRITAIN’ REMAINERS - DESTROYED ON BBC
Rebranded official Remain campaign is ridiculed live on air
Open Britain launched a video last week, purportedly showing that prominent Leave campaigners supported staying in the Single Market. Apparently it’s been an instant hit with Brexit-denying Remoaners. But there’s just one problem – it’s all false.
The clip below comes from the excellent Sunday Politics on the BBC yesterday, where Andrew Neil lays into the chief spokesman of ‘Open Britain’, the rebranded Remain campaign organisation. In the interview, Mr Neil destroys the credibility of Open Britain and their video.
Our pieces get picked up by MPs asking questions in Parliament, by mainstream journalists, and by thinktankers.
These articles generally take many hours of research, writing, editing, coding and production. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
"O BREXIT, MY BREXIT !"
Have you had your say yet? This is rapidly becoming one of our most popular pages. Your chance to describe to Ministers the Brexit you voted for.
5 simple questions - Read the opinions on the new 'O Brexit, My Brexit !' page and then submit your thoughts.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important and Unique Facts For You
PM talks up British economy
PRIME MINISTER TRUMPETS BREXIT BRITAIN TO CBI
Mrs May has delivered her first speech to the CBI since becoming PM
Amongst some positive announcements for British business, the PM reinforced the excellent investment news in Brexit Britain, which continues to come in every week.
Some of the recent great news trumpeted to the CBI by the Prime Minister :-
Nissan's decision to build their two new models in the north-east, securing 7,000 jobs
A record £24 billion investment by Softbank in Britain's future
A £500 million expansion and 3,000 jobs from Jaguar Land Rover (Indian-owned)
A £200 million investment from Honda
£275 million investment from GlaxoSmithKline
Investment in a new headquarters from Apple
An estimated £1 billion investment and 3,000 new jobs from Google
And this morning Facebook have announced a 50% increase in their workforce in the UK
Regular readers will know of our very low opinion of the CBI's management, after their biased interventions during the Referendum debate, since when all of their predictions have been proved false.
No doubt they will continue to talk down the UK economy, but we're pleased the PM presented them with some positive post-Referendum news.
Why it's important to Leavers and all British people
We've researched and written four articles about this, below. The result of the Italian Referendum on 4th December could be highly significant to all British people and it's very likely to impact on our Brexit negotiations.
We hope you'll find the facts interesting and the humour amusing. (To any Italian readers, we love your country - the humour is British and affectionate, not critical !)
Like all things Italian, their Referendum is a little complicated. Loveable, but complicated, a bit like trying to eat spaghetti gracefully.
For example, here’s the question on the ballot paper :-
"Do you approve the text of the Constitutional Law on “Provisions for changing the equal bicameralism, reducing the number of MPs, the containment of operating costs of the institutions, the suppression of the CNEL and the revision of Title V of Part II of the Constitution” approved by Parliament and published in the Official Gazette no. 88 of 15 April 2016? - YES / NO"
The Italian PM, Matteo Renzi, is trying to streamline things and make Italy more governable. Italy has two chambers, they each have equal powers to approve or reject laws, and a majority is needed in both chambers for a government to operate. This makes governing in Italy a challenge beyond the understanding of most Brits – or even British MPs.
Now, why should British readers care?
Because the vote won’t really be about the question on the ballot paper.
A man who sounds like he should be an Italian restaurant, and looks like he should be running one.
ITALY’S REFERENDUM - THE POLITICS
The final polling for the Italian Referendum took place on Friday. All major polls now give it to the ‘No’ vote by a margin of 7-10%. There is now a polling blackout until the vote.
‘No’ means Italian PM Matteo Renzi loses and his latest pronouncements indicate he’ll then quit. In any case his position is likely to be untenable. That will bring down the government. And that will throw some issues into very sharp focus for the EU and particularly the Eurozone.
In reality, this Referendum is not simply about constitutional reform, it’s a vote on the government and dissatisfaction generally with the economy, the migration crisis, and the EU.
Italy has managed to bend EU rules on state aid in the last year, but not by enough. The Germans are still standing firm on budget austerity. This has caused real fault lines.
“Stressing austerity means destroying Europe,” Mr Renzi told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York in September. “Which is the only country which receives an advantage from this strategy? The one which exports the most: Germany.”
Renzi was so angry at the lack of EU help, he boycotted the press conference at the end of the recent EU Bratislava summit, as we reported here last month.
However, just like David Cameron who begged the EU for something to take back and give his voters before the UK Referendum, Renzi has only had crumbs from Mrs Merkel.
The beneficiary has been the Five Star Movement, a political group led by Beppe Grillo – a man who sounds like he should be an Italian restaurant, and looks like he should be running one. He is, however, a man to be reckoned with. Five Star is now almost level with Mr Renzi’s party in the polls. It even took the mayoralities of Rome and Turin at the last elections.
Five Star has been campaigning for a ‘No’ vote and it now looks probable that they will win. The only caveat is Mr Renzi who, like Cameron was, is a slick TV performer. He could yet work miracles in the next two weeks, but it’s a big ask.
As they say in Milan’s La Scala opera house, it’s never over until the large female soprano starts the final aria...
Next article : Could Italy Bring Down The Euro?
[Sources: Italian government | La Repubblica | La Stampa | Il Corriere della Sera ] 21 Nov 2016
Italian debt is running at 136% of GDP - highest in the EU after Greece
COULD ITALY BRING DOWN THE EURO?
Years of bad Italian banking practice now account for 1/3rd of all Eurozone bad loans
Italy is not Greece. A run on Italian banks would risk bringing down the Euro.
Italy: 4th largest economy in the EU, 3rd largest in the Eurozone
Italian banks are in trouble: €360 bn of bad loans – a staggering 18% of all Italian loans
Even worse, Italian banks’ bad loans represent 1/3rd of the Eurozone’s total
The 5 largest banks in Italy accounted for 2/3rds of total bad debt
3/4 of the bad loans are to companies – employment and economy at risk
Exactly 1 year ago, 4 banks effectively went bust at a cost of €3.6 bn
New measures could cost many times that figure
For years Italy has wanted to address its banking crisis with state aid, illegal under the EU. Whilst some typical EU ‘fudges’ have been found, Germany still refuses to allow Italy to depart from strict budget deficit rules and state aid prohibitions.
We think we’ll see the result of this in the Italian Referendum in 2 weeks’ time. In reality of course, if Italy hadn’t been part of the Eurozone the markets would have adjusted the value of its currency and the Italian government could have taken measures to protect its economy.
On top of the banking crisis, Italy also has the migrant crisis to struggle with.
See next article: “Is African Immigration Starting To Overwhelm Italy?”
Italy is facing large-scale economic immigration from Africa
IS AFRICAN IMMIGRATION OVERWHELMING ITALY?
Italy – the migrant crisis and their Referendum
ITALIAN MIGRANT CRISIS - OVERALL NUMBERS
Total migrants so far this year : 168,251
Despite the EU’s efforts, numbers have increased by 17.2% since 2015
Total migrants relocated across the EU : 1,758
That’s only 1.04% of migrants who’ve moved out of Italy under the EU’s relocation scheme
COMPOSITION OF MIGRANTS TO ITALY
Over 90% of migrants from Africa
Top countries of origin : Nigeria, Eritrea, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Gambia
Syria doesn’t even appear in the top 10 countries of origin
Over 86% are male and 84% are adults
86% admit they left their areas of origin for economic reasons
So the main problem in Italy is African economic migrants, not Syrians fleeing war.
The above are official numbers from the Italian Interior Ministry. As everyone knows, the official numbers always understate the problem.
Italy abstained on the new EU 2017 Budget vote last Thursday, in protest at insufficient migrant funding. The situation gets worse each week and public dissent in Italy is starting to rise.
The EU has spent billions trying to fix the problem, but in Italy the problem has grown by 17% since 2015.
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important and Unique Facts For You
The Chancellor, who campaigned for Remain during the Referendum campaign
PRO-REMAIN HAMMOND GIVES GAME AWAY, LIVE ON THE BBC
The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, was asked specifically on the BBC's Andrew Marr programme this morning about doing trade deals with the rest of the World, and leaving the EU's Customs Union - which is an integral part of EU membership. He replied:
"I think we should go in there with a single clear objective: we are leaving the European Union. The terms of our relationship with the European Union, the terms of our future trade with the rest of the World, are all on the table. We should be prepared to discuss all of these things, with the objective of getting the best possible deal for Britain, to protect the British economy and to protect the living standards of the British people."
No, no, NO, Mr Hammond. This is precisely why we opposed having a pro-Remain Chancellor like you.
Why should we discuss "the terms of our future trade with the rest of the World" with the EU? One of the great benefits of leaving the EU is doing international trade deals, which means regaining the UK's independence of action. "Taking back control" was what the country voted for.
It would be wholly unacceptable if the UK were not able to strike trade deals with whomsoever it wants, on whatever terms it wants.
FOOTNOTE: Needless to say, Andrew Marr completely failed to pick up on this.
[ Source : Andrew Marr Show, BBC, 20/11/2016 ] 20 Nov 2016
New EU Commission plan for 2017 includes ‘Roadmap’ from which UK was deliberately excluded
Only EU apparatchiks and lawyers truly understand all the detail of how the EU works and how it governs. There are some basics, however, and here’s just one. It’s called the ‘European Semester’. The latest version has just been published by the EU Commission, for approval by the EU Council and EU Parliament.
This has not been covered by the mainstream media – probably because attempting to read and understand the numerous lengthy documents involves the serious risk of losing the will to live.
On your behalf, dear reader, we ran that risk and ploughed into hundreds of pages.
The European Semester forms the basis for the activities of the EU and its member states. Just about everything which affects our lives. Being the EU, of course they refer to it in many ways, to confuse us and to make everything sound innocuous. So an important part is called “2017 European Semester: Annual Growth Survey”.
Think of it like a plan of action, not a survey. Here’s just the introduction:
“[This] outlines the most pressing economic and social priorities on which the European Union and its Member States need to focus their attention in the coming months.”
“Ensuring a promising economic future for all, safeguarding our way of life and providing better opportunities for young people were also highlighted as priorities in the ‘Bratislava roadmap’ endorsed by the Heads of State or Government of 27 Member States on 16 September 2016.”
Did you notice anything? Did you spot the reference to ‘27 Member States’? Yes, you guessed it. The missing state is the UK. Theresa May was specifically excluded from the meeting of the ‘EU27’ Council Meeting in Bratislava.
The ‘Roadmap’ agreed by the ‘EU27’ is now part of the ‘European Semester’. In other words, the United Kingdom is effectively out of the EU, as far as the EU is concerned.
This is a clear violation of EU Treaties. Mrs May said at the next meeting in October : “We should meet as 28, otherwise it will be hard for me to accept things you agreed among yourselves. I expect to be fully involved in all discussions related to the EU28.” According to a senior EU diplomat, President Tusk rejected this.
In view of these repeated and serious violations of EU Treaties, we suggest the UK could hold the EU to be in irrevocable breach of its obligations, and that the EU’s actions amount to constructive abrogation of the Treaty for the Functioning of the EU.
In other words, the UK could be out.
We suggest the Government’s lawyers start drafting a letter.
Andrew Neil presents the BBC’s Daily Politics, the Sunday Politics, and This Week, and is highly respected.
Mr Neil was also the Editor of the Sunday Times for 11 years.
TRUMP "WANTS FREE TRADE DEAL WITH UK"
HE IS "PRO-BREXIT" and "HOLDS A DIM VIEW OF EU"
The unequivocal statements above come from one of the most respected political journalists and interviewers working in the UK. The statements are based on meetings he held with senior members of the Trump transition team in New York last week.
“They told me that he’s not just pro-Brexit, but that he wants to help Britain in the Brexit talks.”
“He wants to help smooth the path.”
“They also say he wants to do a Free Trade deal with Britain.”
Michael Portillo asked : "If you’re the American President, and you’re in favour of Brexit, it suggests you have a pretty dim view of the European Union?"
Andrew Neil : “He does.”
So, President-elect Trump is emphatically pro-Brexit, anti-EU, and wants to do a Free Trade deal with the UK.
We may all have suspected this but if Mr Neil categorically states something, we can take it as fact. In our opinion he is by far the best-informed and most effective political interviewer in the UK and we haven’t seen anyone better on any channel worldwide.
Why aren’t his reports about Mr Trump headline news on the BBC, Sky and in the mainstream media? They haven’t done it all week, so in the end we had to.
US President once again makes clear his love for the EU
He was in Berlin for meetings with Angela Merkel and other European leaders
EU IS ‘ONE OF THE WORLD'S GREAT POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ACHIEVEMENTS’
- Barack Obama, US President, Berlin, 17 Nov 2016
The Obama-Merkel love-in : Facts4EU analyses the press conference transcript. Note: Barack Obama is still President of the United States.
ON THE EU :“I continue to believe that the EU remains one of the world's great political and economic achievements.”
ON BREXIT :“I reiterated our hope that negotiations over the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU will be conducted in a smooth and orderly and transparent fashion, and preserve as closely as possible the economic and political and security relationships between the UK and EU.”
ON MERKEL :“I could not ask for a steadier or a more reliable partner on the world stage.” “All I can say is that Chancellor Merkel has been an outstanding partner.” “I think she's been outstanding.”
ON MERKEL WINNING 2017 ELECTIONS :“I try to make it a rule not to meddle in other people's politics.” “If I were here and I were German, and I had a vote, I might support her. But I don't know whether that hurts or helps.” “If she chooses to continue, you're right, she will have big burdens. I wish I could be there to lighten her load somewhat, but she’s tough.”
ON THE MERKEL-INITIATED EU MIGRANT CRISIS : “I want again to commend Angela and, more importantly, the German people for the extraordinary leadership and compassion that you have shown in the face of what I know is a very difficult challenge.”
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Another unique Facts4EU take on EU and world politics
Mr President, we have an open letter for you.
We hope you find it interesting and informative.
DEAR PRESIDENT OBAMA,
Just for a moment let’s imagine a world where the USA joined an organisation 45 years ago. Let’s call it the “Union of North and Central America” or UNCA.
Now let’s imagine that UNCA is the US version of the EU :-
'Union of North and Central America' (UNCA): The Union of Mexico, Cuba, Canada, the USA, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico.
UNCA Legislature: Meets in Havana (also 2 days per month in Guatemala City). Your Congress must ratify UNCA laws and Directives. UNCA Central Bank: Mexico City. UNCA Court of Human Rights: Edmonton, Canada. UNCA official language: Mexican. UNCA currency: Peso.
UNCA in advanced membership negotiations with Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, Aruba, Guyana, Surinam, Turks & Caicos Islands.
July 2015: Mexican President unilaterally threw open UNCA’s doors to Colombians, Venezuelans, Surinamians and Haitians with hashtag “#RefugeesWelcome”. They should be with you soon.
Mr President, to be a member of UNCA you would have agreed:-
Free movement of people across all UNCA member states, equal rights as for US citizens.
Obviously your southern border with Mexico allows all UNCA citizens to cross into the USA.
More than 50% of US laws now made in UNCA Capital, Havana.
Only UNCA Commission (unelected) can propose new laws. UNCA Court of Justice in Panama City has supremacy over US Supreme Court.
US citizens can immediately be deported under the UNCA Arrest Warrant system, to stand trial in member countries like El Salvador.
USA now has 20% Sales Tax. US Treasury Secretary must submit annual budget to Havana for approval before Congress sees it.
US car industry must conform to UNCA policies, energy costs increase by 20%.
USA has no veto over major UNCA policy decisions. You must fly to Havana every 2-3 weeks for UNCA meetings, to be outvoted every time.
Motherhood and Apple Pie now subject to UNCA specifications formulated in Guatamala and subject to inspections by unelected UNCA Commissioners.
Oh yes, and you pay $200 billion per year for the benefits of UNCA membership. (That's about pro-rata with what the UK pays the EU.)
Mr President, we're very much looking forward to hearing what you now think about the UK's membership of our equivalent body to UNCA - the EU.
Yours sincerely, America's long-standing friends, The British People
Our pieces get picked up by MPs asking questions in Parliament, by mainstream journalists, and by thinktankers.
These articles generally take many hours of research, writing, editing, coding and production. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Important, Original Facts For You
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi under threat as latest polls show he will lose Italian Referendum.
EU border agency yesterday released figures showing migrant problem in Italy doubled last month.
EU MIGRANT CRISIS DOUBLES IN ITALY
A record number of migrants reached Italy in October
The highest monthly number of migrants ever recorded reached the Italian shores in October - twice September's number. Once in Italy, these migrants become a matter for the EU as a whole and very few are deported.
The EU's border agency Frontex reports:-
Nigerians and Eritreans accounted for the largest number of rescued migrants
So far this year, 160,000 migrants have arrived in Italy
That’s 13% more than a year ago, despite the EU spending billions on the problem
27,500 migrants reached the Italian shores in October alone
This was more than double the number in the previous month
On 4th December Italy has a Referendum. The subject is constitutional reform but in reality it’s becoming a vote on the Italian government itself and on the EU’s failures.
The Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi repeated yesterday that he will resign if he loses the public vote. With Italian banks already in serious trouble, this could precipitate a major crisis for the Eurozone and for the EU itself.
Once the UK has left, Italy becomes the EU’s third-largest economy.
If Italy is plunged into crisis, this will not be like Greece. It will be far, far worse.
YouGov just published their latest polling and here are the results :-
68% think Britain should go ahead with Brexit
A clear majority think the High Court got it wrong over Article 50
59% think a second referendum would be ‘illegitimate’
We live in a democracy. We urge the House of Lords to respect this simple fact. The clear majority of people wish Mrs May to trigger Article 50 and to start leaving the EU.
No amount of posturing or pontificating in the House of Lords can be justified. The PM should put through an emergency Bill authorising Article 50 to be invoked immediately. If the Lords frustrate this in any way, the PM should immediately appoint a sufficient number of temporary peers (around 600) to ensure the Bill is passed.
Britain is backing Brexit – it’s time to make it happen.
Retail sales for October show highest growth for 15 years
The Office of National Statistics issued yet another positive set of figures yesterday. Retail sales growth was at record levels last month, growing 7.4% year-on-year.
Where is the instant recession promised by Messrs Cameron and Osborne if we voted Leave? Every week official figures come out, proving them wrong over and over.
These figures haven’t just confounded the ludicrous fearmongering claims of the previous Cameron government, the Treasury, and the so-called ‘experts’ - the post-vote figures have smashed them.
Mr Cameron, Mr Osborne, and Remainer ministers, you tried to bully the British public into voting they way you wanted us to. You conspired in one of the greatest mass-deceptions of the British people in political history. We now demand a full and unequivocal apology. We further call for the resignations of the heads of the Civil Service Departments who participated in this shameful episode.
€6 billion for borders and migrant crisis, €54 billion for ‘economic, social and territorial cohesion’.
The EU Commission has just announced the results of its 'conciliation procedure', after the Commission, the EU Parliament, and the EU Council have all discussed.
The new 2017 EU budget is set at €157.9 billion
€53.6 billion will go to ‘fostering convergence among Member States and regions’
€42.6 billion to support European farmers
€6 billion to reinforce borders and to address the migration crisis
The Commission says “more money will go to providing support for the reception and integration of refugees and to addressing the root causes of migration in the countries of origin and transit”.
This budget should have been agreed before the Referendum. It was delayed because the Commission didn’t want bad headlines before the British public voted. At the time we predicted an increase. We weren’t wrong.
We look at what the UK National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) now says.
The NPCC’s own headline on their website on 13 October said : “Increases in hate crime incidents driven by better reporting”.
The NPCC report has an annex specifically on Brexit, in which it says:
“This analysis shows a clear increase following the referendum result. The number of racially or religiously aggravated offences then falls during August, with the number of offences at the end of August at a similar level seen prior to the referendum."
They then note that: “Figures may include offences that took place before the date of recording. It is possible they were reported as a result of the increased media attention on hate crime around the time of the EU referendum.”
They conclude: “Due to this, the NPCC have now ended their weekly collection of hate crime data [in relation to Brexit].”
In other words, in July the NPCC saw a spike in reported hate crimes due to Brexit, but this then dropped to the extent that they’re no longer recording them. It’s clear they believe that the reporting of ‘Brexit hate crimes’ was largely caused by media attention.
Crime happens for all kinds of reasons. We don’t doubt that there have been crimes attributed to the Referendum vote which we deeply regret. However the evidence now shows clearly that a 'Brexit hate crime epidemic' is yet more propaganda.
See article below, for what this charity says about Brexit.
IT’S A VERY, VERY, MAD WORLD
UK Medical Charity says only 13.7% of migrants fled war but apparently that’s okay. It seems that economic migrants should have free healthcare too.
There’s a UK-registered charity called Doctors of the World UK who use the name of the group ‘Médecins du Monde’ (MDM) which they’re part of. They’ve just published their 52-page ‘2016 Observatory Report’.
Some of their key findings from 10,000 migrant interviews:
86.3% of migrants are not migrants because of conflict
53.1% even admit to having migrated for economic reasons
Only 13.7% say they migrated to escape conflict
This MDM report received support from the French Ministry of Health and the European Commission under a grant from the European Union’s Health Programme.
So you partly helped to pay for this.
This is a charity which believes all the people of the world are entitled to an equal standard of healthcare in the UK regardless of where they’re from, why they left their own country, or whether they’ve contributed in any way.
It must have been very disappointing for them that they could only get 13.7% of migrants to say they were fleeing conflict.
See our article above, for the myth and reality of 'Brexit hate crime'.
DOCTORS CHARITY REPORT CRITICISES BREXIT
The report from MDM / Doctors of the World UK makes political statements about Brexit
“In spite of the urgency of the situation and the need to welcome people fleeing from wars, conflicts and poverty, levels of xenophobic discourse rose in 2015. ...Moreover a report by the UK National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) shows a 42% increase in hate crimes during the period immediately following the UK referendum on EU membership (Brexit).”
What this charity fails to say is that the numbers quickly returned to normal levels, according to the UK National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) - the same body they quote in their report. The NPCC recognised that media attention may have produced the increase in reports. In fact social media campaigns at the time positively encouraged people to complain to the police.
Please see our article above for the reality of ‘hate crimes’ over Brexit.
A meeting took place in Oslo on Tuesday between Lord Price, Minister in Liam Fox’s International Trade Department, and Monica Mæland, Norway’s Trade Minister.
After the meeting it was announced that initial trade talks will start in Oslo next month. The two countries currently do £18.6 billion in bilateral trade.
"As a first step, we have decided to initiate a dialogue on a senior officials level in order to get a better understanding of our future trading relationship and one another’s trade interests."
"The first meeting between senior officials will take place in Oslo in December."
(Monica Mæland, Norway’s Trade Minister, 15 Nov 2016)
Norway is a member of the EEA and as such it is closely bound by EU rules. President Juncker has ‘forbidden’ any contact between EU states and the UK over Brexit.
As we reported ten days ago he then went further, telling EU companies “not to interfere in the debate because they will find me in their way”.
This makes the new development very interesting. Last month it was wrongly reported in the British press that Norway had rejected the overtures of Liam Fox. This was immediately denied by the Norwegian government, and their denial is now confirmed by senior UK trade officials visiting Norway next month.
Do you believe in an independent and strong United Kingdom, democracy and freedom of speech?
Each of the articles above took many hours of research, writing, editing, coding and production. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
WINNING THE ECONOMIC ARGUMENT with Facts4EU.org
TIME TO SMILE
AFTER 5 MONTHS IT’S A GREAT TRIPLE WHAMMY
Here’s the good news from the last 24 hours, nearly 5 months after the Referendum:-
Inflation : DOWN Unemployment : DOWN GDP : UP
In the last 24 hours the Office of National Statistics has reported important figures. Unemployment has fallen to 4.8% and inflation is down to 0.9%.
And the EU statistics body Eurostat has published figures which show the UK’s growth rate was 2.5 times higher than that of Germany or France.
Where is the instant economic Armageddon predicted by the Treasury, George Osborne, David Cameron and just about every national and international ‘expert’ organisation they could find?
There is clearly a major problem within the Civil Service
Can we be a little more positive please?
MRS MAY : WAKE UP AND SMELL THE KAFFEE, BITTE
A typical example from today, of what our European friends read over their morning coffee:
British Constitutional Court Judge: "The Referendum on United Kingdom membership of the European Union - vote is not legally binding"
(Headline in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 16 Nov 2016)
This is about the Supreme Court judge who rather strangely made comments in Malaysia about the upcoming appeal by the UK government which she will be hearing next month.
The majority of the European and international media which we monitor on your behalf have high standards of journalism. If they portray bias, we don’t blame them. They’re simply reporting the UK news as they read it and watch it.
They’ve quite reasonably told their readers that the British people were lied to during the Referendum campaign, because that’s their impression. They’ve reported every negative news story which appears in the UK press and on the BBC, Sky and ITV.
Our question is once again to the UK Government. What’s going on in the press offices of all the government departments? Why is positive news about Brexit Britain not being promoted to the World’s media? This is doing profound damage to the reputation of the UK abroad. Action must be taken now.
The Commons would now vote by 6 to 1 to trigger Article 50
As we predicted yesterday, official Labour policy is now to support a vote to trigger Article 50.
This now isolates the LibDems and the SNP as the only parties denying the Leave vote by the people of the United Kingdom on June 23rd.
LibDem leader Tim Farron has been putting together a coalition of Brexit-denying MPs and claims to have some 85 MPs prepared to block Article 50.
However official Labour policy is now:
“We must not try to re-fight the referendum or push for a second vote and if Article 50 needs to be triggered in parliament Labour will not seek to block or delay it.”
John McDonnell speech yesterday at Dragon Hall
So that leaves Tim Farron and Nick Clegg with their six LibDem colleagues, the 59 Scottish MP’s, and a small rag-tag of Labour and Conservative Brexit-deniers.
If the PM now pushed for a vote, the result would be approximately:
Yes: 560 No: 90
That makes a 6 to 1 majority for triggering Article 50
Their Lordships who will be judging the appeal in the Supreme Court may find this information helpful.
UK remains fastest-growing major economy in EU, despite pre-Referendum government warnings of instant recession
UK GROWTH RATE IN Q3: DOUBLE GERMANY’S
The EU has just released its growth figures for the last 3 months, showing Brexit Britain ahead again
The EU’s statistics office ‘Eurostat’ last night released its GDP growth data for Q3. For the last quarter it showed:
The UK’s growth rate was 2.5 times higher than the rate for Germany
It was 2.5 times higher than the rate for France
It was 12/3 times higher than the Eurozone average
It was 11/4 times higher than the average for the EU28
The UK’s Quarter 3 growth rate for GDP was 0.5%. For Germany and France it was only 0.2%, for the Eurozone 19 countries it was 0.3% and for the EU28 it was 0.4%.
The UK remains the fastest-growing major economy in the EU.
This is excellent news. We trust that it will be splashed across all newspapers and will appear prominently on the BBC, Sky and ITV news broadcasts today.
Positive news for Brexit Britain – you normally hear it here first, loud and clear.
Labour's leadership looks set to accept Brexit at last
HOT: LABOUR FINALLY SET TO BACK BREXIT
Today the Shadow Chancellor will announce Labour won’t block Article 50
According to a private advance copy of a speech to be delivered later today, Jeremy Corbyn’s right-hand man John McDonnell will say:
“We must not try to re-fight the referendum or push for a second vote and if Article 50 needs to be triggered in parliament Labour will not seek to block or delay it.”
"It is time we all were more positive about Brexit, Labour wants to see an ambitious Brexit Britain."
Labour will “embrace the enormous opportunities to reshape our country that Brexit has opened for us.”
If the advance copy of his speech is correct, this marks a major departure from Jeremy Corbyn’s stance a week ago. It also completely destroys the hopes of Remoaner MPs that Article 50 could be blocked in the House of Commons.
In the Commons this isolates the LibDem Remoaners, the SNP, and a small number of dissident dinosaurs on the Tory benches such as Kenneth Clarke and Anna Soubry.
Brexit-deniers would then be a small minority in the Commons, unable to thwart any quick Article 50 Bill from Mrs May.
That then just leaves the unelected House of Lords...
Once again Hungary stands alone with the UK against the EU
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó
BORIS AND PETER - VETO OF ANTI-TRUMP DINNER
Only two countries vetoed the EU’s panic dinner meeting on Sunday night
An emergency dinner meeting was called on the eve of the EU’s Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels yesterday, to discuss the ‘Trump crisis’.
Just two Foreign Ministers formally declined to attend for political reasons:
Boris Johnson of the UK called it “a whinge-o-rama”, and
Péter Szijjártó of Hungary called it “a pathetic hysteria of the European elite”
Hungary has stood alone with Britain against the EU before.
1. HUNGARY’S RESPECT FOR THE LEAVE VOTE
After the UK’s EU Referendum in June, Mr Szijjártó said “The European Union should stop criticising Britain and its government and instead focus on figuring out what it is that needs to change in Brussels. The choice of the British people must be respected. Only they have the right to decide what kind of future they envision for their country.”
2. HUNGARY, BRITAIN, AND HERR JUNCKER
In 2014 Jean-Claude Juncker was made EU Commission President by 26 out of the 28 EU heads of state. Only Hungary stood with Britain and voted against Juncker.
Hungary was vilified on British TV last summer during the Merkel-initiated migrant crisis. With more resource, we could provide some facts for you about the reality, rather than the sob-gush-wail from BBC and Sky journalists which filled our screens.
In the meantime, if the UK Government is starting to think about possible future alliances in a post-Brexit world, perhaps Budapest should be on the list.
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Exclusive Facts For You
Fortunately, Brexi-Kitten is multi-lingual
EU TRIES TO BURY BAD NEWS ‘EN FRANCAIS’
Sensitive news from the EU often comes out late Friday afternoon, or in a foreign language
The vast majority of EU news releases are written in English, which is now the de facto common language of European institutions despite the best efforts of the French.
Sometimes, however, the EU finds it useful to bury bad news in a language which many journalists in EU states don’t speak.
Unfortunately for the EU this doesn’t work here because the Facts4EU.Org Team speaks several EU languages.
See our article below with the latest bad news from the EU, presented by us in English.
16.45 (4.45pm), 14 Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Original and Exclusive Facts For You
For some reason Remainers seem to be quiet on this news so far....
Eurozone production falling
GERMAN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION FALLS OVER 6 TIMES FASTER THAN UK'S
Industrial production fell 0.8% across the Eurozone in September
The EU Commission just announced (in French) that industrial production fell in September, compared to August.
In the 19 Eurozone countries:-
Production of durable consumer goods fell by 5.6%
Production of capital goods fell by 2.2%
Intermediate goods fell by 0.7%
And production of energy fell by 0.2%
In the 28 EU countries:-
Production of durable consumer goods fell by 3.7%
Production of capital goods fell by 1.6%
Production of intermediate goods fell by 0.1%
Production of energy fell by 0.6%
The largest decreases in industrial production were registered in Denmark (-8.1%), Germany (-1.9%) and Greece (-1.8%).
Meanwhile, in Brexit Britain, industrial production fell by less than half the EU average, at -0.3%.
We're fighting hard to see Brexit delivered. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Exclusive Facts For You
One of the additional ways jobs and wages are sacrificed to EU membership
HOW THE EU FORCES THE UK NOT TO ‘BUY BRITISH’
Under EU law, the UK’s public services must open all contracts to EU firms
Every year the UK’s public services place enormous contracts with the private sector. Across all EU countries this accounts for an average of 14% of GDP, according to the EU Commission.
While remaining a member of the EU, the UK is bound by EU regulations and can't simply 'Buy British'.
The UK must obey :-
The Public Contracts Directive 2014/24/EU
The Utility Contracts Directive 2014/25/EU
The Concessions Directive 2014/23/EU
The Defence & Security Directive 2009/81/EC
And the Standard Forms - Regulation 296/2015
These public sector contracts involve billions of pounds of UK taxpayers’ money.
See our next article for how other EU countries flout the rules.
UK energy and water supplies - why is so much owned by EU companies?
British armed vehicles, courtesy of German industrial production
HOW THE UK PLAYS BY THE EU's RULES...
...AND OTHER EU COUNTRIES DON'T
In the article above we explained how the UK's public procurement is governed by EU Directives. Every country in the EU is supposed to obey these rules.
We thought we’d look at how well each country is doing in fulfilling this obligation.
We reviewed the EU's four key criteria. These are: not having more than one bidder; not even calling for bids; not buying in bulk; and having ‘special reasons’ for awarding a contract. These four key criteria are defined by the EU’s regulations.
Of 28 EU countries, 22 of them fail on one or more of the four key criteria
9 of them fail on 3 or 4 of the criteria
The UK fails on NONE of the four key criteria
While the UK remains a member of the EU, it must strive to obey EU laws and directives. It seems other EU countries are less concerned about these rules.
Now you know why a large part of our water and electricity supplies are owned by the French, why they’re supplying the steel for our new submarines, and why we’re buying our armed vehicles from Germany.
Our exclusive chart below shows how the UK plays by the rules, opening up the tendering of our public services to EU companies. Regrettably the majority of EU countries haven't performed as well.
"His support for the US-UK relationship is very strong. This is a man with whom we can do business." - Nigel Farage on Twitter last night. (Click photo)
Note for new readers: Facts4EU.Org continues to be party-neutral.
FARAGE TRUMPS MAY AND THE EU ELITES
Nigel Farage & Leave.EU's Arron Banks meet President-elect in New York
In a clear message to the whole of Europe, Nigel Farage was invited to meet the new President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Towers last night.
This is Mr Trump’s first meeting with any UK or EU politician since his election. It signals a clear and different approach to the EU’s unelected leaders, to EU member states, and to the British Establishment.
For Mr Trump to invite Nigel Farage to his headquarters - only 4 days after he became President-elect of the United States - can only have been a deliberate move.
Trump's campaign manager described the meeting as "very productive". "They actually had a chance to talk about freedom and winning and what this all means for the world," she added.
This must have been the sweetest of moments for Mr Farage. We believe that all reasonably-minded people, of whatever political hue, should accept that it’s deplorable he has received no honour for his years of service to the cause of Brexit. We're party-neutral but you don't have to be a UKIP supporter to see this is wrong.
We congratulate Mr Farage on his coup and hope it signals a very positive approach from America’s soon-to-be President towards Brexit Britain.
[ Sources : CNN and other news channels ] 13 Nov 2016
The UK may be leaving the EU, but it's important for everyone to know what is still being done in our name.
It's also important to reinforce to those who voted Remain, and who were never shown how dysfunctional the EU really is, exactly why Leave was the right decision for the UK.
...LATEST RESULT FROM UK-EU CONTEST IN THE US....
THE UK : 3 JUNCKER & THE EU : 0
In contrast with Nigel Farage’s triumphant meeting with the USA’s President-elect last night, here is a highlight of EU Commission President Juncker’s performance yesterday.
It’s possible that Herr Juncker’s offer to Mr Trump to teach him about Europe may not go down well with the people of the EU – to say nothing of Mr Trump himself. They might have hoped that their unelected President would want to encourage trade and investment with the world’s largest market...
As for Herr Juncker’s disparaging remarks about Mr Trump thinking that Belgium is a village… well, without the EU and its hundreds of quangos being headquartered in Brussels, Mr Trump may not be wide of the mark.
WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
You can contact us with your views about our articles and we'll publish them here, or you can post your comments at the bottom of the page using Disqus.
We also consider longer articles for a special page we have for this purpose.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Exclusive Facts For You
(This is a genuine news article)
Porpoise seeking a safe space
HAS THE EU TOTALLY LOST ITS PORPOISE?
Here is the EU Commission’s latest legal case against the UK
The European Commission is taking the UK to the Court of Justice of the EU
The charge: “Failure to propose sites for the protection of the harbour porpoise”
The UK has so far proposed 2 UK sites where porpoises can relax
Apparently this isn’t enough for an EU looking for any possible excuse to punish the UK following the British public’s decision to leave the EU. The UK will therefore have to appear in the EU’s Court of ‘Justice’.
Millions are out of work across the EU, with youth unemployment between 40-50% in some countries. Italy’s banks are in crisis, the EU’s German-initiated migrant policy is in chaos, and one of its top two sugar-daddy countries is about to leave.
In the midst of this, the EU Commission decides it’s an important use of time to drag the UK into court for insufficient safe spaces for porpoises. We’re very tempted to point out that these porpoises might be a darned sight happier when EU trawlers are banned from our shores and there are more fish to eat.
Footnote: We first mentioned this news when it happened some weeks ago, but readers found it hard to believe and requested we write a full piece on it.
UK’S FORMER SINGLE MARKET MINISTER BLASTS SINGLE MARKET
Back in 1992, there was a Government Minister responsible for the Single Market negotiations with the EU.
Below he explains what it was really like. He now favours leaving the Single Market and trading normally with the EU, with no tariffs.
“As Single Market Minister who “completed” the Single Market in 1992 according to false EU statements at the time, I remember an endless procession of businesses lobbying me to water down, delay or scupper law after law which the EU thought necessary.
Business did not see these laws as helpful on balance when they were being brought in. The one that would have made the London Stock Exchange’s trading system illegal was a good example of the kind of problem we encountered. Having a Eurosceptically-inclined Minister was a reassurance to them that I would battle to avoid disaster.”
Readership figures for daily papers, including online
Readership figures for daily papers, online-only
ANOTHER BREXIT-DENIER MYTH IS BUSTED
READERSHIP OF PRO-REMAIN DAILIES WAS HIGHER
Brexit-Deniers claim that voters were influenced by a biased press.
A Facts4EU.Org analysis of the latest data from the authoritative National Readership Survey (NRS) tells a different story.
In the year to June 2016 (latest NRS report available) :-
Combined readerships of daily papers backing Remain was 6% higher
The online-only readership shows Remain’s total being 15% higher
The NRS Survey doesn't even include the 'Brussels Daily', a.k.a. the Financial Times, whose Remain-biased coverage was legendary. So much so, that their editor has been awarded France's highest national decoration - the 'Légion d'Honneur' - by President Francois Hollande. Regrettably this is not a joke, as you can see by his leaked tweet about it.
One of the many myths propagated by Brexit-Deniers is that the press were heavily biased for Leave. Once again, their claims aren’t true, as our analysis shows.
Frankly, even if they had been true, so what? Isn’t it often the case in General Elections that more papers are slanted towards one party than another?
Unfortunately for Brexit-Deniers, in the case of the EU Referendum the figures show that more readers were being influenced by pro-Remain propaganda than by Leave arguments.
We're fighting hard to see Brexit delivered. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
We will remember them Facts4EU.Org 11 Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the facts and the questions
US Navy veteran being interviewed by Sky yesterday
There's a bright future waiting for us all - young and old alike.
TOO OLD TO VOTE, TOO YOUNG TO DIE ?
(You might be too old to read this)
Yesterday on Sky News, a young reporter questioned an older Trump voter.
“But do you understand that some younger voters might be angry, they are thinking – you know – that ‘this is our future, yet our future has been decided by older voters?’”
After the EU Referendum, how often did you hear questions like that?
Well, we have some questions for the young reporters from Sky, the BBC and ITV, and for all the young Twitterati who posted offensive comments about older voters:-
Should your right to vote weaken with age?
Will your opinion get less sensible and less valuable as you get older?
Does the second half of your life matter less than the first?
Does growing older mean that you won’t care about young people any more?
Would you do things deliberately to disadvantage them?
Should anger from the young intimidate older voters?
Finally, isn't there a law against age discrimination?
"Here's a thought for you, younger voter:- For 43 years - all my life - I've had to live with something I increasingly disliked. Now, people like me have put it right for you, the younger generation.
If after another 43 years you don't like the decision, maybe you'll finally be given a referendum and you can change it. Until then, why don't we all accept the decision and work together to ensure a bright, independent future for us all?"
With youth unemployment raging across EU states for many years, the Commission concentrates on 'More EU'
ALBANIA IS LINED UP FOR EU MEMBERSHIP
EU Commission to start accession talks with Albania
While the World was absorbing the result of the US election on Wednesday, the EU Commission quietly announced its recommendation to start accession talks for Albania to join the EU.
Albania is ranked as poorer than the West Bank and Gaza, by the World Bank
It has been an EU ‘candidate country’ since 2014
6 years ago it was granted visa-free travel to the EU Schengen area
EU Commission now recommends accession proceedings to start
Albanian Population : 2.9 million, bigger than six existing EU member states
GDP : £9.04 billion, (only 1.9% of the UK’s)
Average earnings: £353 per month (1/6th of the UK’s)
The UK taxpayer has already been contributing to the EU's 'development funding' to Albania on an annual basis. The EU Commission's recommendation to start accession talks requires the country to continue to make improvements. Albania will not join overnight. However the start of formal accession talks for a country is a significant step which they EU doesn't take unless they're serious.
THE EU ELITES STILL DON’T GET IT
The elites in Brussels continue to live in their own little world. It seems that the Eurozone’s various crises, the migrant crisis, and the imminent exit of its 2nd-biggest donor country are not enough. The EU’s ‘Enlargement Commissioner’, Austrian Johannes Hahn, is ploughing ahead regardless, encouraging yet more very poor countries to join the EU.
Footnote: It’s interesting how often we find potentially unpopular news being released by the EU when the public’s attention is elsewhere. This was the case on Wednesday following the Trump victory in the USA.
Lawyers for Britain move to support appeal at Supreme Court on Article 50 judgement
LAWYERS FOR BRITAIN TO JOIN COURT ACTION
Government’s appeal to the Supreme Court against the High Court decision on Article 50 will be joined by experts
The barristers at Lawyers For Britain have applied to the Supreme Court, independently of Government, “to make submissions in the public interest”.
They believe “there are arguments which are additional to or different from the arguments put forward by the government which support the conclusion that the appeal should be allowed”.
They go on to say: "The referendum was authorised by Parliament to give effect to a clear and unequivocal pledge in the General Election manifesto of the winning party that the people would decide (not merely advise on) the question of our membership of the EU. We believe that the outcome gives rise to a clear and unambiguous constitutional mandate to implement the people's decision to leave which must be respected by government and Parliament, and reject the suggestion that the referendum was merely 'advisory'."
We completely agree. We read the transcripts of the High Court case and were frankly astonished at the arguments used by the Government’s lawyers.
We wholeheartedly support Lawyers For Britain’s action and wish them every success.
DEAR PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP, Who would you rather be friends with?
BRITISH PRIME MINISTER THERESA MAY :
“I congratulate Donald Trump on becoming the next President of the United States. We are, and will remain, strong and close partners on trade, security and defence. I look forward to working with president-elect Donald Trump, building on these ties to ensure the security and prosperity of our nations in the years ahead.”
Or you could have any of the following EU leaders:-
Martin Schulz, President, EU Parliament
Loves Hillary, hates you.
On radio yesterday he said: “It will be difficult, it will be harder than the previous administration. Let’s hope that he also respects the fundamental values of our sovereign nations.”
German Chancellor, Angela Merkel
Yesterday offered you conditional support, provided you respect: "common values of democracy, freedom, respect for the law and for human dignity irrespective of origin, skin colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political conviction".
French President, Francois Hollande
Delivered a televised speech yesterday which even the French press described as ‘glacial’.
Previously said of you: “His excesses make you want to retch.”
Italian Prime Minister,
Matteo Renzi
“Who would say that Trump would win? It is that way and we respect it.
We will cooperate with the new American president and have a relationship between the EU and Italy.”
Mr Trump, why not upset President Obama and say that you’ll put the UK back to ‘the front of the line’ for trade deals when you become President?
UK export trade to US, despite the EU never having done a trade deal with the US in 59 years
US ELECTIONS – IMPACT ON BREXIT BRITAIN
President, Senate and House are now all Republican
A clean sweep for the Republicans could be good news for a Post-Brexit UK
Below we show the latest results in the elections for President, Senate, and House of Representatives, correct as at 03:20 on Thursday 10th November 2016.
Now for an opinion. We occasionally speak to US organisations involved in political thinking and also monitor US media. Whilst there's no hard evidence yet, we believe the results of the US elections will favour the UK far more than the EU.
Facts4EU.Org is party-neutral in the UK. We do not comment on the elections of other nations, unless they directly affect the UK’s position vis-à-vis Brexit.
We have made no comments about Mr Trump nor Mrs Clinton during their campaigns, but we can now congratulate President-Elect Donald Trump on his victory. We look forward to continued friendly cooperation between the UK and the US.
In April we were critical of the intervention of President Obama in the UK Referendum, when he flew to the UK and supported the Remain campaign. We responded because this was direct interference by the US President in a United Kingdom electoral process. You can read our articles about that here.
09 Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Sketch
REMAINERS LAUNCH HIGH COURT CHALLENGE TO US ELECTION
STOP PRESS : A number of rich individuals, unnamed companies, and Scottish Nationalist, Labour and LibDem MPs have combined to announce a legal challenge at the High Court to the election of Donald Trump.
The BBC reported
“Trump cannae become President without the explicit consent of the devolved administration of Scotland,” said Hooty McHootface, SNP spokesman.
Meanwhile Labour spokesperson Jeremy Corbism commented : “I’ve received an email from Diane of Hackney. She asks how people will cope when Mr Trump takes away their workplace rights?”
The BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire interviewed some children at a local school. One small blond boy called Tim Nice-But-LibDim from the Lower 4th said: “They voted, but did they know what they were voting for?”
It’s understood that the plaintiffs are concerned that the UK’s position ‘at the back of the queue’ of trade deals with the US may be under threat. Their case is also based on the fact that Trump hasn’t yet set out his detailed plans for the height of the wall with Mexico.
The EU is now acting as 'the EU27', in breach of Treaties
As far as the rest of the EU is concerned, Britain has already left.
EU : THE UK IS ALREADY OUT
Remainers think the fight continues but the EU thinks Britain has already left
Last time we looked, there were 28 countries in the EU, but...
The EU Council now refers to ‘the EU27’ in official communications
On 29 June, the EU Council met ‘informally’ as the EU27, without the UK
On 16 Sept the Council met again as the EU27 in Bratislava
On 16 Dec the EU27 will meet again in Brussels
And again on 03 Feb in Malta, and again on 10 March in Rome
THESE ‘EU27’ MEETINGS ARE NOT ABOUT BREXIT
For example on 16th Sept in Bratislava the ‘EU27’ discussed terrorism, external security, the Single Market, the EU-Turkey agreement, the European Border and Coast Guard, and youth unemployment. “The Bratislava Roadmap will guide EU action over the next months,” said President Tusk.
At these meetings of the ‘EU27’, important decisions are being made without the UK which affect many aspects of the UK’s continuing membership.
This will also affect how UK taxpayers' money is spent by the EU.
The UK is currently the second-largest net contributor to the EU. But it will not be present when important decisions are reached.
WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
You can contact us with your views about our articles and we'll publish them here, or you can post your comments at the bottom of the page using Disqus.
We also consider longer articles for a special page we have for this purpose.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the really important facts
Will the UK take legal action against the EU?
If not, why not?
THE UK MUST TAKE THE EU TO COURT
The UK has not yet submitted an Article 50 notice to leave the EU
It remains a full member, must obey Treaties, and must continue to pay
Since June the EU27 have held 2 summit meetings which excluded the UK
3 more EU27 meetings without the UK are already lined up
The ‘EU27’ has no legal status in the EU Treaties
They are making decisions without the UK, in clear breach of EU Treaties
They even developed a ‘Roadmap’ for the coming months for non-Brexit issues
The Council describes the meetings of the EU27 as 'informal'
The facts show they are not.
WHAT IS THE UK GOVERNMENT DOING?
It has been widely reported from EU officials that in October Mrs May insisted that the UK be present at all meetings. These sources said President Tusk rejected this.
If the ‘EU27’ want to deny the UK its rights under the Treaties, we propose that the UK withold all payments to the EU until this situation is reversed.
We further propose that the UK should immediately pursue all possible legal actions against the EU Council and Commission – with the European Court of Justice and international courts - and seek damages.
RESEARCHING, WRITING AND CONDENSING ARTICLES TAKES TIME, THEN CODING EVERYTHING WITH GRAPHS AND PICTURES
We're fighting hard to see Brexit delivered. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the facts
Brexit Secretary Rt Hon David Davis MP
Former Minister Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP
BREXIT SECRETARY AND FORMER MINISTER CONFIRM FACTS4EU.ORG ARTICLE
Yesterday in Parliament, our work was confirmed by Secretary of State David Davis and former Minister Iain Duncan Smith
Brexit Secretary David Davis gave another statement to the House yesterday, following the High Court’s decision not to allow the Government to proceed with Article 50, as mandated by the British people.
The first question to the Secretary of State was from Iain Duncan Smith. IDS referred to the statements of the then Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, as well as the Government-funded leaflet to all households, which we detailed here 4 days ago.
Read it here first, then 4 days later hear it in Parliament...
Non-EU Norway is part of the 'European Economic Area' (EEA), which some 'Soft' Brexit advocates wish the UK to be part of.
As an EEA member and part of Schengen, Norway has just had to have its border controls 'authorised' by the EU for another 3 months.
EU'S SCHENGEN 'NO BORDERS' : DEAD UNTIL 2017
This is how the EU does what it wants when it wants... regardless of EU Treaties
Listening to unelected EU Commission bureaucrats, you would think the EU Treaty and EU regulations are set in stone. Well, it depends who you are.
If you're the UK then the EU insists on its rules, as David Cameron found out to his cost when he tried to re-negotiate with the EU from Nov 2015 to Feb 2016. He was soundly rebuffed.
If you're not the UK, things are different:
For 6 months the EU has allowed 5 countries to have border controls
This broke EU Schengen rules, so they created a new rule
Now the EU has decided they can control their borders for another 3 months
The countries are: Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway
Norway - not even a member of the EU, but part of the EEA so the EU rules apply to them too
(Remember this the next time Remainers argue for what they call a 'Soft Brexit')
The first EU Directive on this was on 9th March. The latest from the EU Commission will shortly be implemented, and the link is in 'sources' below.
This is a public service announcement from Facts4EU.Org
Osbo-Camorageddon virus (variant Junck_1)
REMAINERITIS - A DOCTOR WRITES
Are you feeling uncertain and fearful? Are you experiencing headaches, distress, ongoing worry and tension, and an unrealistic view of simple challenges? Are you suffering from self-doubt, lack of self-confidence, and chronic confused self-identity syndrome?
Do you suspect you might have obsessive institutional co-dependency and separation anxiety? Are uncomfortably-positive facts distorting your post-Brexit vision?
Don’t worry. All of this is treatable.
These symptoms are the most common side effects of prolonged EU membership. In many people this was further exacerbated by exposure to the Osbo-Camorageddon virus, of which there was a serious outbreak during the Referendum campaign.
You may even have developed the virulent strain of this disease, known by we doctors as "OsboCam variant_Junck", which can lead to severe delusions and a habit of answering all questions with “more Europe”.
Fortunately there’s a simple cure. If you go to your GP he can prescribe ‘Article 50’, a painless formula which is soluble, easily digested, and only needs to be taken once. You will start feeling better immediately and you’ll be fully cured within two years.
Massive EU compensation payments envisaged for North African countries to accept boats
EU TO SPEND BILLIONS ON MIGRANT WATER TAXIS
African migrant boats to be turned back – proposal by German government
Yesterday, a serious German Sunday reported that their Home Office proposes that the EU turns around Mediterranean migrant boats and takes them back to Africa.
Boats full of migrants, turned around
Proposed by liberal Germany, according to their Home Office
Boats taken to Egypt or Tunisia, not Libya where they departed from
If this proposal succeeds, there will be huge EU bribes for Egypt and Tunisia to take in these migrants
Welt Am Sonntag reports "In October alone, the Italian authorities counted around 28,000 new asylum seekers - nearly three times as many as in the same period last year. Many of them try to travel to other EU countries.”
EU HYPOCRISY Mainstream politicians in the EU are now adopting what they would previously called ‘far-right’ thinking. This latest example comes from Germany, home of Angela Merkel’s “All Welcome” immigration policy which she suddenly inflicted on the whole EU from Aug 2015.
Naturally Frau Merkel will propose that the EU pays billions in compensation to the countries concerned, just as she got the EU to pay Turkey €6 billion euros for the deal she did with Mr Erdogan.
Nearly 3 times the population of President Juncker's country, Luxembourg
Frankly we don't believe the official EU statistics, based on a lot of experience analysing them and frequently seeing them being 'revised' dramatically once the media have lost interest.
It's our opinion that 'bad news' statistics are in reality much higher.
Even if we take the EU's official figures, the EU admits to the equivalent of almost 3 Luxembourgs - President Juncker's home country - having applied for EU asylum last year.
President of EU Commission Jean-Claude Juncker, kissing Angela Merkel
Has Juncker now completely lost it?
JUNCKER’S MEGALOMANIA SCALES NEW HEIGHTS
EU Commission President bans EU companies from talking to UK companies
In an interview with Belgium’s ‘Le Soir’ newspaper on Friday, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker appears to have overstepped even his own inflated views of his unelected powers.
The EU Commission President now seems to think he can ban commercial companies within the EU from talking to UK firms about the post-Brexit future.
"I take issue with the attempts in some countries, especially in industrial circles, to reach an agreement with the British for their sector before the other 27 (member states) have spoken," said Juncker.
"I told them not to interfere in the debate because they will find me in their way. This is a negotiation between the 27 and the United Kingdom."
The interview is headlined: «Il y a un sérieux problème de gouvernance en Europe» or ‘There is a serious governance problem in the EU’. We’re tempted to respond: ‘No kidding, Sherlock’, but we fear it would be wasted on Herr Juncker.
Can the BBC, Sky, and ITV please start reporting on this nonsense, so that the British public knows what the EU is really like? After years of monitoring the EU, and seeing key EU stories completely ignored by the mainstream TV media, we think the public should see them.
Brexit stories are never off our screens and the public deserve to be better informed. Just a few clips from debates in the EU Parliament, a few televised statements from Juncker, and some regular updates on how the EU is dealing with Brexit – like this one – would help to inform so many more people.
Rt Hon Jeremy Corbyn MP, leader of the Labour Party
Corbyn sets out strange conditions for supporting Article 50 vote
Note: Facts4EU.Org maintains a neutral stance on political parties.
We comment and criticise purely on the basis of politicians' statements and policies about the EU and Brexit.
CORBYN’S BIZARRE NEW CONDITIONS FOR BREXIT
Labour leader sets out 4 red lines for PM, before he will support Article 50 vote
Sunday Mirror’s headline for its exclusive interview : “Jeremy Corbyn gives Theresa May ultimatum: Agree to Labour's Brexit terms or I'll force election in spring”.
Here are Mr Corbyn’s 4 ‘bottom lines’:
UK access to 500 million customers in Europe’s single market
No watering down of EU workplace rights
Guarantees on safeguarding consumers and the environment
Pledges on Britain picking up the tab for any EU capital investment lost by Brexit
[We analyse these peculiar 'bottom lines' in an article below this one.]
Mr Corbyn said he would vote against Mrs May triggering Article 50 unless she adopted his ‘Brexit bottom lines’. In a strange piece of illogic, Mr Corbyn went on to say “We accept the result of the referendum. We are not challenging the referendum.”
Mr Corbyn, if you accept the result of the Referendum, that means the Government must invoke Article 50 to leave the EU. The public weren’t asked to impose conditions on this, it was a simple in/out question. They answered that question with a Leave vote and therefore this is what needs to happen.
The question on the ballot paper wasn’t : “Should the UK remain a member of the EU, or leave the EU based on 4 bottom lines yet to be decided by a rather scruffy geography teacher from Islington?"
The question was a binary one – to remain a member or to leave. The people chose to leave. Simple.
The Editors and journalists at the Guardian/Observer were clearly so embarrassed by Mr Corbyn's new 'Brexit Bottom Lines' that they buried it down amongst their 'Around the World' news:
Rt Hon Jeremy Corbyn MP, leader of the Labour Party
Analysis of Corbyn's bizarre conditions for supporting Article 50 vote
DID ANYONE CHECK CORBYN'S HOMEWORK?
Labour leader submits 4 red lines for PM, before he will support Article 50 vote
Here we mark his homework.
CORBYN’S 4 ‘BOTTOM LINES’:
"UK access to 500 million customers in Europe’s single market"
Access isn't disputed - 165 countries around the World have access to the EU's single market. If he means membership of the single market, that is incompatible with the decision to leave the EU.
P.S. The EU's population minus the UK is 443 million, not 500 million. P.P.S. And the single market is not "Europe's", it's the EU's.
"No watering down of EU workplace rights"
The Government has already committed that all EU law will be incorporated into UK law via the Great Repeal Bill, and many 'EU workplace rights' are in fact not as good as the UK's own rights and laws on these matters. Do try to keep up, Corbyn.
P.S. No Government can guarantee laws in perpetuity, because one Parliament cannot bind its successors.
"Guarantees on safeguarding consumers and the environment"
Consumer rights and environmental protection are contained within UK law and the laws which will continue via the Great Repeal Bill. Future governments of any hue will be free to decide these matters in the future and legislate on them in Parliament.
"Pledges on Britain picking up the tab for any EU capital investment lost by Brexit"
Capital investment decisions using public taxpayer money should be a matter for the UK Government. The public vote in General Elections to decide on the government they would prefer.
P.S. One of the many benefits of being outside the EU is that in future a large chunk of UK taxpayers' money will not be spent on projects decided in Brussels.
Homework by Corbyn - marks: 2/10. Must try harder.
We can only imagine what senior Labour MPs will think when they open the Sunday Mirror this morning and read Mr Corbyn's interview and his '4 bottom lines' for Mrs May.
We can almost hear them spluttering over their Fair Trade premium muesli from here...
The next time a Brexit-denying MP or member of the unelected House of Lords talks about Parliament needing to 'have a say', our TV journalists might question them more closely.
"Most days in the Commons since the referendum the issue of Brexit has come up. There have been several government statements. There has been an Opposition day debate. There have been Questions to each of the 3 leading Brexit Ministers. There have been Questions to the PM.
On Monday there will be another all day debate when MPs can range widely, expressing their views on how leaving should be handled and what should be in the negotiations. If the Opposition wanted a vote on sending an Article 50 letter they can have one on any Opposition day they like."
- A senior Tory MP reflecting on this issue yesterday
How Clegg suffers for his pro-EU anti-democratic views
On November 5th
We present 'The Bonfire of the Vanity'
NICK CLEGG PAID £9,000 PER HOUR BY GOLDMAN SACHS
Next time Nick Clegg tells you that the EU Referendum result from the British people must be ‘amended’ by Parliament and the unelected House of Lords, remember:
In January Mr Clegg declared a payment of £22,500 by pro-Remain Goldman Sachs International, for giving just one speech. So that’s a rate of £9,000 per hour, received by Mr Clegg from Goldman Sachs, whose earnings from EU work are legendary.
Barclays were luckier. They got a special deal from Mr Clegg in February, paying him £36,660 but equating to only £7,000 per hour.
This was supplemented by a payment of £30,000 in April from Swiss-based pharmaceuticals billionaire Frederik Paulsen, for a speech and Q&A in Geneva. All travel expenses paid on top, naturally. Alas, only £5,000 per hour for Mr Clegg from Mr Paulsen.
Fortunately, prior to this Mr Clegg was able to secure a speaking gig at law firm King and Wood Mallesons, who describe themselves as “the global elite firm for the next century”. He received £10,560 for 30 minutes, which is a much more respectable rate if pay, at
£21,120 per hour (And no, that’s not a misprint.)
The Pounds per hour figures given above are based on Mr Clegg's own submissions to the House of Commons Register of Members' Interests.
WANT TO COMMENT?
You can contact us with your views about our articles and we'll publish them here, or you can post your comments at the bottom of the page using Disqus. We allow all comments as long as they're not simply abusive!
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the facts
Doesn't he just make you proud to be British...?
Clegg's earnings from non-Parliamentary work in the last 12 months are:
£214,350
This includes £22,500 from Goldman Sachs, £33,660 from Barclays, and £10,560 from an international law firm...
For just 3 speeches
(This is in addition to his salary as an MP and LibDem Europe spokesman.)
SATURDAY OPINION PIECE
NICK CLEGG - NATIONAL DISGRACE
Does fanatical Europhile and failed LibDem leader Nick Clegg actually consider the United Kingdom to be his country?
In the last 18 months, millionaire Clegg has suffered two crushing defeats from the British people. Firstly when he led his party to the devastating loss of 49 seats in the 2015 General Election, leaving them with a small rump of 8 MPs led by a small man with blond hair.
His second defeat was in the Referendum where his faux-sincere smile, patronising attitude, and insufferable and untrue nonsense in favour of the EU, drove otherwise-sane people to hurl the nearest thing to hand at the television.
So ubiquitous was he on our screens during the Referendum campaign that it sometimes took three channel-hops with the remote control, before his infuriating grin was replaced by a more honest face – even if that face was also spouting pro-Remain propaganda.
Alas this was so often the case with our taxpayer-funded broadcaster, as well as with ITV and Sky News. However at that point, generally anyone was better than Clegg.
On yesterday’s BBC Today Programme, Clegg said he would oppose an Article 50 vote in Parliament and made clear he is organising unelected opposition to it in the House of Lords.
"We will seek... to amend the legislation such that Parliament would say to Government that it should pursue a soft Brexit not a hard Brexit." - Clegg
As informed readers know, there isn’t a Hard or Soft Brexit - there is Brexit or no Brexit. However to Clegg this means:"Hang on a minute, we are not sure we are going to give you the consent to proceed on that basis."
Theresa Villiers MP, also a guest on the Today Programme, told Clegg:"Frankly I think it would be a constitutional outrage if unelected Liberal Democrat peers were to stand in the way of a clear result of a referendum in which 33 million people took part."We agree.
Brexit Minister David Jones MP said:"Nick Clegg has given the game away. He didn't like the answer the people gave in the referendum and now he's admitted he wants to work with other parties to try to block the process of Britain leaving the EU. It is profoundly antidemocratic."
Clegg is half-Dutch and the grandson of a member of Russia’s Tsarist nobility. Some would say that this explains his blend of naive idealism and an autocratic desire to rule absolutely.
He was certainly at home in the corridors of unelected power at the EU Commission, where he worked as a bureaucrat from 1994-1999. In fact, Clegg has only ever worked in journalism, lobbying, bureaucracy and politics.
If you think we’ve been a bit harsh on this national disgrace of a man, please don’t. He will continue to ride the EU gravy-train for the rest of his life. Even if he stopped working in politics tomorrow (oh sweet dream), he will still have his generous EU pension, his MP’s pension, his royalties from his books, and much more besides.
Former Minister calls for Parliamentary motion to submit Article 50 now
SENIOR BREXITEER NOW CALLS FOR VOTE, THEN IMMEDIATE ARTICLE 50 LETTER
A senior ex-Minister and leading Brexiteer has today called for a motion to be debated in the House of Commons, followed by the sending of the Article 50 letter to Brussels, to start the process of leaving the EU.
The Rt Hon John Redwood MP has this morning proposed the following motion be moved in Parliament:
“This House approves the sending of an Article 50 letter in accordance with the wishes of the people as expressed in the referendum, any judgement of the courts notwithstanding.”
Significantly he adds: “The government should then send the letter.”
Other leading Brexiteers have panned the High Court judgement yesterday, which effectively denies the Government the right to obey the mandate of the British people to leave the EU, without prior approval by Parliament.
We've taken the liberty of drafting an Emergency Bill to be presented to the House on Monday and then rushed through both Houses using the emergency procedures.
Yours faithfully,
The Facts4EU.Org Team
A PROPOSED SOLUTION, FROM FACTS4EU.ORG
AN EMERGENCY BILL TO
Authorise Her Majesty’s Government to honour and obey the clear decision and instruction from the British Electorate arising from the European Union Referendum of 23rd June 2016
WHEREAS
It was decided by the Electorate in the Referendum that the United Kingdom should leave the European Union
The Government committed to the Electorate and to this House to submit an immediate notice known as ‘Article 50’ to give effect to any such decision to leave
The Minister of State for Europe and the Secretary of State for the Foreign Office committed to this House that there would be no further process in this House prior to submitting the Article 50 Letter
BE IT ENACTED by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-
1. That the Government deliver a letter to the European Council in the agreed form and manner as specified in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, notifying the European Union of the decision of the British people that the United Kingdom wishes to terminate its membership
2. That this formal notification known as the Article 50 Letter must be delivered to the European Council within two hours following grant of Royal Assent.
Ordered, by The House of Commons, to be Printed, 7 November 2016.
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the facts
Former Europe Minister, current Leader of the House, David Lidington MP
Former Foreign Secretary, current Chancellor, Philip Hammond MP
Both gentlemen made clear to the House of Commons that the Referendum was binding and that Article 50 would be invoked by the Government, with no further process, if the people voted Leave
FOREIGN SECRETARY AND EUROPE MINISTER COMMITTED IN PARLIAMENT TO INVOKE ARTICLE 50 WITH NO FURTHER PROCESS
The Government committed that the Referendum vote would be treated as an instruction and that Article 50 would be invoked with no further process in Parliament. The people voted in the Referendum to tell the Government to leave the European Union.
Informing our European partners that the UK will leave the EU has nothing to do with the negotiations, which can’t even start until the Article 50 letter has been sent. This is only about sending that letter to the Council of Europe, announcing the UK’s intention to leave the EU.
MPs who are trying to conflate the Article 50 letter with the nature of the Government’s negotiations are simply Brexit deniers, pretending to obey the will of the people but in reality doing everything they can to thwart it.
We have consistently argued starting from June 27th that Article 50 should be invoked straight away. Our argument was that invoking Article 50 was essential to stop Brexit deniers from trying to obstruct and overturn the Referendum result. It gives us no pleasure to have been proved right.
On February 25th both the pro-Remain Foreign Secretary and the pro-Remain Europe Minister clearly told MPs that the decision on whether to trigger Article 50 would be a decision for the government, not for Parliament.
Here’s Philip Hammond, then Foreign Secretary, now Chancellor of the Exchequer, addressing Parliament in February:-
“Let me be clear; the Government will respect the outcome of the referendum, whatever the result. There will be no second referendum. The propositions on the ballot paper are clear, and I want to be equally clear today.”
“Leave means leave, and a vote to leave will trigger a notice under article 50. To do otherwise in the event of a vote to leave would represent a complete disregard of the will of the people. No individual, no matter how charismatic or prominent, has the right or the power to redefine unilaterally the meaning of the question on the ballot paper.”
“A vote to leave would trigger a fixed two-year time period under the treaty for the UK to negotiate the terms of our exit from, and our future relationship with, the EU.”
“...the Government will regard themselves as being bound by the decision of the referendum and will proceed with serving an article 50 notice.”
“It is the Government’s position that if the electorate give a clear decision in this referendum to leave, the Government will proceed to serve an article 50 notice; there will be no need for a further process in this House.”
Can he have been any clearer?
And here’s the then Minister of State for Europe, now Leader of the House of Commons, David Lidington, also addressing Parliament in February:
“It is for the Government of the United Kingdom … to decide whether to trigger an article 50 process after such a referendum result.”
“The United Kingdom is the signatory to the European treaties, and therefore it is the UK Government who take the decision on whether to invoke article 50.”
“This is your decision. The Government will implement what you decide.”
As pro-Remain MPs were not sufficiently bothered to do that before the vote we can’t see how they or anyone else could maintain they have any right to change the rules now that the vote has gone the “wrong” way for them.
Distinguished QC specialising in EU affairs, Martin Howe
Barrister from Lawyers for Britain, Francis Hoar
LEGAL OPINION BY 'LAWYERS FOR BRITAIN'
"A Deeply Troubling and Wrong-Headed Decision"
" When it comes to using the prerogative for “less Europe”, there are implied limitations which do not seem to exist for “more Europe”.
On 3rd November 2016 the Divisional Court handed down its judgment in R (Miller) -V- Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2016] EWHC 2768 (Admin). The court has, to the surprise of most informed observers, decided that it is outside the prerogative powers of the Crown for notice to be given under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union to withdraw from the European Union.
In reaching this decision, the judgment has overturned the accepted understanding about the respective power of the Crown on the international plane to accede to and withdraw from international treaties, and the powers of Parliament to alter the internal law of the United Kingdom.
The European Communities Act 1972 was a constitutional innovation for the United Kingdom. It linked international treaties directly to the internal law of the United Kingdom by giving the European Treaties and supranational legislation made under them so called “direct effect.” That means that they have force in UK internal law - and therefore alter the content of the law - without recourse to Parliament.
The judgment argues that this feature of the 1972 Act means that the Crown has no power to withdraw from the EU treaties, because doing so would have the effect of altering domestic law, which only Parliament can do.
This argument is illogical and does not hold water. There are many acts which the government can carry out on the international plane under the European treaties which have the effect of altering UK domestic law, and in doing so either confer rights on people or deprive them of rights. Whenever the UK representative on the Council of Ministers joins in passing into law a directly applicable EU Regulation then the Crown in using the prerogative power to alter internal UK law without that alteration of the law going through Parliament. This is simply a consequence of the direct effect machinery of the 1972 Act.
So why should it be OK to have “more Europe” through exercise of the prerogative power, but wrong to have “less Europe” as a result of Article 50 being invoked and the direct effect parts of EU law ceasing to apply within the UK? Nothing in the wording of the 1972 Act supports such a distinction.
There is a further reason why this decision flies in the face of the obvious intention of Parliament. The Lisbon Treaty, which inserted Article 50 into the Treaty on European Union, was given effect in UK law by the European Union (Amendment) Act 2008. That Act therefore made the Article 50 power available for use by the Crown but did not specify that its exercise would need the approval of Parliament. That Act however explicitly provides for Parliamentary control over certain prerogative acts under the EU treaties, including Article 49 on Treaty revision. But notably, the statutory scheme of Parliamentary control of prerogative power does not extend to notifications under Article 50.
There has a been a long string of attempted challenges to the use of the prerogative power to extend EEC or EU powers, all of which have been rejected by the courts, sometimes in peremptory terms. However, when the prerogative is used to achieve “less Europe” in order to implement the decision of the British people which an Act of Parliament empowered them to take, it is suddenly found that there are implied limitations on the prerogative power which prevent it being used for this purpose.
We welcome the decision of the government to appeal from this judgment. We hope that the Supreme Court will apply the law in a more orthodox and logical way, allowing the government to fulfil its promise to the British people to implement their clear decision."
Martin Howe QC, Thomas Sharpe QC, Clive Thorne, Francis Hoar - from Lawyers for Britain
We consider this to be an excellent summary of the position.
3 HIGH COURT JUDGES THROW REFERENDUM RESULT BACK IN THE FACES OF 17.4 MILLION VOTERS
We’re limited in what we can say about their Lordships’ extraordinary decision to prevent the Government from acting on the declared will of the British people to leave the European Union by invoking Article 50.
The Government has immediately announced its intention to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, but this appeal is unlikely to be heard before early December. A decision is then unlikely before the end of the year.
Sir Jeremy Heywood KCB CVO, Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service
HOW WE WERE LEFT UNPREPARED FOR BREXIT
“The Civil Service did its job” – Blog by Sir Jeremy Heywood, Head of Civil Service, 01 Nov
“Oh no it didn’t” – The Facts4EU.org Team, 03 Nov 2016
The Head of the Civil Service has just blogged about Brexit. In his blog Sir Jeremy claims the Service did its job in the run-up to the Referendum. This can’t go unchallenged.
THE APPROACH OF THE CIVIL SERVICE
On pre-Referendum activity: “…to carry on business as usual and reflect the position of the government of the day on EU membership”.
Yes, that’s exactly what they did. With no attempt to make any balanced assessments of the Leave position, which in the end was the majority opinion and decision of the country they serve.
Heywood continues: “...while doing whatever useful preparatory work we could against the possibility that the referendum outcome went against the Government’s position.” Note the first instance of the word ‘against’ which we’ve underlined. Clearly a possible Leave vote was a ghastly prospect and therefore the Civil Service wanted to prepare ‘against’ such an outcome.
This may sound like pedantry, but the distinction is highly significant and indicates the mood. If Heywood and his thousands of mandarins were truly impartial, they would have been preparing “for” something, not “against” it. You don't normally “prepare against” something unless you’re actively fighting it...
Heywood went on: “The question has still been asked: ‘What was the Civil Service doing before the referendum? Where is the Brexit plan?’ This shows little appreciation of the constitutional and propriety framework in which we operate...”
In other words, we’re all stupid. Where have we heard that before?
WHAT HEYWOOD SAYS THEY DID
Heywood claims the Civil Service were very busy running the country. Nevertheless “we used the time available to do important work… to understand the possible alternatives to EU membership, such as the requirements for membership of the European Free Trade Association; the sort of trade agreements reached by other countries outside the EU; what Brexit might mean for the economy...”
So, his first example is that they worked to understand “the requirements for membership of the European Free Trade Association”? EFTA comprises only Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Vote Leave campaign specifically excluded the possibility of having a post-Brexit deal like any of these countries. In any event EFTA has a website, Mr Heywood, and it doesn’t take long to read it.
In fact this seems at odds with his evidence to the Select Committee on 14th Sept, when Heywood said “Obviously there is no particular model that the Prime Minister is looking to adopt. We want a British model, not a pre-existing model that does not work for us.”
His second example: “the sort of trade agreements reached by other countries outside the EU”. Really? The Civil Service didn’t already know how the rest of the World works?
His third example: “what Brexit might mean for the economy”. Well, we all know what that meant to the Civil Service - it was encapsulated in the now discredited Treasury Report (see below).
Finally, in his evidence to the Select Committee we begin to see the reality of the ‘work’ which the Civil Service did. He referred to it as “the policy thinking that we started to do in our heads”.
Well, I’ve been developing a policy in my head to fix the garden fence...
OBLIGATIONS ON THE CIVIL SERVICE
The Civil Service has a duty to be above politics. “During the official referendum campaign, we were scrupulous in making sure that all documents issued were factually correct and objective.”
Er, no you didn’t, Sir Jeremy. What about the infamous 202-page Treasury Report claiming every family would be £4,300 worse off?
Even the pro-Remain Chancellor said last week that “Some of those assumptions [in the report] have already proved to be invalid… The Government’s position is that we will not be seeking to pursue any of these modelled outcomes”.
We can’t think of any output whatsoever from the Civil Service which presented the Leave case impartially.
SIR JEREMY’S DEFENCE
Heywood’s argument, in his blog and in his evidence to the Select Committee, is that the Referendum wasn’t like a General Election, where the Civil Service conduct detailed preparations for each possible outcome.
“...we did not have the equivalent of a manifesto commitment that we could plan against as you would have in a general election period. We did... in that last 28 days, look at what was being said by people advocating Leave and try to understand what were the issues—the policy issues—that were likely to immediately arise on 24 June in that case.” (Evidence to Select Committee)
Really? We and a huge number of others, including the official Vote Leave campaign and the Leave.EU campaign prepared vast quantities of material. However Heywood’s team were supporting the Government’s position, and so it seems they weren’t interested. If they had been, it was all there.
At the start of his blog, Heywood says: “It is difficult to exaggerate the historical importance of this decision. At the same time, its full implications and impact on the political, economic and social life of the country and the UK’s role in the world will probably only become clear from the perspective of future decades.”
And in his evidence to the Select Committee he said: “We did not do the equivalent of what we would do at the time of a general election, and we did not develop our own plan because I do not think that is the Civil Service’s job.”
In other words, the Referendum was far more important than any General Election, and yet the Civil Service did virtually nothing to prepare for one of only two possible results.
The latest British Retail Consortium-Nielsen index shows continued great news for Post-Brexit-vote shoppers
Forget the doom and gloom of the pro-Remain MPs and so-called ‘experts’. Shop prices are still falling, according to the recognised survey on such things.
The British Retail Consortium’s Nielsen index shows yet another fall of 1.7% in October, compared to a year ago. This follows on the heels of falls of 1.8% last month, 1.6% in August, and 2% in July.
In the coming year we can expect to see this trend reversed – the price of oil has increased significantly, which tends to affect the cost of most items, and the fall in the pound will have an impact. However this is the 4th month in a row since the Referendum that we’ve seen shop prices continuing to become cheaper.
Perhaps the Press Officers sitting in Government Depts might now shake off their post-Referendum despair and start promoting Britain rather than talking it down?
Almost daily there is news confounding the wild and scary claims of Project Fear. Just last week the ONS released its official figures showing a 0.5% growth in the economy over the last 3 months, compared to an immediate fall of -0.1% to -1% predicted by the Treasury. The Chancellor and his Dept couldn’t have been more wrong.
In response, Brexit deniers can only really talk about the drop in the value of the pound, and the BBC makes sure it gives this almost daily coverage.
So what’s the reality?
The pound has been falling for years
At the end of 2007, the pound was worth almost $2.00 – by end 2015 it was down to $1.49
That’s a drop of 25% - and with no Brexit in sight
Now let’s look at the drop since Referendum day
From 23 June to last night, the pound had fallen 17.46% against the dollar
8 years ago in exactly the same period, the pound fell 17.54% against the dollar
In other words, the pound’s fall in value since the Brexit vote is not the biggest on record, as many would have us believe. And the pound has fallen for many years against the dollar, without so much as a whisper of Brexit to cause this.
It’s true that the pound’s fall will increase inflation, but it’s equally true that the same fall is boosting the UK’s exports.
There will undoubtedly be a period of adjustment for the UK economy, but the outlook over the coming years remains very rosy.
WANT TO COMMENT?
You can contact us with your views about our articles and we'll publish them here, or you can post your comments at the bottom of the page using Disqus. We allow all comments as long as they're not simply abusive!
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations. Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us going.
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
OPINION PIECE
AIRBNB INC - GLOBAL THOUGHT POLICE FOR EU CITIZENS
Accept their politics, or from today you won’t be able to host or travel using Airbnb
Ireland-based Airbnb is a subsidiary of a US corporation – a major global provider of holiday accommodation listings in Europe.
With effect from today 1st Nov, all property owners AND holidaymakers must accept a non-discrimination clause. If owners refuse, their listing is removed, and all existing bookings are cancelled. Holidaymakers must also accept the Airbnb world view.
The email from Airbnb gave only 72 hours’ notice of this ‘Community Commitment’ and says: “You commit to treat everyone - regardless of race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or age—with respect, and without judgment or bias.”
Apparently B&B and house rental owners who might want control over who comes into their homes are no longer welcome to use the service: “If you do not agree to comply with the policy, you won’t be able to host or travel using Airbnb.”
Regular readers know that we almost never write on matters which aren’t directly related to the UK’s membership of the EU. However this kind of global ‘groupthink’ goes too far. It affects all European citizens. When large corporations start to dictate their own philosophies across the globe we have to speak out.
Note that this policy is global. It does not require accommodation providers nor holidaymakers simply to obey the laws of the country they are in. It imposes a global political requirement of the corporation.
You might agree with this particular philosophy but that's not the point and we make no comment on that. Imagine if the philosophy were the antithesis of what you believe in?
What's next? Will computer and smartphone manufacturers require us to promise not to use their devices for writing something which doesn't fit their corporate political philosophies?
[ If you wish to comment to Airbnb, the email address for comments on their policy is: allbelong@airbnb.com ] 01 Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
Bringing you the facts
Prime Minister Theresa May
Mr Corbyn could usefully press Mrs May on her plans tomorrow
“OPERATE WITHIN THE SINGLE EUROPEAN MARKET” ?
Last week, Mrs May used this phrase twice in PMQs. What did she mean?
“What we want to see is the best possible arrangement for trade with, and operation within, the single European market for businesses in goods and services here in the United Kingdom.”
“I have been very clear that we want to trade freely - both trade with, and operate within, the single European market.”
Theresa May, Prime Minister's Questions, 26 Oct 2016
It would be surprising if this new form of words were accidental. The PM knows how carefully her words on Brexit are studied, both in the UK and in the corridors of power in Brussels.
Mrs May’s expression opens the door to doubt. There are 2 issues:
To “operate within” sounds uncomfortably close to “stay in”, and
Is the “single European market” the same as the “Single Market”?
Are these new formulations designed to fudge the issue either for UK voters or EU ones? Any suggestion that the UK could stay in the Single Market would be completely unacceptable.
The majority voted to leave the EU and this means leaving the Single Market with its insistence on freedom of movement, submission to the European Court, annual payments to the EU, and overall entanglement with everything associated with being an EU member state.
At PMQs tomorrow, perhaps Mrs May could clarify what she meant?
Get essential pro-Brexit factual news in your inbox weekly.
We email the key facts only when there's something important to know. Your details are of course kept confidential and you can unsubscribe at any time.
We produced some great news items in the last few months -
Our pieces get picked up by MPs asking questions in Parliament, by mainstream journalists, and by thinktankers.
These articles generally take many hours of research, writing, editing, coding and production. Can you help us to fund this work?
You don't need to have a Paypal account to do this - you can just use your credit card. Please contact us for other ways of donating.
We're a small not-for-profit team, relying on voluntary donations.
Please donate whatever you can afford, to keep us fighting.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
FACTS4EU.ORG
"O BREXIT, MY BREXIT !"
Have you had your say yet? This is rapidly becoming one of our most popular pages. Your chance to describe to Ministers the Brexit you voted for.
5 simple questions - Read the opinions on the new 'O Brexit, My Brexit !' page and then submit your thoughts.
Facts4EU.Org Nov 2016
We rely on donations from the Public and from sympathetic benefactors.
Please read our 'Help Needed' page for details.
Facts4eu.org is non party-political and not supported by any Brexit campaign.
We present facts we've researched from official government and EU sources.
Now that the Referendum has been won, we have 2 main aims:
1. To provide bullet-pointed and factual summaries of key points, to help people to ensure Brexit is delivered in full.
2. Crucially, to allow MPs and campaigners to give reliable and consistent facts to the public.
Please don't hesitate to contact the Editors if you can volunteer in some way, and particularly if you can support us financially.
NEUTRALITY: Facts4eu.org focuses on information which shows that the UK is better off regaining its independence and growing globally. The entire weight of the Establishment is promoting the opposite case, so this site is just one small voice trying to redress the balance.
