This petition calls for the withdrawal of Article 50 by 1 September 2018 if no agreement on future relations between the EU and UK can be reached.
As it is certain that such a scenario will damage the country’s economy and the well-being of its people, this country should not leave without agreements that will prevent damage to both.
On Saturday 21st Oct, SSTIE, sponsored by WKEM, ran an all day Remainers to Campaigners workshop at Sevenoaks Community Center which attracted 96 delegates from across the South East.
The event, which was described as “highly inspiring” by many of the participants, had a highly ambitious agenda, covering all aspects of remain campaigning from practical issues such as setting up a local groups and establishing communication channels, to discussions over the importance of remaining in the EU, and the political and psychological barriers that need to be overcome. Continue reading “Remainers to Campaigners – Workshop Report”
The Conservative Party Conference in Manchester marks the end of the conference season, and as it is the conference of the party in government, it also demands the most attention.
Brexit is essentially a revolutionary ideology, and as such, it really is ideologically incompatible with conservatism, which abhors change.
If you believe that it’s time to send the Brexiteers back to the back-benches where they belong, and let some cooler heads take over, then join us on the first of October in Manchester as we march on the Conservative Party Conference to demand that Brexit is stopped! Continue reading “Stop Brexit in Manchester – Oct 1st”
Over the coming weeks, the #StopBrexit movement will be at all the major UK-wide party conferences, talking to party members and MPs, the local public and the media. At each stop there are different debates to be had and different dynamics to be built. No one UK party can stop Brexit. There needs to be new thinking and brave action inside each major party, as well as new dialogue across parties driven on by a turning tide of public awareness.
The Liberal Democrat Conference is the first in the autumn party conference season – and for the Remain movement, it is a key event. Continue reading “Stop Brexit in Bournemouth – Sept 17th”
Strolling along the quiet fishing quay at Scheveningen, I met an old fisherman who said he hoped Brexit would not happen because then they would not be able to fish in English waters. – He himself had already given up fishing and become a lorry driver instead. The Scheveningen commercial fishing fleet consists of about 8 substantial ships (one of them sailing under a German flag), each of which I measured out as typically 70 to 90 meters long. Only a few weeks before they had taken part in a protest at sea against other fleets who had been catching under-size fish. Their slogan: “give little fishes a second chance”
The North Sea is divided according to the 12 Mile coastal zone which is protected by the London Fisheries Convention of 1964 and out of which all foreign fishermen are excluded unless given a special license (very few have this license). Then it is divided by the mid-way line in lieu of the 200 Mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which is protected by the United Nations. The continental half of the North Sea is shared by Norway, Denmark, Germany, Holland, Belgium, and France. (https://www.nrc.nl/)
The Dutch fishing industry supports about 600 businesses; employs a crew of 2,000 and is worth about 1 Billion Euro per annum. They mainly fish for Plaice, Sole and Herring. (Herring is as important to the Dutch culture and national identity as is say Grouse or Haggis is to Scotland; they even have a national day to mark the start of the Herring season.) – On the other hand, the British preference is for Haddock and Cod. (Think of how important “Fish & Chips” is to our culture and national identity.)
The eight continental fishing lands get about one third of their catch from the British zone; with the Dutch taking 80% of their Herring, 60% of their Mackerel and 35% of their Plaice from the Western half of the North Sea. (Gerard van Balsfoort, chairman European Fisheries Alliance: http://fisheriesalliance.eu/) Loosing these sources will hit the Dutch fishing industries hard. One can expect lay-offs, business closures and ships being de-commissioned. (And even with the best will in the world, compensation will be demanded.) – But one can also expect losses on the English side as they lose access to Haddock and Cod which may be in the Eastern Sector. This can only be good news for the fish as the Herring learn to hide in the West and the Cod learn to hide in the East! – But I cannot imagine any fisherman allowing this situation to last for long. Besides, Dutch Fishermen have been granted Freedom of the City of London in perpetuity for their generous act of feeding Londoners in the havoc that followed the great fire of 1666. This freedom entitles them to land their catch in London for all eternity.
The Restoring Integrity to Democracy initiative has decided to discontinue this case on financial grounds. For more info please see the statement on the Restoring Integrity facebook page.
Restoring Integrity is a citizens initiative that seeks to ensure that the UK’s Election Laws are upheld – and that any attempt to undermine the democratic process by breaking these election laws is prosecuted to the fullest extent under the law.
They are currently raising funds for their new legal challenge – a private prosecution to investigate “undue influence” in the 2016 EU referendum and to criminally prosecute the individuals responsible of any corrupt campaign practices.
More details on the case are available on the Restoring Integrity website, and you can also follow them on facebook or twitter.
However, to make this case happen, it still requires a lot more funds than the £15,000 raised so far. So please give what you can to the crowd-justice fundraiser and encourage others to do likewise!
