Who remembers 14 January 1963 when the President of France, Charles de Gaulle, announced the French veto on Britain's application to join the European Common Market, the forerunner of the European Union. De Gaulle said the British government lacked 'commitment' to European integration.
Surely not.
(Ironically almost everyone in Britain objected to the veto and the subsequent one later in the 60s. . Those who wanted to join the Common Market were upset at not being allowed to do so. Those who didn't want to join saw it as typical intervention by the French, and in particular, blamed an 'ungrateful' De Gaulle who should have been thankful for our support during the War when Britain supported the French Resistance, which De Gaulle led.)
Eventually, on 1st January 1973 Britain joined the European Economic Community (EEC). Britain held a referendum on the matter in 1975, after Harold Wilson renegotiated its terms of entry. Labour's left, led by Tony Benn (and including a then-unknown Jeremy Corbyn), hated the Common Market, seeing it as a "capitalist club" that would erode British democracy and destroy jobs. Enoch Powell, the maverick right wing Tory who had just become an Ulster Unionist MP, joined Tony Benn as the loudest voices in the Out campaign. Nevertheless 67% of those who voted were in favour of staying in the EEC.
The Brexit referendum, took place on 23 June 2016 in the United Kingdom (UK) and Gibraltar to ask the electorate if the country should remain a member of, or leave the European Union (EU). (Can anyone recall why we had the referendum?) The referendum resulted in 51.9% of the votes cast being in favour of leaving the EU. Legally the referendum is non-binding but the government promised to implement the result, and it initiated the official EU withdrawal process on 29 March 2017, meaning that the UK was due to leave the EU before 11PM on 29 March 2019, UK time, when the two-year period for Brexit negotiations expired.
It's now April. Does anyone know where we are at???
P.S. - Today is St George's Day. St George's Day in England remembers the anniversary of the death of England's patron saint. According to legend, he was a soldier in the Roman army who killed a dragon and saved a princess.
ReplyDeleteIn this PC world I would exhort folk to please consider the dragon. Dragons have feelings too.
DeleteThis, of course, is true, Adrian. But I think the one St George killed was a Bad Dragon !
DeleteNo clue where you stand at this moment, and somehow i have the feeling that the average person is being badly affected no matter what is happening or why at the hands of politicians.
ReplyDeleteI'm very fond of Winston Churchill and I'm very sad that an idea which he held dear would be rejected by his people.
ReplyDeletePPS - I noticed in the vet's that they can no longer advise on what Pet passports/ inoculations are needed for travel in the EEC and are therefore suggesting people give their pets all the inoculations available and make sure they get in touch with the countries concerned. In addition the Post Office doesn't know whether we now need to put customs labels on parcels /packets to EEC countries! (We didn't used to have to do so )
ReplyDeleteSeriously, no one has a clue what's going on....
Seems amazing to say it but I was unaware of anyone objecting to the EU, it was just there in the background. I think it was called so David Cameron could finally get rid of the extreme right wingers who disliked it on principle. Hm, well THAT was a good idea! Personally I hope we stay in the EU, because leaving would just be the start of the real Brexit negotiations with every country in the world.... Aarrgghh!!!!!
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