Category: Brexit

The Brexit nobody voted for

Jon Danzig

When people voted for ‘Leave’ on 23 June 2016, nobody had been told – let alone asked – what Leave meant. It was just an undefined word. Leave. One word that could have meant anything. If you say you’re going to leave, the obvious next question is ‘where to’? But that wasn’t a question offered […]

Credible allegations of Russian interference in Brexit

Jon Danzig
Putin

The UK government has been asked by the European Court Of Human Rights (ECHR) to respond to ‘credible allegations’ of Russian interference in the Brexit referendum. The case was brought by a group of cross-party MPs: Labour MP Ben Bradshaw, Green Party MP Caroline Lucas and Alyn Smith MP of the Scottish National Party (SNP). They lodged the claim with the international court based […]

If only Boris Johnson had been airbrushed from history

Jon Danzig

Business Secretary, Grant Shapps, tweeted a photo celebrating a space launch in Cornwall with former Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, airbrushed out. On January 17, in Parliament, Mr Shapps apologised and explained that his team had been confused. “I simply told the team he needs hair brushing, not airbrushing.” What a plonker. But the idea of […]

You believe in parliamentary sovereignty? Prove it. We urge all MPs: support Amendment 36 to the REUL Bill on 18 Jan or, better still, throw the whole bill OUT

Jacob Öberg
House of Commons

This is an important summary of the situation from Jacob Öberg: Absolute must-read Brexit newsletter by Peter Foster which this week takes a shot at our ‘beloved’ Retained EU Law Bill (returning to the Commons) which is what Peter calls some ‘pretty crazy baggage’ from the outwardly sensible Sunak Government. Short recall, the REUL Bill […]

Please show this to anyone who thinks Johnson should come back as PM

Jon Danzig

Boris Johnson has been urged to make a stunning comeback to frontline politics “for the sake of Britain, Brexit and British people”, reports the Daily Express. The paper (I really can’t bring myself to call it a newspaper) says there have been, “surging calls for the former Prime Minister to make a sensational return, with many Tories warning […]

What is it with Brexiters and lies? Video

Jon Danzig

Has the UK given more military aid to Ukraine than the EU? This is an investigation into a Brexiter’s claim about aid to Ukraine – 4-min video from journalist, Jon Danzig. A former advisor to NATO and the Ministry of Defence, Professor Gwythian Prins, claimed on BBC Radio 5 live that the UK has given […]

When will the Conservatives stop lying to us?

Anthea Simmons

I had made up my mind last night to write about lying before I read Chris Grey’s superb blog out today, December 16. I strongly recommend you read it, too. “In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”― George Orwell I was provoked into addressing the issue by a clip of last […]

Street democracy – a message from Tavistock for Geoffrey Cox MP

Simon Chater

Tavistock looked at its best this morning, its streets and buildings washed clean by overnight rain and gleaming under late November sun. Appearances are deceptive, though: a local told me the town was in decline, with shops closing and people increasingly resorting to food banks. In this it surely mirrors the fate of once prosperous […]

The UK: Britaly or the sick man of Europe? What our neighbours think of us

Mike Zollo

Sick UK What a headline … “Reino Unido, atrapado en su propio laberinto político y económico” (the United Kingdom, trapped in its own political and economic labyrinth). Enough to make you feel proud to be British? Or to acknowledge that our friends and neighbours pity us for what is happening to the UK? This was […]

The difference in democracy:

Jon Danzig

𝗘𝗨 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘; 𝗨𝗞 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗡𝗢𝗧 So, the Supreme Court has ruled that Scotland’s government is not allowed to have an advisory-only referendum on whether its citizens want to leave the United Kingdom. Permission must be given first by the ‘ruling’ government based in England, the court stipulated. Funny thing, really. […]

52 per cent to 48 per cent equals uncertainty

Jon Danzig

So, in a straw poll of Twitter users organised by the new Chief Twit, Elon Musk, Donald Trump has been ‘elected’ back onto the platform after being banned in 2020 for reasons we all know. “The people have spoken,” tweeted Mr Musk. Haven’t we heard that phrase before, ad nauseam, since 24 June 2016? Musk’s […]

Hashtag Brexit denial

Sarah Cowley

The American mid-term elections are over and the election denialists seem to be losing ground over there. We can hope this might set a trend, as there seem to be any number of causes based on denying at the moment. Denying the severity of Covid-19, or the science behind vaccinations or masks, or of the […]

The importance of the number 12 right now – letter to the editor

Editor-in-chief

There were 12 Apostles. There are 12 days of Christmas. There were 12 knights of the round table There are 12 members in a jury. There are 12 months in a year. There are 12 numbers on a clock. There are 12 pairs of ribs in a human being. There were 12 pence in a shilling. There are 12 eggs in a dozen. There are 12 cranial nerves in the human body. There are 12 stars on […]

Brexit forgets history

Jon Danzig

Thirty-three years ago today, on 9 November 1989, the people of Berlin – east and west – joined together to dismantle the wall that had cruelly separated their city for almost three decades. It was a momentous event that led to the downfall of the Soviet communist regime, followed eventually by applications to join the European Union by […]

The buck stops here – letter to the editor

Editor-in-chief

Dear West Country Voices, Harry S Truman famously had this sign on his desk pointing out that as, President of the USA and the man in charge, he should take responsibility for stuff that goes wrong. If only this was true here in the UK. The first of this year’s three Prime Ministers now earns […]

Conservatives’ doublespeak translated – parts 1 and 2

Philip Priestley

Maybe we should review all the false language that has been used by the Tory Party over the last twelves years as they have been dismantling the country? Part 1: ‘Brexit Benefits’ & ‘Brexit Dividend’: Ok, so this was supposed to be an incentive for people to relinquish all the genuine benefits of EU membership. […]

Brexit used to sit on the far sidelines of politics and then…

Jon Danzig

Indeed, the word ‘Brexit’ was only invented in 2012, and until the referendum, most people didn’t know what it meant. (Now it’s in the Oxford English dictionary.) An in-depth study by the Migration Observatory showed that: The volume of press coverage mentioning ‘immigration’ or ‘migration’ declined from 2006 to 2011 before rising each year from 2011 to mid-2015. […]

Flash protest in Totnes and some food for thought

Simon Chater

On Friday I joined a small group of Devon for Europe supporters at a “flash protest” in Totnes. Anthea Simmons, our campaign manager, delivered a letter to MP Anthony Mangnall demanding his support for a general election. We also ran a “democracymeter”, asking passers by to answer questions about the state of our nation by […]

Politics ain’t for wusses and Trusses…

Ian Shaw

Third time lucky. Or is it fourth? Who cares. Doubtless, King Charles will have had another ‘dear, oh dear’ up his well-pulled sleeve. Vividly staking his pro-Brexit bent and trumpeting the exit, sans non-withdrawal agreement, in the spring of 2019, was Sunak’s blueprint. Unswervingly, he went on to claim ‘proximity to a market’ as harmful. […]

Sunak is a bigger Brexiter than Johnson

Jon Danzig

So, Rishi Sunak has today been crowned the second ‘unelected’ Tory Prime Minister in as many months.  Is the country ‘Ready for Rishi’? Well, the country has no choice. The new Prime Minister has been anointed by just 194 Conservative MPs. We don’t get a say. Although in the UK we don’t directly elect a Prime […]

Goodbye, Truss. Goodbye, Tories. Goodbye, Brexit

Jon Danzig

𝗪𝗘 𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗡𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗔 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗩𝗢𝗧𝗘 𝗢𝗡 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗫𝗜𝗧 Truss begone. Tories begone. Brexit begone. Most of the country never wanted you. Only 37 per cent of the electorate gave their positive support for Brexit in the referendum. That’s hardly a majority. Many people directly affected by the outcome of the referendum were denied a vote. That’s […]

Eyes on the lies: four videos – please watch and share

Anthea Simmons

The first is a timely reminder of the role played by the Brexit-supporting, Conservative-backing right wing media: The second is very possibly Led by Donkeys’ most important work to date: And the third, highlighting the dreadful legacy of Brexit and emphasising the ideology behind Truss et al: Finally, here’s an extract from a video of […]

But, Prime Minister, this is the flag of Europe. Didn’t you know that?

Jon Danzig

Liz Truss demanded that ‘no EU flags’ should be shown at the Prague meeting of European leaders on Thursday. EU news website EURACTIV reported that the flags were kept away from the inaugural European Political Community summit at the demand of Ms Truss and the UK delegation. The Independent reported, ‘The British government and its […]