Showing posts with label Brexit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brexit. Show all posts

Thursday 13 February 2020

General Election 2019: Did the Greens sell their souls for a few scraps from the Lib Dems?





It is just not the Labour Party that has to undertake a review  of their performance in the General Election. The forthcoming Spring Conference of the Green Party will have to seriously consider its election strategy, including the formulation process, and draw out lessons for the future.

Green Left, the eco-socialist group within the Green Party has today published the following statement on the 2019 UK general election.
The defeat for Labour in the General Election was disappointing, because it happened in spite of Labour supporting countering Climate Change,
The Green Party should welcome the many in the Labour Party and Trade Union movement who now want a green transformation of the economy.
Unfortunately, the Green Party made the mistake of linking up with the discredited Lib Dems over the Brexit issue and, even on this, serious differences emerged over the Lib Dems’ proposal to remain without a referendum. The pact was not based on other shared policies with the Lib Dems.
Many members of the Green Party were surprised that it endorsed Lib Dems in some 20 seats with sitting Labour MPs and candidates near to its policies on austerity, Brexit and the Green New Deal. Why were the Lib Dems allowed to use our good name to fight Labour?
The General Election strategy of the Green Party seemed to be fixated on gaining an extra MP by selling our soul for a few scraps from the Lib Dems; and in the event was of no benefit to Greens
Green Left has asked the Green Party what was the basis for this mistaken strategy? Were its political implications fully thought out?
Green Left believes the task of the GPEW is to encourage debate and discussion with those who share or are beginning to share our perspective on the need to fight climate change and the need for a Green New Deal to transform the economy.

Sunday 10 November 2019

Green Left rejects the Green Party’s remain pact with Liberal Democrats

Only a few days ago

Green Left says ‘no’ to supporting Jo Swinson’s second rate Tories. The Liberal Democrats nationally oppose our Green values.
Green Left believes a step forward for the green movement in the UK has taken place recently, with many people joining both the Green Party and Labour Party, reflecting real concerns about the threat of climate change to our very existence on this planet.
Green Left welcomes the fact that the Green New Deal is gaining support on the left, especially in the Labour Party,  and we believe that Greens should engage with others who share the same policies as us, to build the green movement for change which is the only way to save the planet. 
Green Left believes the mass movement of Extinction Rebellion and the Youth Strikes shows up the pro capitalist parties for what they are – gambling with the planet. The Lib Dems are part of the problem not the solution.
The Liberal Democrats are a party whose leader, Jo Swinson, received funding from a major fracking company and voted for fracking. She and her party also voted for the bedroom tax, benefit cuts and the introduction of Universal Credit, the scrapping of the education maintenance, increased tuition fees, opposed increasing the tax rate on those earning £150,000, supported cuts to the police and emergency services, supported zero hours contracts, supported the badger cull and did little to challenge climate change, preferring instead nuclear power.
The Lib Dems are also uncritical supporters of the EU, unlike the Greens who want major democratic reform and accountability. The Lib Dems reject a proper further referendum that allows people a democratic say on any EU deal or no deal.
Green Left believes Caroline Lucas was right to warn how dangerous the Lib Dems position of ignoring the Referendum result, and instead going for Revoke, is  : “I certainly think that the Lib Dem way out is arrogant, self-indulgent, cynical and very dangerous. I think that will put fuel on the fire.” LINK
Green Party policy has been for a second people’s vote, and in this case is closer to that of Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party, who also support a second  referendum, than the Liberal Democrats’ Revoke position.
Green Left is very concerned that the implied call to support Liberal Democrat General Election  candidates where the Green Party is not standing and where the Labour candidate was either the sitting MP or is the best placed candidate to defeat the Tory MP is  an incorrect position to take - especially if that person supports anti-austerity, proportional representation, a Green New Deal and a people’s vote.
Therefore, we urge Green Party members and supporters to support the Labour Party candidate in these areas.
The UniteToRemain pact contradicts the Green Party’s initial position that this should be a Climate Emergency election. Instead the pact makes it a Brexit election.
Editor's note: I am a member of Green Left and was involved in writing this statement which I fully support

Wednesday 27 March 2019

Full Government response to Revoke & Remain petition. (Short version: 'Up Yours!')


The Revoke Article & Remain in the EU petition, now nearing 6 million signatures, will be debated by Parliament on April 1st - an appropriate date for all those now feeling they were fooled by politicians in the Referendum leave campaign.

The Goverment issued the following tart response to the petition which will now be repeated by ministers across the media today:

The Government has responded to the petition you signed – “Revoke Article 50 and remain in the EU.”.
Government responded:
This Government will not revoke Article 50. We will honour the result of the 2016 referendum and work with Parliament to deliver a deal that ensures we leave the European Union.
It remains the Government’s firm policy not to revoke Article 50. We will honour the outcome of the 2016 referendum and work to deliver an exit which benefits everyone, whether they voted to Leave or to Remain.
Revoking Article 50, and thereby remaining in the European Union, would undermine both our democracy and the trust that millions of voters have placed in Government.
The Government acknowledges the considerable number of people who have signed this petition. However, close to three quarters of the electorate took part in the 2016 referendum, trusting that the result would be respected. This Government wrote to every household prior to the referendum, promising that the outcome of the referendum would be implemented. 17.4 million people then voted to leave the European Union, providing the biggest democratic mandate for any course of action ever directed at UK Government. 
British people cast their votes once again in the 2017 General Election where over 80% of those who voted, voted for parties, including the Opposition, who committed in their manifestos to upholding the result of the referendum. 
This Government stands by this commitment. 
Revoking Article 50 would break the promises made by Government to the British people, disrespect the clear instruction from a democratic vote, and in turn, reduce confidence in our democracy. As the Prime Minister has said, failing to deliver Brexit would cause “potentially irreparable damage to public trust”, and it is imperative that people can trust their Government to respect their votes and deliver the best outcome for them.
Department for Exiting the European Union.
Click this link to view the response online:
This petition has over 100,000 signatures. The Petitions Committee will consider it for a debate. They can also gather further evidence and press the government for action.
The Committee is made up of 11 MPs, from political parties in government and in opposition. It is entirely independent of the Government. Find out more about the Committee: https://petition.parliament.uk/help#petitions-committee



Wednesday 20 March 2019

Join Brent4Europe on the People's Vote March on Saturday


Brent4Europe has invited Brent residents to join them on Saturday March 23rd for the People's Vote March, demanding that the People must have the final say in the Brexit debacle.

Details:


The march will assemble on Park Lane southbound, north of the Hilton Hotel.

If travelling to the march via the Jubilee line, please change at Bond Street station and proceed to Marble Arch station before exiting and joining the assembly area. Be prepared for crowd issues which may make Bond Street easier to exit.

To take part in the accessible march / shorter march, please assemble on the marked point at Trafalgar Square.  The shorter march will filter in behind the front of the march as it passes, giving priority access to the accessible viewing area with step-free access next to the statue of Gandhi. WE  ADVISE ALL PEOPLE WITH ACCESSIBILITY NEEDS TO TAKE PART IN THE SHORTER MARCH.

Stewards will be located near Westminster Tube Station street level lift exit to provide direction or assistance to people who will be attending the rally but not the march. They will be stationed here for a limited time only – times TBC – for more information, please see the accessibility policy for the event at www.peoples-vote.uk/march

NOTE – stewards will be in green hi-vis jackets, not yellow ones.

Brent4Europe teams will meet up in advance on Saturday 23rd March.

Join up with our teams at:

11 am at Wembley Park, on Southbound met/Jubilee line platform

11 am outside Kensal Green station [Bakerloo line]

11.15 am outside Willesden Green station

Thursday 14 March 2019

Brent Council to consult on closure of Roe Green Strathcona School


Extravagant thanks to the staff of Roe Green Infants School for providing extra places for primary children over the last 6 years cut little ice at Cabinet on Monday when it was decided to consult on the phased closure of the Strathcona site in Wembley which has been run as part of Roe Green Infants under an Executive Headteacher.

Roe Green Infants had come to the aid of the local authority at a time of rising primary school rolls and agreed to run a 5-11 school on a separate site in Wembley.  They are now faced with making staff redundant and as the two sites are run as one school in terms of staffing this will affect both the Infants and Strathcona.

The report to Cabinet stated:
The proposals, if implemented, are likely to impact on the required staffing for Roe Green Infant School; the proposal would lead to a reduction in overall staffing levels which would, therefore, result in the possibility for the need to consider redundancies. The number of staff affected will depend on the nature of a phased closure. There may also be opportunities to reduce the impact on staff, for example, by transferring existing staff to the main Roe Green Infant School site. The school would need to follow the Managing Change in Schools policy and procedure including consultation with affected staff and trade unions to effect the changes in due course.
Gail Tolley, Strategic Director of Children and Young People, said that in 2015-2016 GLA projections had still indicated a rising roll in Brent's primary schools but migration, Brexit and statistical issues meant that projections for 2018-19 had been reduced. There had been a need for Strathcona at the time but it was no longer required as neighbouring schools could absorb the displaced pupils. The report gave the following figures. The key information is in Reception places comparing in the first column the number of available places (PAN - Planned Admission Number) and in the second the number of reception children actually in the school in  October 2018. It can be seen that some of the controversial expansions (see previous articles on this blog, ) created with considerable building costs, have not been successful in attracting pupils and that there are 208 spare places in Strathcona's local area. This is equivalent to a one form entry primary school.


Hidden behind the figures is of course the impact of an uncertain future on the school staff and upset for children and parents who will have to find a new school, depending on when the Strathcona site closes. This will be a matter for the consultation the Council will launch but they have said that new admissions will cease from 2020. 

Leader of the Council, Cllr Muhammed Butt, said at the meeting that the local authority had to look at provision and start a discussion with the school and its stakeholders. He said that they would make sure concerns regarding the staff were taken into consideration. The authoirty had to make best use of its resources and the spnding of the Direct Schools Grant.

It is likely if the trend continues that more primary schools will be affected and that the Planned Admission Number (PAN) will be reduced to take account of the demographic changes.  The new Ark Somerville, to be built in the York House car park in Wembley, has been reduced from 3 forms of entry to two and will not take pupils until the demand from new developments in the Stadium area emerges.



Tuesday 22 January 2019

How EU citizens should apply for UK settlement scheme

I'm pleased to hear that following the offer made at the Time to Talk meeting on Brexit , Brent Registration and Nationality Service will be at a Wembley primary school's  Parents' Forum on Thursday morning to talk about the EU settlemement scheme. Amidst all the Brexit chaos it was good to hear the government announcement, on the day the scheme opened, that they were dropping the £65 adult  fee (16 years old and above) and £35 charge for children.

There is further information about the settlement scheme, documentation needed and the process, in the presentation below - from Page 11. (Click bottom right corner for full size copy).

If schools, parents or community organisations wish to organise a similar meeting they should contact Mandy Brammer, Head of Brent Registration and Nationality Services:
Mandy.Brammer@brent.gov.uk


Tuesday 15 January 2019

Barry Gardiner on the immigration aspects of the Brexit debate


Barry Gardiner, MP for Brent North, made a very long speech in the Brexit debate yesterday. The full speech is HERE but I thought people in Brent would be particulalrly interested in what he had to say about immigration:


I move on to immigration, which was a key part of the referendum debate. Like many Members, I was outraged by the dog-whistle politics of the Vote Leave campaign’s very own “Project Fear”: that millions of Turkish citizens would be queueing up for entry into the UK. That was a lie, and those Members who associated themselves with that campaign should feel ashamed.
I also want to express my disgust at those who have sought to paint leave voters as ignorant racists; it is that sort of demonisation of our fellow citizens that is so damaging to the discourse around Brexit. It precisely obscures some of the real concerns that leave voters did express, and had every right to. Their concerns were about the lack of housing, the strains on the NHS, and being undercut in the workplace by unscrupulous employers who often exploited migrants and paid them less than the minimum wage. All those issues are about public services and domestic enforcement. They will not be solved by our leaving the EU, but they will also not be solved by our remaining. What is needed is a change of Government policy, or, better still, a change of Government.
Immigration is a vital element of our economic growth, and of our trade and trade negotiations. We need migration. The Government’s own economic assessment shows that European migration contributes 2% of GDP to the UK. The Government’s proposed £30,000 salary threshold would actually preclude three quarters of EU migrants. I am not referring simply to seasonal agricultural workers or careworkers; even some junior doctors do not earn more than £30,000 a year. The Government’s supposed skills threshold is really a salary threshold, and it would do serious damage to our economy.
The irony is, of course, that EU net migration is coming down. Statistics published just last month record the number as 74,000. The Government have been complaining that free movement gives them no control over those people. Presumably they mean the sort of control that they have always been able to exercise over migrants coming from the rest of the world. Is it not strange, then, that the figure recorded for net migration from the rest of the world is 248,000?
This is why politicians are not trusted. They tell people that we need to abolish freedom of movement to bring migration down to the tens of thousands when our own rules, over which the EU has never had any say, are allowing three times that number. What we should be explaining to people is that net migration should go both up and down in line with the needs of our economy. As long as we have fair rules and competent and reasonable management of migration, this country will be better off. The trouble is that we have had lies, arbitrary targets that bear no relation to our economy’s requirements, and, frankly, administrative incompetence.
As with regulatory alignment, so with the exchange of people. The deeper the trade deal we want, the greater the need for an exchange of people. Foreign companies that invest in the UK want and need their indigenous workers to get visas, and the harder we make that process, the less investment we will secure. When the Prime Minister went to India two years ago to secure a trade deal, she was rebuffed on precisely that issue. The Times of India summed it up on its front page with the headline “You want our business. But you do not want our People”.
Students should never have been part of our net migration figures, and immigration should be proclaimed loudly by every Member to be an important and hugely beneficial resource for our economy. Yes, free movement of people will end when we leave the EU, because it is a function of the treaties of the EU, but that does not mean that we should not operate a system of immigration controls with the EU that allows broad and reciprocal access to all our citizens in a way that maximises the benefits to all our economies. That is what our businesses need: access to skills.

Brent Council seeks to reassure EU residents amidst Brexit chaos

The leader of Brent Council, Cllr Muhammed Butt, the Cabinet Member fort Social Cohesion, Cllr Tom Miller and Brent CEO Carolyn Downs all sought to reassure EU citizens living in Brent that they were valued and welcome members of the Brent community at last night's Time to Talk session on Brexit.

Cllr Butt said, 'We value every member of our community. Look at our workplaces, look at our high streets, look at our schools.'

Cllr Miller spoke about the 60/40 referendum vote for Remain in Brent and said that public opinion had since shifted further in favour of Remain.  This was why Brent Council had recently recorded its support for a People's Vote on the deal Theresa May had negotiated.  He condemned the fact the EU citizens had been denied a vote on their own future in the Referendum. EU families had been put in a precarious position, unable to plan for their future in terms of housing, work and their children's education.

He said that the Council intended to voice its concern over Brexit, ensure that Brent remains 'open' during the transition period, work with representative EU citizen organisations in the borough and continue to support a public vote on the final deal.

Carolyn Downs, addressing EU citizens directly said, 'We will stand by you and stamp on any inappropriate behaviour towards EU nationals.'  She added that the concerns of the  40% of Brent voters who had voted to Leave should be explored and addressed by the council.

The Time to Talk session was not as well attended as organiser may have hoped with open a small number of young people and not as many EU nationals as I would have expected.  It was interesting that although there were a number of people present who I know to be supporters of Lexit (a Left Brexit) they did not air their views in the main session, although the format of the meeting may have been against them:




Attendees were tasked with discussing their concerns in  groups and reporting one issue back to the full meeting. These are some of the concerns mentioned:
  • young people were not given an appropriate voice
  • the direction that the UK will take after leaving the EU
  • emerging tensions and discrimination in the community - how do we claw back community cohesion
  • will EU citizens with settlement status in  the UK become victims of 'Windrush 2' in the next 10-20 years?
  • need for support for public services such as health and education if EU citizens leave
  • the retirement entitlements of EU citizens in the future
  • EU nationals in poorer circumstances may not be aware of and able to access the application process for settlement status
  • the need to prioritise human rights in the new situation in  which the country finds itself
  • impact of leaving on the cost of living
  • deterioration in food and animal rearing standards outside of the EU
  • impact on import and export of food
In the panel discussion a further concerns was raised about the access of people with disability to the settled status application process and more broadly to discrimination against disabled people becoming more prevalent in the post-Brexit atmosphere,

Mandy Brammer, head of the Brent Registration Service gave details of the EU settlement scheme that would give EU nationals access to work, healthcare, schools and public funds.  A 5 year continuous residence will be required and an 85 page document gives details of the process to gain settled status.  It does not apply to Irish citizens.  The cost is £65 for an adult and £32.50 for children. It is free for Looked After Children,

If EU nationals do not apply it will be illegal for them to stay in the UK, they would have no right to work and no access to vital services.  The process starts on the 30th March 2019 through to December 31st 2020.

Regarding contacting affected residents I suggested that the Registration Services speak at Parent Forum meetings in local schools about the settlement process and Mandy Brammer confirmed that they would be able to do this.

The presentation by Cllr Miller and the one by Mandy Brammer are below and can be found on the Brent Council Brexit web page  along with other vital information HERE Click on bottom right corner for full size version







Sunday 13 January 2019

Caroline Lucas on changing the Brexit conversation

Caroline Lucas' speech at yesterday's Convention

It’s a pleasure to be here today, and to welcome you all to this Convention.

I want to start by saying a huge thank you to everyone who has made it happen at such short notice.
And - perhaps more unexpectedly - I also want to say a genuine thank you to the 17.4 million people who gave the Establishment such a well-deserved kicking in 2016.
Thanks to you, the crisis at the heart of our democracy – and the intolerable levels of inequality and insecurity experienced by so many – can no longer be ignored.
The place that we’ve been brought to by the outcome of the referendum is difficult, dangerous and divisive.
But we mustn’t let that obscure the truth, or distort our analysis.
Many people took the question they were being asked to mean “Should the country go on being run in the way that it is?’
And they voted “NO!” with a collective howl of rage.

That response was justified then - and it’s justified now.
For some, it might have been mixed up with fear, even bigotry, and an impossible longing for the past.
But there was - and is - a core message at the heart of the Brexit vote.
That the status quo in this country is intolerable for huge numbers of people. 
That the social contract is broken and the power game is rigged.
It is right and reasonable to be furious.
The questions we must ask going forward have to start with that acknowledgement.
And with a powerful commitment not even to try to go back to the way things were.

There has to be something better.
Better than both the inequality and the powerlessness we’ve been grappling with for decades and that still haven’t been resolved -
A democratic failure as well as an economic one.

So throughout today, I want us to address three key questions.

First, how do we address the very real grievances that led so many to vote for Brexit in the first place?
Those living in communities with proud histories, but which have been hollowed out by de-industrialisation and decades of neglect, compounded in recent years by an ideologically driven assault on public services in the name of austerity?

Second, how do we make staying and fighting for the Europe we want a pathway to change -  to a society that isn’t just less grim than what we have now, but is genuinely fair, green and fulfilling? 
How do we inspire people with a vision of the way membership of the EU can make a positive and practical improvement to their lives? 
How do we ensure that Project Hope overcomes Project Fear?

And third, how do we renew our democracy?  How do we genuinely take control?

Shift the framework entirely and hand power to people not just for one vote, but forever, so that our country can unite around a new settlement that gains popular consent across the Brexit divide?
Today is about changing the conversation about Brexit. 
It’s about moving forward - humbly, positively and with hope.
And it’s about putting young people, those who will be most affected by Brexit, at the heart of all we’re doing.
Change is coming, one way or another.
Let’s think anew and act anew.  Let’s shape it together.
And let’s start with some honesty about the real causes of Brexit.

Because telling the truth is what sets us apart from the populists - the political insiders who dress up as rebels, and use Europe to distract from their own failures.
People were, and are, angry and frustrated for many reasons.
And they can, at least partly, be summed up in the words of the inimitable Russell Brand: “People saw a bright red button that said Fuck Off Establishment, and they pressed it.”
For many, there was a genuine sense that any change was better than the status quo.
That they had nothing left to lose.
The tragedy, of course, is that they do and likely will.
Particularly those least equipped to cope.
Concerns about access to housing, jobs, and the NHS are real and have to be addressed.
And so too do concerns about migration.
Changing the Brexit conversation means proudly celebrating free movement - and the opportunities it’s given to individuals and to our country.
It was not just a political failure, but a moral failure, that saw the Remain campaign hide away from talking about migration in 2016 - preferring instead to bandy about economic threats, rather than engage in a serious debate on this pressing issue.
It also means making those opportunities of free movement genuinely available to all - when for vast swathes of people today they’re not even imaginable.
But we must also be very honest with people about free movement.
I’ve heard some Remainers say we should re-negotiate it, ask the EU for an exemption if we’re to remain.
That’s simply not going to happen, and it would be an utterly perverse thing to demand from Brussels.
Because we know that migration has been a good thing for Britain - but not everyone has felt those benefits.
And big changes to our communities can be frightening, especially when they happen fast.
We can’t shy away from these concerns.
And we must also act anew by hearing very carefully when they are caught up with something else.
Fuelled by anger at being ignored and neglected.
At the failure of successive governments to deliver jobs and other opportunities.
A future for communities – any kind of future, let alone a better one.

The tragedy, of course, is that Brexit would actually make it harder to address all of these problems.
Not least because - under every single Brexit scenario - there would be less money available to repair and rebuild the social fabric that has been so viciously torn apart.
Britain has become a place of grotesque inequalities
Not just between classes, but geographically between regions, especially between North and South; and between thriving cities and failing towns within the same region.
Last year, the Commission on Social Mobility identified the 30 worst ‘coldspots’ for social mobility - and every single one of them voted to Leave.   I don’t think that’s a coincidence.
Shamefully, levels of interregional inequality in the UK are 50% higher than in similar-sized economies such as France and Germany, a third higher than Italy, and almost twice as high as Spain.
Income levels in London have risen by a third since the financial crash - but fallen - yes, fallen - by 14% in Yorkshire and Humberside.
Nor is growing inequality on its own the full story of the economic injustice people experience.
It’s accompanied by acute insecurity.
A huge rise in debt, a loss of long-term prospects, affects everyone.  
As inequality spins out of control, people in all classes feel helpless.  That’s why the slogan “Take back control” had such resonance.
It promised agency in a system in which the rich and powerful, who clearly do have agency, were telling us that the market rules, and there’s nothing anyone can do.
In short, this is a country where what dictates your success isn’t how hard you work, or how much you care.
It’s not your passion or your commitment.
No.  This is a country where your success is dictated by your postcode, the income of your parents, the year in which you were born.
It’s a country of dead end streets for those with the least, and open highways for those with the most.
The lie at the heart of the Leave campaign was that this downward spiral could be reversed by leaving the EU.

We don't need to leave the EU.
We need to think anew.
We urgently need a new social contract: better jobs, high-quality public services, investment in the green economy, people of all backgrounds and communities treated with respect, and given the opportunity and the power to thrive.

It's not enough to assert that EU migrants bring a net economic benefit to the country as a whole.
That benefit needs to be felt in those areas that experience the greatest changes, with those communities coming together to decide themselves how to invest that funding.
And to reverse the cycles of decline that blight so many parts of Britain, let’s make sure we transform the future with funding that delivers real opportunities and lasting hope.
Thinking and acting anew to tackle inequality and insecurity can help heal our divided country.
So too can an honest conversation about what we have in common.
About a fairer, greener economy that works for us all but also a conversation about who we are as a country - and what we aspire to be.
Those living in once proud communities that have been gutted often feel have very little to lose.
We need to give them something to gain from remaining in the EU.
Likewise, the well-off in non-metropolitan areas who also drove this genuine nationalist vote.
We all need a reason to think anew.
To choose to stay and fight.
The 2016 result should tell us that “project fear” won’t win people over.
They want hope.

If Britain voted again tomorrow, the demographics of this country would probably already have shifted in favour of staying in the EU.
But that’s not enough.
This isn’t just about winning at the ballot box. It’s about winning a different kind of shared future.
To do that, we must urgently learn the lessons of the past.
The mistakes of the Remain campaign mustn’t be repeated.
Mistakes that meant the campaign was seen primarily as defending the status quo, with the political elite pulling the strings.
A campaign that utterly failed to inspire any kind of connection with, or love for, the EU.
Something worth defending – and yes, staying and changing too.
To stand any chance of winning a People’s Vote, we have to abandon all association with a vapid centrism that has failed to deliver for so many people, and would fail again.
We have to think and act anew.
To start using the ideas and language now that will set the tone for a very different kind of referendum campaign.
One that’s hopeful, inclusive, energetic and radical. One we can all feel part of and one that appeals to our hearts as well as our heads.
That builds on the work of groups like Another Europe is Possible, Our Future Our Say, For Our Future’s Sake, and the nearly 200 local groups supporting a People’s Vote.
That shows people - and young people in particular - that there is genuinely a diversity of voices championing our continued membership of the EU.
I welcome the central role give to young people at today’s Convention.

Let’s make sure we listen to those voices and that they are part of owning the way forward.
And we need a referendum campaign that compellingly sets out what kind of EU we want.
An EU of the people, an EU of solidarity.
A vision that galvanises people to stay and fight, not walk away.
One that’s positive about who we are as a country: our ambition and our courage.
It was these values that helped create the European Union.
That helped us emerge from the rubble and destruction of the Second World War into peace with our neighbours ever since - a miracle few would have dreamed possible when the bombs were raining down.

The EU is the greatest international venture for peace, prosperity and freedom in history.
Where in the world has there ever been a better example of collaboration in pursuit of such values?
That astonishing achievement ought to be front and centre of the Brexit conversation – and it’s up to us to put it there.

So too the social and environmental protections, and the remarkable gift of free movement - that precious right to travel and to work and to live and to love in 27 other countries.
And so too, the good angel sitting on our shoulder when it comes to upholding human rights, the friendships across borders, the cultural opportunities, the life without fear and the solidarity.
To have reduced all that to an argument about the cost of a trolley load of shopping was such a tragedy.

Changing the conversation about Brexit has to mean moving on from the facts and the figures, and connecting instead with the feelings, hopes and dreams that will unite us. It’s got to be about who we are as a country, and how we want to be seen.

Now you don’t need to tell me that the EU is imperfect - I was an MEP for 10 years!
It is, at times, a highly political, top-down, opaque and technocratic set of institutions.
One that, actually, could be made instantly more transparent and accountable by live streaming all meetings and publishing minutes, and key papers like trade negotiation documents.
But here I want to challenge the media too.
Not just those with an almost pathological hatred of the EU - but the Guardian, the BBC - the so-called mainstream, the so-called liberals.
Decisions which are made in the EU affect us every single day, the laws that are passed make a real difference; our members of the European Parliament represent us.  
So let’s stop the fake news about straight bananas, let’s stop treating MEPs as though they didn’t exist, let’s talk about politics in the European Union whenever news is made, not just when Nigel Farage stands up and makes another speech attacking the European Commission.

In the medium term, a Constitutional Assembly should be set up to examine the steps needed to democratise the EU - strengthening the role of the European parliament at the same time as respecting national self-determination.
And longer term, the EU must dismantle the habitual domination of corporate power over the will of citizens, and re-politicise the rules that govern our single market and - for those countries that joined it - the single currency.
Such reforms are long overdue and we shouldn’t be afraid to advocate changing the EU at the same time as fighting to stay part of it.
Transforming the EU into a beacon for democracy brings me to my third question - and the serious democratic deficit in our own country.
Brexit laid bare the extent to which our governance structures are derelict.
When citizens were deprived of a credible, representative power that clearly belongs to, or is accountable to them, it led to anger with the most remote authority of all.
The EU was blamed for the UK’s structural elitism, and held responsible as the source of all powerlessness.
Yet Brexit shows no sign of giving us back ‘control’ or changing the way we’re ruled.

A People’s Vote should be the starting gun on the race to genuinely democratise the UK.
Looking anew at the way Britain is governed, not just by the EU but by Westminster as well.
We are one of the most centralised countries in Europe, with disproportionate power held at Westminster, and far too little in our regions and local authorities.
Powers need to go back to the regions of the UK, where people have a better chance of influencing it.  And, if the English want it, to England.
The DUP’s sectarian interests in Ireland are a world away from the interests of Northern Ireland or modern Britain.
The evolving views from Wales have been treated by this Government with contempt.
And it is inconceivable that Remain-voting Scotland should be forced out of the EU against its wishes.
Years of failure to engage with the need for overall constitutional reform has left us with an incoherent patchwork of piecemeal changes.

If we’re to think and act anew, we must open up to new forms of power and politics – better distributed, more diverse, more strongly integrated, and more modern.
Parliamentary sovereignty needs to be better rooted in the people.
One of the best ways to “take back control” is to rid ourselves of a winner takes all politics, and an outdated electoral system that systematically shuts people out.
68% of votes cast in last June’s General Election were effectively wasted – they made no contribution at all to the distribution of seats.
No democratic renewal is complete without proportional representation.
And let’s seriously explore ideas like Parliament moving out of London to a city such as Leeds or Manchester – with the chance to rebalance our economy as well as our politics.
The Palace of Westminster, Gothic, rat-infested, and crumbling into the Thames, has become a powerful symbol of political decay.

If we mean what we say about changing this country for good, then why not make moving Parliament out of London the first in a series of changes which turn the UK into a 21st century democracy?
Let’s learn from the inspiring way in which Citizens Assemblies have been used in Ireland, for example, to facilitate informed debate on contentious topics and build deep consensus and understanding.
And let’s ensure that democracy can no longer be undermined by fake news and post-truth advertising by introducing new ground-breaking digital democracy laws.
Though the Prime Minister would have us believe otherwise, we have a wealth of choices facing us right now.

Amidst all the noise about the meaningful vote and parliamentary amendments, and whether to extend or revoke Article 50, it’s easy to lose sight of the much bigger choices we can make.
The public want to take control - and we must start to deliver that with a People’s Vote.
If we are to break the Brexit deadlock in parliament, we the people must lead the way.

When Theresa May rules something out, it’s often a strong indication that it’s right around the corner. On that basis, a People’s Vote on her Brexit deal might be getting closer by the minute.
So let’s not squander this moment. Let’s look ahead and build on the radical rejection of the status quo represented by the referendum outcome.
A People’s Vote must look, feel like and reflect our wonderful country – diverse, raw, plural, noisy and, above all, run by and for the people.
We’re told Brexit is the will of the people – but it’s relevant to ask ourselves the will of which people?
Over 70% of voters aged 18-24 voted for Britain to remain, as did 62% of 25-34 year olds.
No wonder it’s been called an “unforgivable act of generational theft”.

So I say again, young people must play a leading role in the way forward - because they will live the longest with the consequences.
And let’s make sure the voices of those who once supported Leave but reject Theresa May’s deal are heard too.
Redistributing power fairly and equally must be both one of our objectives and integral to the way we operate ourselves.
It means politicians like me must spend time far more time listening than talking too.
That’s why I have pledged to actively seek out leave voters, listen to their views and identify what unites us rather than what divides us.
Today I’d like to call on you to think anew and act anew by doing the same.

So in conclusion, I simply want to say that never in my lifetime has our future felt more uncertain.
But when people come together and reach for a bigger future, we’ve shown we can change the course of history.
We do that when we act with honesty, humility and courage.
When we look for, and believe in, the good in others. In our shared hopes and dreams.
I’d like to close by sharing some of Seamus Heaney’s words, from the wall of the General Post Office in Dublin, scene of the bloody 1916 Easter Rising.
He has written:
History says, don’t hope
On this side of the grave
But then, once in a lifetime
The longed for tidal wave
Of justice can rise up
And hope and history rhyme
I believe this is one such moment, that another vote is possible and that, together, we can make change happen.


Friday 11 January 2019

Monday Jan 14th: Brent Council - it's time to talk Brexit

From Brent Council

Brexit will affect Brent. Brent has many European residents and Brexit will have far reaching implications particularly for them, but also for all residents in Brent. As such, Brent Council is holding a Time to Talk Brexit event, to discuss the issues and concerns facing the local communities, and to investigate ways the council could help support people affected by Brexit.

Brent Council would like to invite all members of the community and voluntary sector to Time to Talk Brexit, which takes place at Brent Civic Centre on Monday 14 January 2019 from 6.30 for a 7pm start.

This event is part of the Council’s wider Time to Talk campaign which aims to empower residents and community leaders to talk about difficult issues like this one and work together with partners to tackle them. If you would like to have your say on the issues, please come along to this FREE event and help us create a stronger, safer Brent.

To register for the event please book a ticket on eventbrite, HERE or alternatively email anne.kittappa@brent.gov.uk.

If you have any questions or would like to find out more, please contact us on anne.kittappa@brent.gov.uk or 020 8937 6060

NOTE: 60 per cent of Brent residents voted for the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union in the referendum.

72,523 residents voted for the United Kingdom to remain in the EU, whereas 48,881 voted to leave, with 267 spoilt ballots.

The turnout was 65 per cent.

Friday 23 November 2018

TONIGHT! People's Vote on Brexit campaign meeting, Bridge Park, 6.30pm


Join local volunteers for a community meeting to hear more about campaigning in Brent for a People's Vote on any Brexit deal, and find out how you can get involved.


The meeting will also be attended by a representative of People's Vote HQ, giving you the opportunity to hear more about the next phases of the People's Vote campaign and ask any questions that you may have.


If you are able to attend, please RSVP  HERE so that we know how many people to expect.


See you there!


WHEN

November 23, 2018 at 6:30pm - 8:30pm

WHERE

Bridge Park Community Leisure Centre
Brentfield
Harrow Road
London NW10 0RG
United Kingdom
Google map and direction
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Sunday 21 October 2018

The youthfulness of yesterday's march for a People's Vote as significant as the numbers




I don't 'love the EU' as some of yesterday's marchers chant but neither do I think it was a 'march of the Blairites' as some have claimed.

The reasons why people were marching for a People's Vote on the Brexit negotiations outcome were complex and sometimes  contradictory as one would expect in a march of 700,000 people. Freedom to travel and work in the EU, the security of EU citizens in the UK; safeguarding of trade union, health and safety, food  and environmental standards; fear of the economic consequences of leaving the EU; concern that a 'Little Britain' would be an insular state potentially prey to the extreme right, all played a part.


The march was significant for its youth as well as the fact that it was largely made up of many individuals and families rather than blocks of politcial parties and tarde unionists. I have never been on a march with so few red flags!

Whatever one thinks of the marchers' motives a march of so many, mainly young, people is genuinely significant in the current Brexit turmoil.