Tel. +44 (0)20 7287 4414
Email. info@brugesgroup.com
Tel. +44 (0)20 7287 4414
Email. info@brugesgroup.com
The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
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Bruges Group Blog

Spearheading the intellectual battle against the EU. And for new thinking in international affairs.

Success that Can Not Speak. Success Denied.

ai-generated-8411998_128_20240528-153032_1 Five Minutes to Midnight


Words can define eras. Harold Wilson's government was full of people who, like their union paymasters, 'Acquiesced' so they could keep their jobs. Today, all of a sudden, all sorts of politicians, journalists and business people have discovered their contemporaries are guilty of egregious behaviour (not themselves of course). Are they all guilty of the new 'in-word' Gaslighting?

The Brexit referendum question should have been: "Do you wish to be ruled by an organisation over which you have no democratic control?" Instead we were asked if we wanted to stay in the EU without defining what that meant. This allowed the Remain Lobby to 'Gaslight' the electorate by positing that the question was economic. Bizarrely, Cameron set the ball rolling by warning of expensive socks. This was followed by blood curdling threats of economic Armageddon. So determined were they to scare us that they even brought in Obama to add his threats. The pro EU cultists were so far removed from normality that they still fail to realise that that threat increased the leave vote.

Since Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of soup it has been generally agreed that self responsibility is preferable to servitude. Having struggled since the Norman conquest to restore democracy. Most would think it odd to throw it away, which is why the question was not asked. Of course in any society there will be oddballs who question their ability to be responsible. Those who agree with the EU Commission that matters of state are just too complicated for ordinary people's heads. Most however, prefer to vote for politicians whom they can judge and remove or reward. Democracy is far from perfect, but until someone has a better idea it is still preferable to rule by unelected technocrats.

Since the referendum we have witnessed an unrelenting attack on democracy by supporters of the EU. Democracy cannot exist without losers consent and their action raises the question. Why do they want to destroy democracy?

EU zealotry brought down Margaret Thatcher and Boris Johnson (if it really was about not eating cake, then Kier Starmer who did drink beer and eat curry or pizza should not be an MP) EU zealotry infest politics and the civil service. It has ensured our freedom has advanced at a snails pace. There is a historical parallel. Religion. William of Normandy had Papal blessing for his invasion on condition that he held England as a Papal fief, and paid the money the Pope claimed he was due. William accepted, but ignored the first and squeezed the English to honour the second. King John made England a Papal fief and in return for the Pope cancelling Magna Carta. The claims went on until the reformation when Popes happily sanctioned the deaths of English monarchs. Not for the want of trying they all failed. The last time the claim was made was 1745. Abbé Butler invested Bonny Prince Charlie as Regent for King James III. And with possession of the Kingdom of Great Britain to hold at the will and pleasure of the Holy See. They did not drop their claim to England until 1766. Zealotry continued however, the Inquisition executed Cayetano Ripoll, a Spanish schoolmaster for heresy in 1826.

British EU supporters have no argument in terms of democracy, which is why they concentrate on the economy. If leaving the EU had made us poorer I would consider it a small price to pay for the restoration of democracy. However, it has not, in fact we are demonstrably better off.

Sebastian J. Handley's Blue Anchor blog uses official statistics to prove that we were better off before joining the Common Market, and that we are better off now we have left the EU. In a world where the EU is a declining market we have completed our application to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). This trade bloc comprises fast growing economies currently representing 15% of global trade. Our exports have risen by a staggering 40% in the four years since we left the EU. Exports are up to both EU and non-EU markets. The UK is the joint fastest growing economy in the G7. Our service exports are growing, despite EU attempts to damage them. UK unemployment is 4.3%. The Euro area it is 6.5. Despite German unemployment standing at 5.9% they are having to import non-EU labour for retail work, including working in McDonald's. These are all facts, all verifiable from official sources, and yet, with a couple of Tory exceptions, we never hear about them. So strong is the hold of EU zealotry that excellent news is suppressed.

With very little to offer, one would have thought that Rishi Sunak would make this front and centre of his campaign. It's real, truthful, good news not dodgy forecasts. Sadly the EU zealots hold is so strong that even faced with political oblivion, Conservative Central Office continues its disastrous policy of only allowing EU supporting Lib Dem cross dressers on to the candidate list. It is inexplicable that in an election where the key word is 'Change', it has not occurred to the Tory party that Johnson pulled off the biggest change in UK politics since Labour overthrew the Liberals. People voted for change in 2019, they supported the Tory party because it promised to deliver on the referendum. The promise has only been partly kept. The EU zealots got rid of the architect of their majority because, for them, the EU is more important than promises, party or country. Our success should be shouted from the roof tops, instead it is sneeringly dismissed.

Our tragedy is that only a rump of the Tory party believes in our Country. The Liberal Democrats were in Coalition with Cameron for five years. They have escaped responsibility for the calamitous mistakes they made. Ed Davey claims he has no responsibility for the jailing of innocent Post Masters because "No one told him about it" He was the Minister in charge. What does he think his job entailed? The same excuse is used by Keir Starmer for his multiple errors as DPP. Did he really ignore the Muslim grooming gangs operating in Labour controlled areas because "No one told him". Young girls raped and many perpetrators never brought to justice because the boss was not told? Did he ask? Did Labour MPs not know what was going on in the constituencies they represented. These are the people who, it is predicted, will form our next government.

Starmer, a Trotskyist lawyer who made a fortune defending Muslim terrorists. A man who supported hard left Corbyn and his communist agenda. Who did nothing as the Labour party became anti semitic. Who campaigned strenuously in 2019 for Corbyn to become Prime Minister. Now we are told he has had a Damascene conversion. The leopards has changed its spots and become a democratic pussy cat. Really? As the Duke of Wellington observed "If you believe that you will believe anything".

This is the most appalling election I can remember. Two contenders who resemble each other more than either understand the country. Starmer doubles down on Blair's imported vote ploy by offering the vote to 16-year-olds in the hope of securing a perpetual Labour majority. To go along with that, is he proposing making them adults? Fully responsible? Able to fight in the army? Drive a car? Smoke, drink , gamble, work in a pub, in a betting shop or casino? Many years ago when the first educational dumbing down started a close friend wearily opined "The answer is to give everyone a PhD at birth and let them regress".

Sunak's answer, tax relief for pensioners. The gaslighting is reaching a fever pitch of banality. Our two Nero's fiddle and ignore the good news, because they share a conviction that an independent successful United Kingdom is a bad thing. Both are Davos men committed to a future that has no time for nations, sovereignty or democracy. Theirs is not a new idea. They nurture the tired ambition of the Caesars, Karl der Große, various Louis, Bonaparte, Hitler, Stalin, Mao. The list of vainglorious world dictators is endless. They leave behind shattered lives and misery. Is that really the best 2024 can deliver? We have a choice between two leaders and two parties that are devoid of loyalty to our country, who hold little affection for our history and democracy. With empty boasts and false promises they sneer at our past and deny us our future.

On the 2nd of September 1939 ,Leo Amery, a Tory MP, famously told Arthur Greenwood, a Labour MP, to "Speak for England". He did, and Winston Churchill became Prime Minister. Back then most MPs believed in this country. They collaborated to achieve success. Now we have politicians, who in the main, collaborate to achieve failure. We have much to be proud of. Contrary to the doomsayers we are on the cusp of a renaissance. A renewal that offers all of us a brighter democratic future, but who will speak for us? Those of us who do not want a return to managed decline or yet another Socialist experiment. Time is short, whoever you are Stand Up, Speak! 


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Director : Robert Oulds
Tel: 020 7287 4414
Chairman: Barry Legg
 
The Bruges Group
246 Linen Hall, 162-168 Regent Street
London W1B 5TB
United Kingdom
KEY PERSONNEL
 
Founder President :
The Rt Hon. the Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven LG, OM, FRS 
Vice-President : The Rt Hon. the Lord Lamont of Lerwick,
Chairman: Barry Legg
Director : Robert Oulds MA, FRSA
Washington D.C. Representative : John O'Sullivan CBE
Founder Chairman : Lord Harris of High Cross
Head of Media: Jack Soames