New battle lines

Of course, Brexit was never going to be just about leaving the EU. Our internal political system is in turmoil. The fitness for purpose of our democracy is under question. Personal relationships have strained or broken.

 

Everything we took for granted about our country and our political beliefs is shaken. Britain - or more precisely, England - is in the throes of growing pains.

 

As soon as you hear someone say "Never since the Norman Conquest has England....." you know they are defending a castle in the air.

 

And yet.....there has been no confusion in England as great as this since the Civil War, which was not a simple battle between flashy Europhile Royalists and plain russet-coated English Parliamentarians, but a mess of ideologies, prejudices, opportunism, superstition, nostalgia, pragmatism, courage, cowardice, principles, convictions, compromises and betrayals.

 

The 17th century English Revolution was a great experiment in republican government. There is nothing great or experimental about Brexit - the right-wing reality is a reactionary coup d'état in the interests of the few, not of the many sincere democrats who voted for it.

 

There is no coherence, no leadership and no civil disobedience yet. If they come, let's hope they are not in battalions.

 

 Andrew Carrick Gow Cromwell Dissolving the Long Parliament in 1653.
Oil on canvas, 1907. Auckland Art Gallery. Image: Wikipedia

 

One of the most tortured bodies in this mess is the Labour Party, the country's only hope for domestic welfare and the protection of public services, which lost votes in the Election because of the leadership's fudged Referendum policy, and will be unelectable again if it doesn't support the Single Market.

 

 "Two things are now clear: Brexit involves a series of political choices, an our future relationship with the EU will be inferior to the one we currently enjoy. Sitting on the sidelines is therefore not an option.

 

For the Labour Party, the challenge is huge. The majority of Labour voters backed remaining in the EU, but a significant proportion did not. As a party we campaigned to Remain, and most of us do not believe the challenges facing the country are best solved by leaving – quite the opposite – but since the referendum we have failed to reach

a common and coherent position...

 

So, the choice is clear. We can sit back and wait for the consequences of a hard Brexit to become so severe that it topples this terrible Tory government.
Or we can stand up for those who will be worst affected and fight for membership of the Single Market and the Customs Union.

Future generations will not forgive us for inaction or for perceived complicity in a Brexit that damages our country and our economy." Catherine West MP

 

THE VITAL LINKS:

New report: Busting Lexit Myths

The Labour Campaign for a Single Market

and the leaked Government report on the adverse effects of Brexit on Britain

 Thank all our gods, he's here again to cheer up a dreary post:
the irresistible Will, of the People, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel by Manet