Saturday 6 January 2018

Is Jeremy Corbyn a British/ English Nationalist?

There is something seriously wrong  with the Remain camp over Brexit particularly within the Left.


Last Week we found ourselves in total agreement with Lord Adonis a total Blarite who in October 2015, he resigned the Labour Party whip in the House of Lords to sit as a non-affiliated Peer and lead a newly created National Infrastructure Commission (NIC).

But  Lord Adonis resigned last Friday in protest at Theresa May’s management of Britain’s departure from the EU, describing the process as “a dangerous populist and nationalist spasm worthy of Donald Trump”.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday morning:

“Almost the entire government machine is spending its time seeking to wrench us out of the key economic and political institutions of the EU. Everything else is going by the board.”
Adonis said there should be a second referendum on the terms of the Brexit deal and that people like him who are in leadership positions should be “arguing passionately with the British people as to why staying in the EU is the right thing to do”.
He said those who voted to leave were “not stupid” but argued that Brexit was not defined before the referendum and people should be given “a new say” on the choice between May’s deal and staying in the EU.
“I hope we can bring the common sense of the British people to bear when they realise what the consequences are,”
Then we have Lord Adonis's foremer leader  Tony Blair confirming  that he is trying to reverse Brexit, arguing that voters deserve a second referendum because the “£350m per week for the NHS” promise has now been exposed as untrue.


In an interview with the BBC Radio 4’s The World This Weekend on Sunday, the former prime minister said that what was happening to the “crumbling” NHS was a “national tragedy” and that it was now “very clear” that the Vote Leave promise about Brexit leading to higher NHS spending would not be honoured.



“When the facts change, I think people are entitled to change their mind,” said Blair,
In an interview with the BBC Radio 4’s The World This Weekend on Sunday, the former prime minister said that what was happening to the “crumbling” NHS was a “national tragedy” and that it was now “very clear” that the Vote Leave promise about Brexit leading to higher NHS spending would not be honoured.
“When the facts change, I think people are entitled to change their mind,” said Blair, who has always been a strong opponent of Brexit but who has rarely been so explicit about being on a personal mission to stop it happening.

My belief is that, in the end, when the country sees the choice of this new relationship, it will realise that it’s either going to be something that does profound damage to the country, or alternatively, having left the European Union, left the single market, we will try and by some means recreate the benefit of that in some new relationship, in which case I think many people will think, ‘What’s the point?’”
“The will of the people is not something immutable. People can change their mind if the circumstances change,” he said.
who has always been a strong opponent of Brexit but who has rarely been so explicit about being on a personal mission to stop it happening.

My belief is that, in the end, when the country sees the choice of this new relationship, it will realise that it’s either going to be something that does profound damage to the country, or alternatively, having left the European Union, left the single market, we will try and by some means recreate the benefit of that in some new relationship, in which case I think many people will think, ‘What’s the point?’”
“The will of the people is not something immutable. People can change their mind if the circumstances change,”
With the Leaders  of Labour under control of Jeremy  Corbyn  supporting Brexit and not even bothering  to mitigate it .

Small wonder James Coldwell is a Labour councillor in Southwark, south London. is frustrated with the parliamentary Labour Party.

Over at Left Foot Forward he writes in an article

It’s easy for ex-politicians to speak up against Brexit. But where are Labour’s MPs?



We called for Labour to offer clear opposition to Brexit – and commit to giving voters the opportunity to review Britain’s relationship with the EU.
The letter detailed the ways in which the Brexit vote has harmed the communities we represent: the insecurity experienced by EU nationals, the difficulties local NHS institutions face in filling key posts, and how our poorest residents’ financial difficulties have been exacerbated by higher inflation.
If our appeal fell on deaf ears, Starmer surely heard the comments made by Andrew Adonis and Tony Blair. Adonis’ resignation letter called for a commitment to staying in the EU, alongside a “radically reforming government in the tradition of Attlee, working tirelessly to eradicate social problems.” Blair’s analysis argued that a changed context makes it reasonable for voters to revisit the Brexit question.
The three interventions were, at root, brought about by the same thing: a failure of leadership from Labour MPs.
Had the PLP as a whole been braver, there would have been no reason for us to write to Starmer. Had prominent MPs already united around an unambiguous anti-Brexit message, Adonis’ resignation would have been far less explosive. And had Jeremy Corbyn articulated as clear an alternative to Brexit as he has to other Tory-inspired initiatives, Blair would have fallen in behind him.
If Labour MPs are unable to muster the courage to keep the Brexit question open, they won’t find much support among party members: research by Queen Mary University shows that 78% of Labour members support a second referendum.

For those on the Left in Wales and  particularly Scotland we have  Leanne Wood and Nicola Sturgeon to articulate  our opposition Brexit. 

But in England from a Left positon finding yourself in agreement with Tony Blair  is hardly enouraging.

Perhaps it is a political oddity that much of the Labour Left are in reality  not only British English Unionists , but invoke a similar British English as the Tories.

Jeremy Corbyn as an British English Nationalist   now that's a thought.


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