A regular
commentary on strategic affairs from a leading commentator and analyst.
Forthcoming Book: "Little Britain? Twenty-First Century Strategy for a Middling
European Power" (Publish date: January 2014).
Wednesday, 1 January
2014
Why the
English are Angry in this Big Year for Britain
Alphen, Netherlands, 1 January. Happy New Year! Well,
apparently not if you are English.
According to the much of the Press as I write hordes of
Bulgarians and Romanians are en route to Dover courtesy of yet another diktat
from loathed, lamentable Brussels.
With another wave of immigration likely elections to the
European Parliament and the Scottish referendum there are lots of contentious
issues in a 2014 that will be a big and possibly disastrous year for Britain.
The impact of these linked but distinct issues is that for the
first time in many years the views of the English are suddenly in the political
spotlight.
For the past decade and more the English have either been
ignored or seen as a lab for some ghastly, failed political experiment in social
engineering that destroyed the England I knew.
Five issues dominate the pub – poverty, Scotland, the EU,
freedom, and of course immigration.
Firstly, England is becoming rapidly more populous but poorer.
The main crutch supporting hyper-immigration has been that it grows the
economy.
With the British economy likely to grow between 2.5% and 3% next
year there may be some truth to that.
However, with immigration growing faster than the economy the
net result is a bigger economy and poorer people, a phenomenon most clearly seen
in the rise of youth unemployment.
Secondly, the English have been marginalised in Britain.
Although some 90% of Britain’s 67 million people live in England
devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland has undoubtedly come at the
expense of the under-represented, politically-marginalised English. Moreover,
with Scots contemplating an independence referendum on 18 September Westminster
will spend much of the year appeasing the Scots at the expense (again) of the
English.
Thirdly, Euro-scepticism is a very English phenomenon. The EU
is seen as a form of foreign legislative occupation that has failed the English
badly costing them far more than they gain.
Brussels is perceived by much of the English population as
openly anti-English fronted by a London Establishment unwilling to fight
England’s corner.
The English were told that joining the then European Economic
Community back in 1973 would strengthen Britain and make the English more
prosperous.
Internationally Britain (and by extension England) has been
profoundly-weakened by an EU first dominated by France and Germany and now
dominated by Germany.
Domestically, by transferring so much funding power to the EU
Brussels is steadily replacing London as the decisive locus for
decision-making.
Fourthly, England’s sense of self is being steadily undermined.
Britain was built on ancient English concepts of freedom.
By signing up to EU treaties that fundamentally change the
relationship between leaders and led and human rights legislation that
fundamentally changes the relationships between rights and obligations belief in
the efficacy of representative democracy is fast collapsing in England.
If power is elsewhere what is the point voting for people who
cannot actually do anything? Indeed, the EU is seen by many as an illegitimate,
bureaucratic assault on ancient English rights and liberties.
Perhaps the most hated phrase in England these days is “new
European regulations…”
Fifthly and finally immigration is again on the rise. In many
ways immigration has indeed been a good thing for England as the best and
brightest of many poor societies have been cherry-picked to support an ageing
society.
However, immigration has also imported real hatreds, intolerance
and criminality into England and has done grave damage to English society.
A close friend of mine is a black community
leader in Salford in the north of England. He told me recently a chilling story
about the impact of Eastern European organised crime on his community.
The Yardee gang drawn mainly from the
Afro-Caribbean community tried to resist. A battle for the streets ensued
lasting three days before the Yardees were forced to retreat in the face of
utter brutality. London as usual is in
denial.
For all that blaming immigration and immigrants for England’s
woes is far too simplistic and wrong. Immigration is rather a metaphor for the
collapse of trust between the English and an unworldly, failed Westminster
political class.
The real problem is the dangerous gap between a political class
that has retreated steadily into a private conversation between themselves about
fantasy policy, pretend power and political correctness.
Today, the gap between that which politicians say, what they can
do, and what they actually do is now a gulf of credibility open to political
exploitation.
However, in his big year for Britain the English must also be
clear what it is they want. The only way for England to be again a
self-governing country is to let the Scots go, leave the EU and establish an
English Parliament with real power.
And yet many English people are confused, trapped between
romantic Englishness, romantic Britishness, failed Europeanness and hard-headed
political calculation. I am no different.
The English simply no longer believe their politicians have
their best interests at heart…and they are
right!
Give a politician enough rope and he will lower himself into the
bank vault.