THE FUTURE OF ENGLAND?
A MAJOR CONFERENCE TAKING PLACE IN ROOM 10 IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 18TH 5pm to 7pm (SAME DAY AS THE OPENING OF PARLIAMENT) WITH FOUR DISTINGUISHED WRITERS AND CAMPAIGNERS.
- George Monbiot (Guardian newspaper and environment campaigner)
- Peter Facey (Director: Unlock Democracy)
- Paul Kingsnorth (author of ‘Real England: The Battle against the Bland’)
- David Wildgoose (vice-chairman The Campaign for an English Parliament)
It is eleven years since the 1998 devolution legislation. Scotland and Wales now have their own Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly. They have forged ahead since, re-creating and expanding their own distinct national identities and achieving major benefits and advantages for their peoples. But England has got nothing from devolution. Why should English students pay tuition fees and emerge from university laden with debt while Scottish students don’t? Why should Welsh people pay no prescription charges while English people do? England still has no constitutional existence of its own and no national institution of any kind as ‘a forum where the concerns of the nation can be debated’ (the Welsh White paper). England is disadvantaged. The situation is gravely unjust to the people of England. Scottish MPs can now take part in legislation that concerns England only, can even be ministers of departments which deal only with England, without being accountable to any electorate. The Union is dangerously unbalanced. There are massive cultural, environmental and political issues involved. From many angles the people of England are being left out and overlooked. It is a situation that cannot continue. Nor should it. The Union should be a Union of equals or it is no Union.’
We are looking for an open debate. We want your contribution.
Anyone wishing to attend please phone Scilla Cullen (CEP Charman) on: 01438 833155 or email: scilla.cullen@dsl.pipex.com or Mike Knowles on: 01260 271139. email: michael-knowles@tiscali.co.uk.
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Can someone point me to the CEP demo in Parliament Sq on the 18th November?
I can’t find it on the CEP website.
Cheers.
October 29th, 2009 at 3:29 pmIt seems to me that a hung parliament after the next
November 9th, 2009 at 7:24 pmelection is the best scenario to further our campaign for an English Parliament. What is required
is a change in the voting system in which all voters
feel that their vote means something. The two main parties are satisfied with the existing voting system
as long as it is beneficial to them and have no intention of bringing about constitutional change. We need to use every opportunity to target their
policies which are not favourable to England’s future. .
Yes ! a hung parliament would suit my political taste
November 9th, 2009 at 8:28 pmI want to here the “pigs-a-squealing” when they start losing Votes & Seats
Cameron scottish blood flowing through my veins i hope he rues the day he said that and “cast-ironess” & ” no-referendum” and those slimey liberals for walking out on the referendum Vote !
UKIP-BNP- ENGLISH DEMOCRATS to take votes from the main three, and all the other parties nibbling away
Labour in smouldering ashes would paint a nice little picture but and i expecting too much.
[...] CEP Conference 2009: The Future of England? [...]
November 11th, 2009 at 1:53 pmSince the EU has no need for a ‘United Kingdom’, they see this as an unnecessary and undesirable layer of authority that contrasts to their control, achieving an English Parliament will only work to hasten the destruction of the union. Scotland and Wales are separate EU regions so their parliaments already fit neatly with the EU plan. Northern Ireland fits too; the Republic of Ireland is to be broken into two sections, one to be focused in Dublin the northern republic region will become one with N. Ireland – this is the snake-oil served by Blair giving all parties an answer to their wishes. Each of these regions will act in direct accord with Brussels – forget the idea of them dealing with a London based UK parliament (get with the action). So the question is do we call for an English Parliament which will assure the end of the UK or do we hold out from that and risk ending-up with no UK, no English Parliament and just nine regional assemblies in each if the EU designated regions that England is planned to be broken into?
November 14th, 2009 at 12:47 amEUBrainwashing, an English Parliament is not playing into the hands of the European Empire (a discussion I’ve had many, many times with UKIP people who say it will). The European Empire says that English has to be governed as 9 regions. Giving them two fingers and establishing a national government for England is not helping the European Empire, it is going against their instructions. When Scotland decides to declare independence – something they will do irrespective of whether England has a parliament or not – they will join the European Empire. This is a stated policy of the SNP. It’s none of our business here in England whether Scotland does declare independence or whether it does join the European Empire in its own right post-independence – this so-called “United” Kingdom is a union of nations, each one of which has the right to determine its own future. The British political class may be trying to deny us that right in England but it’s still ours and history will remember those that were enemies of England and its people.
November 14th, 2009 at 11:00 amEUbrainwashing and wonkotsane [5] & [6], are right to point to the dangers of regionalism within England. there are in fact groups within England working to break England up into regions and to make them subservient to Brussels (e.g., CfRE, the Campaign for Regional England, and the Wessex Regionalist Party, among them).
NB. that arch-proEU party the Liberal Democratic Party could only limp in in 6th place in the Glasgow East by-election
i expect the Lib Dems to be wiped out in next year’s general election. with the unionist party UKIP falling apart, the future is rosy for the English Democrats Party.
The Young Wessex League
November 14th, 2009 at 11:36 am“Zeaxe; owre land and volc”
Following the revelations on Channel 4’s ‘Dispatches’ this week, it seems English people should be more worried about significant areas of your country’s foreign policy and ultimately the deleterious knock-on effects on internal events, being dictated by powerful individuals and groups whose interests lie not in England or any derivation of England but in themselves and their peculiar loyalty to Israel. Which English political Party is not afraid to speak the glaring truth that Israel is a failure as a peace partner.
November 20th, 2009 at 6:29 pmEUbrainwashing. That may be so, (I’m not sure myself).
November 20th, 2009 at 6:37 pmI take it, reading between the lines, that like myself you would like to see England leave the EU as it is in its present form, and negotiate a different more democratic arrangement with our European neighbours.
This would probably entail a referendum first. But unless this was an England- only referendum, I think we would be less likely to win it.
Bring on the 9 regions, it will lead to more accountable government – 60 million is way too many for anybody to be able to pop into parliament and chat with a minister. It will lead to better services – how can 1 person run an NHS for 60 million.
November 21st, 2009 at 2:02 pmI was bitterly dissappointed that Blair and prescott reneged on their promise of regional assemblies.