Category Archives: eu no

BREXIT – THE EU AND UK LEGAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL PROCEDURES


I was recently asked to do an article for the Solicitors Journal which is a highly respected Legal magazine. The brief was to set out my views on Article 50 and on the situation. Also as George Osborne had just said the UK can invoke Article 50 when it feels it is best placed to, to comment on that suggestion and the Brexit situation overall.

Here is my article. What do you think?

BREXIT – THE EU AND UK LEGAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL PROCEDURES


There are two constitutional legal procedures required to put into effect the democratically expressed Will of the People to Brexit.

One is the external requirement, under EU constitutional law, of activating Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Article 50 is simple to activate and it is entirely in the hands of the UK as a Member State to do so in accordance with UK constitutional arrangements. The “Royal Prerogative” gives that power to the Prime Minister.

Once Article 50 has been activated there is a compulsory 2 year period of negotiation managed by the EU Commission but if no agreement is reached, then the UK’s membership of the EU lapses automatically. (Bad luck Scotland, but nice try Nicola Sturgeon!).

The other constitutional procedure is internal. There must be a substantial repeal by the UK’s Westminster Parliament of the European Communities Act 1972 (perhaps with some saving provisions).

If Scotland held the threatened second Independence Referendum and voted to go, a third possibility would arise because if the UK, which is the EU Member State was dissolved then all parts of the former UK State would be automatically outside of the EU.

Over the course of the next few months up until mid-September we will witness the pattern of events revolve again around the machinations of the British Political elite. The critical political challenge for Brexit to actually occur is the Conservative Parliamentary Party’s decision as to which two contenders for leader will go onto the ballot for all Conservative Party members to vote on.

If Boris Johnson is on the ballot then it is a racing certainty that he will win the leadership and become the next Prime Minister.

If the plotters against him succeed in keeping him off the ballot paper, then it becomes doubtful as to who would win and it will then be still more doubtful as to what happens about Brexit. The future of the Conservative Party would then also have been put in doubt because all its Brexit voters will be absolutely furious and electorally unforgiving.

In the meanwhile, legislation based upon the EU has lost the privileged status which Lord Justice Laws gave it in his judgment against the Metric Martyrs in 2002. Laws LJ held that the Referendum in 1975 gave the People’s democratic consent to the European Communities Act 1972 and thus conferred special status upon it as a constitutional statute. That consent has now been removed and with it the special status of all that strand of law!

Here is a link to the article which the Solicitors Journal wrote partly based upon my comments >>> http://www.solicitorsjournal.com/news/public/administrative-and-constitutional/26932/uk-decides-when-trigger-article-50-not-eu-say-le

LEAVE WINS (ENGLAND VOTES TO LEAVE BUT OTHER NATIONS IN THE UK VOTE TO REMAIN)


Here is the text of our Brexit Press release:-

LEAVE WINS (ENGLAND VOTES TO LEAVE BUT OTHER NATIONS IN THE UK VOTE TO REMAIN)

The English Democrats delightedly welcome the result of the EU referendum as the majority of the People across the whole of the United Kingdom have democratically voted for the sensible option of leaving the EU. We especially welcome the result in England where we have been campaigning. In England the turnout was 73%, the highest of the 4 countries in UK and England has voted by 53.4% to leave the EU.

It is now incumbent upon David Cameron, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, to activate Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty to begin the process of disengagement from the EU. If, despite the result of the EU referendum, he is not prepared to do so then he should resign forthwith and not wait until October.

The important thing is that the democratic vote of the People should be honoured without reservation.

The English Democrats now call for those parts of the United Kingdom, namely Scotland and Northern Ireland whom have voted to Remain to have the democratic Will of that Nation and Province also honoured.

Under the current uneven Devolution arrangements the UK’s membership of the EU is a ‘reserved matter’ which means that has to be decided by Government of the United Kingdom, not by the devolved assemblies or parliaments.

The English Democrats support the right of the Nation and Province which voted to Remain to do so. We therefore call upon the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to not only to activate Article 50, but to negotiate to enable the Remain voting Nation and Province to Remain within the EU whilst England and Wales leaves.

Robin Tilbrook, the Chairman of the English Democrats said:- “I am delighted with the result of the EU referendum vote but concerned that David Cameron and his clique will now try to subvert the democratically expressed Will of the English People and of the Welsh People.”

Robin continued:- “As a democrat I am also calling for the democratic Will of the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish Peoples be fully honoured without reservation and that their Will to Leave or to Remain should be honoured.”

“For the English Democrats it is very clear that the United Kingdom is now dead. It is no longer possible to argue that Britain speaks with one voice. We will work to ensure that the will of the people of England is carried out. We believe in England not Britain.”

Robin Tilbrook

Chairman,

The English Democrats

The rise of political Englishness – BREXIT or EXIT?

The rise of political Englishness
I always think it is a good sign of changing currents of opinion when you can see even people who in many respects would be political opponents concede the way things are changing.  Although they may put it in language that is different, and regard the outcome in a completely different way.  A really good example of this has recently been published. 
So good is it that I thought I would confine this blog article to providing a link for you to read the whole article which contains various graphics that would be difficult to reproduce in a blog article.
Here is a link to “It’s England’s Brexit” >>> http://wp.me/p5XgA2-j3
I think you will find that it fully lives up to the billing that I have given it.

Leadership of the No to EU Campaign

Leadership of the No to EU Campaign


In the coming months the Electoral Commission will be deciding who to “designate” as “Leader” of the “No” Campaign in the EU referendum. The Leader of the campaign will also get the public funding for the Campaign of about £1,000,000!

Below is what the Electoral Commission say are the rules. I expect that the Electoral Commission will however be looking to appoint a Leader who they think is credible enough to pass muster but not credible enough to win! That is what John Prescott tried to do in his North East Assembly Referendum. The Electoral Commission no doubt now forgets that it is the Minister who appoints them!

“There is a statutory test in PPERA that the Commission must apply when assessing applications for designation:

* If there is more than one applicant for an outcome, the Commission shall designate whichever of the applicants appears to the Commission to represent to the greatest extent those campaigning for that outcome.

When we assessed applications for the Referendum on Independence for Scotland, we used a decision making process to apply a test, based on the criteria set out below. Based on the legislation for the referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union as it is currently drafted, we expect the Commission to take similar consideration into account during the designation process for the EU referendum.

* How the applicant’s objectives fit with the referendum outcome it supports

* The level and type of support for the application

* How the applicant intends to engage with other campaigners

* The applicant’s organizational capacity to represent those campaigning for the outcome, and

* The applicant’s capacity to deliver their campaign (including its financial probity)”