Ladies and Gentlemen and fellow members of the English Democrats
I am delighted to see you today and welcome you to our Annual General Meeting and Autumn Conference. The English Democrats were launched in August 2002 and we are now officially just over twelve years old. That does seem to matter to journalists and commentators and others because it suggests to them that we are not going away. Ladies and Gentlemen what do you think? Are we going away?
Picture of Stephen Elliott
Now Ladies and Gentlemen I have got a sadder duty to report to you that one of our leading members from the early days, Stephen Elliott, after a long and debilitating illness has died. This is the announcement of his death that I made in my Blog:-
I have been given the sad news that Stephen Elliott one of the founder members of the English Democrats died on the 28th July 2014.
Stephen had suffered for several years with an increasingly debilitating illness. As a formerly very active man, to become increasingly unable to move was ever more frustrating.
Stephen retained an interest in the development of the English Democrats and a member of the English Democrats and he remained a keen supporter of our work right up until the end. Indeed, with assistance, he was able to attend the Party’s annual conference in 2012 in Leicester. His death is very sad to report, but he will be remembered as one of those who gave freely of his time and money to help to build the foundations of our new politically active English Nationalism.
Stephen was a proud Yorkshire man and was a reservoir of amusing stories. At one time he had been an under-cover police officer pretending to be one of the student communists in order to keep an eye of subversive Leftists like Jack Straw, who was Labour’s Foreign Secretary, and was memorably called Sir Christopher Meyers, the British Ambassador in Washington, a “political pygmy”. As a student Jack Straw had been a firebrand communist and hater of all things Western, British and English.
In later life, after leaving the police, Stephen became a successful entrepreneur and built-up a significant property portfolio.
Politically he joined the Steering Committee whose work led to the foundation and launch of the English Democrats in August 2002 at Imperial College, London. For many years he was on our National Council and keenly watched our progress and supported our campaign generously.
Stephen will be much missed by all those who remember him and our English nationalist cause is the poorer for his passing. I do wish every condolence to his two daughters and his family at this sad time.
So Ladies and Gentlemen I would ask you to all be upstanding and keep a minutes silence for departed merit.
Thank you very much Ladies and Gentlemen.
Since the last Spring Conference your National Council and your Chairman have been busy trying to advance England’s Cause. Just to mention an example – there has been Derek Hilling, who appeared for us on BBC News recently with Charles Haywood. Mark Easton, the BBC’s political correspondent even went so far as to say that although we are small we seem to have struck a chord with the English.
Also we have stood in the EU election in May and in the most difficult electioneering circumstances when UKIP was getting wall to wall coverage we still got 126,000 votes for a campaign expenditure of about £40,000.
Video of launch
Video of campaign song
Also since then outside the National Council, Chris Newey has stood for us in a local by-election in Walsall. Dr Julia Gasper is also standing in Oxford and also Sam Kelly in York for us as we speak!
Also when the Scottish Independence Reference began we registered to support the YES campaign in the Scottish Referendum which got us a certain amount of coverage. I was interviewed by the BBC and they did quite a reasonable political biography for me. I was also interviewed by the Communist paper, The Morning Star, who did not like us supporting the Scottish nationalist cause, which they seemed to want to keep preserved for left-wingers!
IPPR picture
In mid-April the Universities of Edinburgh and Cardiff working for the IPPR (the Institute of Public Policy Research which is a Labour supporting think tank currently being investigated by the Charities Commission for excessive bias towards Labour), published some advance details of their research in order to help their friends at the BBC do some coverage of the English reaction to the Scottish Referendum. That research showed that we are making progress. Over 52% now want a separate English Parliament. We also have been campaigning for an end to the unfair greater amounts of money being spent on Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland than on English people. Now 56% support the abolition of the Barnett Formula. They agreed with the statement that “Levels of public spending in Scotland (should) be reduced to the UK average: In 2012-13 identifiable public spending per capita in Scotland was £10,327, compared to the UK average of £8,940.
Even our more recent call for English Independence is now getting greater opinion poll support than carrying on with the existing political system, 19% support against 18%!
Since these polls were conducted in mid-April there has been two broadcast Independence debates that we English have been permitted to see.
Picture of Darling and Salmond
Just consider what exactly Alistair Darling and Douglas Alexander told all those English people who listened:-
That all that is important to Scottish politicians is the interests of Scots. Just remember that they have all also signed up for the Scottish Claim of Right.
Just remember the Scottish Claim of Right.
Video of Claim of Right
As the King James’ version of the Holy Bible says: “He that hath ears to hear let him hear”.
What do you think the reaction of English people will be to that?
My view too is that English people will be much more motivated and I am certainly finding already an audience amongst journalists.
Since then we have had all the recent hullabaloo from the British Establishment.
This has really helped us. I did an interview with the Financial Times last week and this week have done interviews – 7 yesterday and have done an interview for BBC’s Eastern Region, Sunday Politics recorded for tomorrow.
Later we are going to have a debate as to what our reaction should be in the event of a YES vote and also in the event of a NO vote. I hope you will enthusiastically take part in that so that we can make sure our Party line is the most effective possible.
So far as other parties are concerned, the BNP have now gone into utter meltdown and even Nick Griffin himself has been forced out of office and the leadership and now he is fighting over the money. I am informed that they have substantially less party members than we do and are not so much the walking dead as the merely twitching.
UKIP on the other hand clearly seem very much on the up at present, but their great weakness is that a lot people that support them are basically English nationalists and haven’t fully worked out which Party they ought to be supporting. I think as time goes on UKIP will disappoint them and we will be in an ideal position to pick up mass support.
Video of Nigel Farage on the English Question
I hear that Nigel Farage has been saying that the English Democrats are finished. I am certainly not finished. Are you finished?
I have got a message for Nigel Farage – Not only are we not finished, but we have barely started!
Just think that if, on the 19th September, we hear that the Scots have voted YES, UIKP will have to start thinking of its new name. I think 18 months later after the negotiations finish and Scotland has become Independent we may talk sometimes of the Former United Kingdom. Let’s see how that works for you UKIP.
UKIP logo
What do you think Ladies and Gentlemen?
Labour
Conservative
Liberal Democrats
Ladies and Gentlemen before I finish I thought I would remind you and talk to you about a song written by Edward Carpenter who was one of the founders of the Labour Movement in the days when they were still patriotic and cared about ordinary English people and before the international Marxist Red Flag became popular with them. Can I quote you some lines from his famous marching hymn – England Arise?
England, arise! The long, long night is over, Faint in the East behold the dawn appear, Out of your evil dream of toil and sorrow – Arise, O England, for the day is here! From your fields and hills, Hark! The answer swells – Arise, O England, for the day is here!
Here is a rendition of the song. What do you think Ladies and Gentlemen?
Video link
Ladies and Gentlemen – Fellow English Democrats – Fellow English Nationalists – Let’s all stand together:- England Arise!!!