Show some patriotism, UK minister tells broadcasters over Brexit

[rooster59]

Show some patriotism, UK minister tells broadcasters over Brexit

 

Andrea Leadsom speaks at a news conference in central London, Britain July 7, 2016. REUTERS/Paul Hackett/Files

 

LONDON (Reuters) - A prominent Brexit campaigner and leading member of Britain's government has scolded a BBC presenter for showing a lack of patriotism when asked why the country was in such political turmoil.

 

Interviewed on the BBC Newsnight programme a year after Britain voted to leave the European Union, Andrea Leadsom was asked why the country lacked a coherent Brexit strategy and a stable government.

 

"You've got a negotiating position which is completely unclear ... we've got a political system which is unstable, many believe our economy is unfair, living standards are falling, what can you point to now and say that's going well?" presenter Emily Maitlis had asked.

 

Leadsom, the leader of the House of Commons, said the country needed to pull together.

 

"It would be helpful if broadcasters were willing to be a bit patriotic. The country took a decision, this government is determined to deliver on that decision."

 

Britain launched its negotiations to leave the EU this week, led by Prime Minister Theresa May who has been stripped of her authority by a failure to win a majority in a June 8 election she did not need to call.

 

More than two weeks after the vote, May's Conservatives have still not managed to secure a deal with the Democratic Unionist Party, a small Northern Irish group whose lawmakers will be needed to get legislation passed through parliament.

 

Tim Farron, the outgoing leader of the small pro-EU Liberal Democrats party, said Leadsom should apologise for her "sinister" comments. "This isn't a George Orwell book," he said.

 

Leadsom sparked uproar in the weeks after the Brexit vote when, running to be leader of the Conservative party, she said the fact she was a mother meant she had a greater stake in the future than her childless rival May.

 

Leadsom later apologised and withdrew from the race, leaving May to be appointed prime minister.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-06-25

[IMA_FARANG]

Isn't there a saying that "patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels".

Maybe  that is because Patriotism is an easy thing to appeal to when you actually know that your action is not really in the best interests of you and the real long term good of your country.

Adolf Hitler  appealed to German patriotism, and at the time that was the answer to everything for Germany.

Learn the bitter  lessons of History, or be condemned to repeat them.

That also is a saying to think about.

 

 

[Credo]

I think there is a difference between patriotism and nationalism.   A bit of patriotism isn't necessarily a bad thing.   

[Scott]

 An inflammatory post, not in English has been removed.  

[darksidedog]

I don't think the British Press has covered itself in glory for the way it has covered Brexit, or that the Government had a real plan for it, as it never expected the country to vote to leave. The country did vote to leave though, creating an incredibly complicated and unprecedented situation. Whilst constructive criticism should always be welcomed, I have felt much of Brexit discussion has been quite negative, with questions being raised, whose answers no one will know until the negotiations are complete.

[Grouse]

I thought Leadsom was buried last year! Loathsome!

[Ace of Pop]

Isn't there a saying that "patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels".
Maybe  that is because Patriotism is an easy thing to appeal to when you actually know that your action is not really in the best interests of you and the real long term good of your country.
Adolf Hitler  appealed to German patriotism, and at the time that was the answer to everything for Germany.
Learn the bitter  lessons of History, or be condemned to repeat them.
That also is a saying to think about.
 
 

Or when you know realy it's the best long term solution, but not got the guts to say so, cuts both ways..!!.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Scott]

Off-topic post removed.  

[shanesox]

No need for "patriotism" But fact is the BBC and a lot of their hacks and producers are so pro EU and Europhile in news reporting and content,I'm happy I don't pay licence (tax) fee!


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[stevenl]

13 minutes ago, darksidedog said:

I don't think the British Press has covered itself in glory for the way it has covered Brexit, or that the Government had a real plan for it, as it never expected the country to vote to leave. The country did vote to leave though, creating an incredibly complicated and unprecedented situation. Whilst constructive criticism should always be welcomed, I have felt much of Brexit discussion has been quite negative, with questions being raised, whose answers no one will know until the negotiations are complete.

The problem is that the country voted 'leave' without anybody knowing what that would entail, and the vote does not represent the will of the country.

[Caps]

Maybe if the will of the country had got out of bed to vote rather than take it as a forgone  conclusion that Brexit was never going to happen then they would not have to keep bleating on about it now 

[stevenl]

13 minutes ago, Caps said:

Maybe if the will of the country had got out of bed to vote rather than take it as a forgone  conclusion that Brexit was never going to happen then they would not have to keep bleating on about it now 

If the will of the country is 'no brexit' then why is it still going on?

[Caps]

21 minutes ago, stevenl said:

If the will of the country is 'no brexit' then why is it still going on?

i didn't realise we had had another referendum!   Unless the TV crystal ballers are out in force again

[stevenl]

2 hours ago, Caps said:

i didn't realise we had had another referendum!   Unless the TV crystal ballers are out in force again

You said " Maybe if the will of the country had got out of bed to vote rather than take it as a forgone  conclusion that Brexit was never going to happen then they would not have to keep bleating on about it now  ", seems clear to me.

 

I just don't understand this. At the very least there is a lot of doubt that the majority really wants a brexit, and it is clear that nobody knew exactly what they were voting for. So why not check what people really want in stead of 'you voted out, so out it is'.

 

I find the whole process uncomprehensible.

[soalbundy]

2 hours ago, stevenl said:

If the will of the country is 'no brexit' then why is it still going on?

won't happen

[Orac]

3 hours ago, Grouse said:

I thought Leadsom was buried last year! Loathsome!

 

There is blood in the water and leadership challengers are circling. Leadsom has been all over the media for the last few days.

[nauseus]

3 hours ago, stevenl said:

The problem is that the country voted 'leave' without anybody knowing what that would entail, and the vote does not represent the will of the country.

That may be partially true but it can also be said that the country voted in without anybody knowing what that would entail, in 1975!

[dick dasterdly]

5 hours ago, IMA_FARANG said:

Isn't there a saying that "patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels".

Maybe  that is because Patriotism is an easy thing to appeal to when you actually know that your action is not really in the best interests of you and the real long term good of your country.

Adolf Hitler  appealed to German patriotism, and at the time that was the answer to everything for Germany.

Learn the bitter  lessons of History, or be condemned to repeat them.

That also is a saying to think about.

 

 

"Maybe  that is because Patriotism is an easy thing to appeal to when you actually know that your action is not really in the best interests of you and the real long term good of your country."

 

I'd amend the part I've emboldened - as patriotism/nationalism are nearly always in the best personal interests of politicians appealing to this cause....

[stevenl]

6 minutes ago, nauseus said:

That may be partially true but it can also be said that the country voted in without anybody knowing what that would entail, in 1975!

Was there a referendum then as well?

 

This whole process is as skewed as can be.

[dick dasterdly]

4 hours ago, stevenl said:

The problem is that the country voted 'leave' without anybody knowing what that would entail, and the vote does not represent the will of the country.

Agree to a certain extent.  The fear-mongering and lies was standard political 'debate' on both sides....

[Orton Rd]

21 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Was there a referendum then as well?

 

This whole process is as skewed as can be.

Yes there was, we voted for a common market though, not a federal union of Europe which was the scam we had imposed on us

[stevenl]

4 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Yes there was, we voted for a common market though, not a federal union of Europe which was the scam we had imposed on us

Thanks.

 

No matter what happened then, I get the impression the majority wants to stay in the EU. I may be wrong there though. And for sure the vote a year ago and the process that followed do not represent the will of the people.

[phutoie2]

2 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Yes there was, we voted for a common market though, not a federal union of Europe which was the scam we had imposed on us

We only have ourselves to blame on that one, instead of standing on the sidelines whinging, re_rebates, CAP,  fishing policy, we could have been influencing matters and stood up to the Franco-Germans bs. How many times have we had that 5th/6th biggest economy crap mentioned. Should have grown a pair. 

[Grouse]

42 minutes ago, dick dasterdly said:

Agree to a certain extent.  The fear-mongering and lies was standard political 'debate' on both sides....

Let's clear up something

 

On the remain side, the forecast was overly negative as it turned out, in large part due to swift action by the BoE.

 

On the leave side, multiple lies were told. There is a distinct difference.

 

Right now, I sense no appetite for Brexit. Far too many other urgent matters to attend to. I suspect we may need to adopt building codes from other EU countries that are not so bent and twisted as we seem to have become.

 

 

[Grouse]

20 minutes ago, phutoie2 said:

We only have ourselves to blame on that one, instead of standing on the sidelines whinging, re_rebates, CAP,  fishing policy, we could have been influencing matters and stood up to the Franco-Germans bs. How many times have we had that 5th/6th biggest economy crap mentioned. Should have grown a pair. 

"Grown a pair" is both vulgar and passé. Merkel does very well without.

[Krataiboy]

Yeah, but. . . 

 

It's not patriotism the nation needs right now, but the resolve to sink our differences in a vital common cause.

 

As we nudge into the Brexit negotiations, Britain is looking like an increasingly divided nation. This can only give comfort to our enemies (and there are clearly plenty of those across the EU and elsewhere) and undermine the government and the credibility of our negotiating team.

 

One year on, almost to the day, from the Brexit referendum it is high time for disgruntled Remainers and a mass media which thrives on stirring up controversy to accept reality and get behind the minority government's commitment to the minority referendum result.

 

With the nation united in their support, our Brussels squad will at least have a fighting chance of pulling off a decent deal - hopefully, one which will make us all feel more patriotic.

[Grouse]

19 minutes ago, Krataiboy said:

Yeah, but. . . 

 

It's not patriotism the nation needs right now, but the resolve to sink our differences in a vital common cause.

 

As we nudge into the Brexit negotiations, Britain is looking like an increasingly divided nation. This can only give comfort to our enemies (and there are clearly plenty of those across the EU and elsewhere) and undermine the government and the credibility of our negotiating team.

 

One year on, almost to the day, from the Brexit referendum it is high time for disgruntled Remainers and a mass media which thrives on stirring up controversy to accept reality and get behind the minority government's commitment to the minority referendum result.

 

With the nation united in their support, our Brussels squad will at least have a fighting chance of pulling off a decent deal - hopefully, one which will make us all feel more patriotic.

Who are our enemies in the EU?

 

Don't be so silly!

 

EU leaders are behaving more and more like responsible adults dealing with a naughty, disruptive child with ADD.

 

I noted Theresa burst in on a grownup's dinner in Brussels whining about EU immigrants and being sent to bed and told to tell nanny Barnier all about it in the morning.

Edited June 25, 2017 by Grouse

[nauseus]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Was there a referendum then as well?

 

This whole process is as skewed as can be.

Yes, there was a referendum for continued UK membership in 1975 (of the EEC at that time) after Heath had already signed us in, in Jan 1973. Heath probably didn't have a referendum before 1973 because opinion polls in 1972 showed that the British people were opposed (by a margin of two to one) against joining the Common Market so he merely signed the documents that took us into what became the European Union on the basis that Parliament alone had passed the European Communities Bill of 1972, which denied and limited the political sovereignty of the electorate. 

 

Many British lawyers still say today that joining the EEC in 1972 was illegal.In enacting the European Communities Bill through an ordinary vote in the House of Commons breached constitutional convention which requires a prior consultation of the people (either by a general election or a referendum) on any measure involving constitutional change.

 

Harold Wilson decided to have a retrospective confirmation in 1975 as he worried about the legality of the whole thing (see above). Even the validity of the 1975 referendum is in question, because, legally, the UK was probably not in the EEC to start with! 

 

Heath told the electorate that the Treaty of Rome would lead to no essential loss of National sovereignty but later admitted that this was a lie. He knew that the British would not approve of him signing the Treaty if they knew the truth. Heath told voters that the EEC was merely a free trade association but he knew all along of the European ideal of political union to create a European superstate. 

Edited June 25, 2017 by nauseus

[peterpop]

5 hours ago, stevenl said:

The problem is that the country voted 'leave' without anybody knowing what that would entail, and the vote does not represent the will of the country.

In your humble opinion of course !

 

[nauseus]

55 minutes ago, phutoie2 said:

We only have ourselves to blame on that one, instead of standing on the sidelines whinging, re_rebates, CAP,  fishing policy, we could have been influencing matters and stood up to the Franco-Germans bs. How many times have we had that 5th/6th biggest economy crap mentioned. Should have grown a pair. 

No  you can blame Charlemagne Prize winner, Edward Heath, on that one!