Pro-actively developing a truly United Kingdom, defeating separatist movements across our country. Promoting constitutional reform not defending the status quo
Thread - The launch of the UK movement
1. The UK movement is launched at a crucial time in the history of the British Isles.
We aim to mirror the European Movement which was initiated post WW2 to actively promote integration between the peoples of Europe.
The Tale of Three Lockdowns. One you might excuse on the grounds of inadequacy and panic. Two begin to look like carelessness. But imposing a *third* lockdown *because* the first two failed is an example of doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result.
EFTA is by far the best option for keeping the UK together. Eases NI issue and reduces threat of scottish separatism.
'Hard' Brexit or full EU membership provide both an incentive and a greater ease of breaking away.
Great analysis.
It should have been obvious to clear-sighted people that Brexit actually makes Scottish separatism both less feasible and attractive.
Why intelligent people persist in arguing the opposite is the bit that puzzles me.
Half-serious question here but could not the Falkland Island authorities claim Argentina on the same grounds* Argentina is claiming the Falklands?
*arguably better since it was established prior to Argentina.
The Malvinas question is an special colonial situation that must come to an end.
The Res. takes note of the existence of a sovereignty dispute between Argentina and UK.
It invites both governments to engage in negotiations in order to find a peaceful solution to the dispute.
The UK Government made a big mistake not going for EEA-EFTA. In addition to preventing separatism within the UK, it would have created an attractive and viable institution for RoI to join, resolving the NI border issue
@Effiedeans
@evo9857
Yes, this 'Most Oppressed People Ever' narrative really grates on me.
It's a pity since Ireland has a really great culture and is a prosperous and fair society in so many ways.
But military dependence on UK has to a large extent helped with this.
This is something we do not talk about enough.
The emerging links between Irish and Scottish separatism is one of the most concerning elements of UK politics.
@Effiedeans
The most noticeable aspect of this crisis is how sub-par provincial politicians have used the crisis to push separatist agendas rather than forming a one-nation approach.
The UK is one of the few, if only, european states without (at least substantial) experience of nation-building subjugation by force.
Compare the UK's treatment of Ireland to France and Italy vis-a-vis Corsica or Sicily.
@WalesOnline
Daft suggestion, although the ideas underpinning it in the article are not.
We need a new British/all-UK anthem as GSTQ is seen fundamentally as English.
Rule Brittania would be my suggestion, but Land of Hope and Glory or Jerusalem would be good.
@BrendanJShannon
@MatthewBellUUP
@ScottMoore0
Who's 'we' in this?
I don't think that understanding is common at all.
I've always regarded it as a country and until recently that understanding was not unusual.
@YesCymru
Anglesey would have a minority of seats in an independent welsh parliament.
Should Anglesey thus declare itself independent?
When does this nonsense end?
7. Decentralisation is a good thing and our country needs more of it. We should consider the Lander system employed by Germany by allowing 10-12 english regions to have the same powers as Scotland, Wales, London and N.I.
@RFCEvo
@Iphigen61872284
@123db_GEEK
@Effiedeans
Very large numbers of Irish died in our wars as volunteers.
We must distinguish between them and the then Irish state which obviously deserves condemnation on this issue.
@LeaveHQ
The British elite have wasted decades on trying to shoehorn the UK into a European political entity without consent or even knowledge of the British people, when they could have spent such energies preventing the internal undermining of the UK
Thread - The launch of the UK movement
1. The UK movement is launched at a crucial time in the history of the British Isles.
We aim to mirror the European Movement which was initiated post WW2 to actively promote integration between the peoples of Europe.
@winston_war
@lizzyanniemusic
@MarkHiggie1
So if you oppose the outcome of a democratic vote, taking the law into your own hands is justified?
Interesting philosophy.
I opposed the election of Boris Johnson. Can i use violence to remove him?
Uk government should be serious now about varying lockdown rules by local authority, with significant relaxation in low risk places but even tightening in high risk areas.
Time for stronger local government.
@Effiedeans
Always thought the uk government should respond by encouraging people from the rest of the country to move to Scotland and thus boost pro uk voting. Many parts of Scotland are wonderful to retire in.
@fotoole
Does this article contain anything original?
Or have you just rearranged the words/paragraphs of literally every other article you've written about the UK?
10.
The design of a federal UK, with a revised upper chamber composed of regional representatives.
Detailed designs for fiscal devolution, with greater tax and spending powers at subnational levels.
An overdue renaming of the Bank of England as the Bank of UK
11.
Infrastructure projects supporting the economic and social integration within the UK, such as an overdue bridge from N.Ireland, and high speed rail from Scotland to Northern England, and tidal energy power in the Severn Channel..
@Effiedeans
I've only just begun to notice this in recent times. Growing up, never considered Irish to be any different from anyone in the UK.
I remember WC in 1994 - no other home nation qualified, so just naturally supported RoI. Just completely natural for me, did not even have to think
@BrigidLaffan
@tim_carey1
Why? It's by far the most inclusive term, including all people within the islands whether they define themselves as British or one of the subsets (such as Welsh, Irish, Scottish, English or regional identities within England).
Scottish nationalists only have the right to those parts of Scotland where they are in the majority. They can't expect to drag the rest of us with them
I've pushed before the idea of the Bank of England being renamed the UK Central Bank (UKCB) or Bank of Britain (BoB is a great acronym).
In addition to that, we should consider relocating it to Edinburgh, a great banking city, as part of efforts to move forward as one country
3. Separatism has radically grown in Scotland and to a lesser extent Wales and London, and a shared British identity which we all took for granted is coming under threat. Most worrying of all is the decline of British identity amongst the young in Scotland and Wales.
5. It primarily stems from the flawed decentralisation of the Blair years, where Scotland, Wales and London were given differing powers which made them politically distinct from the rest of the country.
@lewithwilliamth
@DarrenHindle1
To be fair, this would have come to her at no notice as it was a breaking story. She just had to read it out there and then.
For the record, I'm from Cardiff and would have struggled to pronounce Ynyswen
@PhilSJonas
@TheWoodPeckerEU
You are.
You're a Brit born in the UK, a country with probably a better record of assimilating different ethnic groups than any other western democracy
@MoiraDonegan
What's really odd to most Brits is the firm distinction many 'irish'-americans have between the 'irish' and 'brits'.
In the UK, here is very little sense of distinction
Thus, Biden is seen (by people in the UK) as every bit as much as a 'wasp' as e.g. Bush.
2. Why does the UK now need such an equivalent?
Well, things have been changing in the last few years (perhaps decades). Slowly, beneath the radar of many commentators, the UK has been drifting apart. This drift has reached such a state it threatens the integrity of the country
@jane30342042
@GillKFerguson
@Keir_Starmer
No, you are fellow citizens.
I'd be amazed if Starmer/Nandy considered themselves anything other than British.
This 'English', 'Scottish' thing has been outdated for centuries.
This is the core of the anti-separatist argument.
It’s literally the abolition of everything we hold dear.
We will waste at least the next century dealing with the repercussions and trying to reunite our country
I ask NOBODY to forswear their politics any more than I forswear mine. All I ask is that we save the unity of our country so we can go on arguing about its direction. If the Separatists win our politics won’t matter for a hundred years. We will have no country to argue over.
Thread on
#unitedireland
,
#Brexit
and broader British Isles relations
1/ There are many pro-active moves (
@Think32_
@castlvillageman
@IrishUnity
) towards a united Ireland, with many arguing that the GFA was just the start of a process whereby N.Ireland could leave UK and join RoI
Why is Biden, born in America to American-born parents, described as 'Irish-American' when Trump, Bush, Clinton, Reagon, Ford, Nixon, Johnson etc were never described as 'Brit-Amercans'?
Just genuinely interested rather than trying to catch anyone out.
#IrishAmerican
Completely fake controversy over Johnson comments on Scotland.
Of course devolution has been a disaster. Is this even controversial?
Why does Johnson not stand up for his comments?
He’d be surprised how many would back him
@SteveSayersOne
Not for this Labour voter.
Seems Labour should make it clear it would support any pro-union party over the SNP under any set of circumstances.
If they don't, they are effectively legitimising the SNP
Every time you use the terms “the Union” and “unionism” you are subtly undermining Britain as one country, an indivisible unitary state.
Words matter.
Don’t enable separatism.
@Effiedeans
It's much bigger than that.
What about UK capital investment in Scotland? Who owns that if separation occurs? UK has invested massively in hospital/school buildings/railways etc. Does Scotland just own them without any charge?
@SteveMacey1985
@OxfordDiplomat
I would not bother.
She blocks anyone who questions her - I made a similar point in a similar reasonable way and she did twitter equivalent of running away.
@anglosceptic
@AlynSmith
@GuitarMoog
But that's not true.
We voted as one country.
Did the 1m+ Scottish leavers 'impose' Brexit on the 15m+ 'Non-Scottish remainers'?
@RobertCrossley2
@LeaveHQ
It's not an either/or issue. Brexit strengthens the union by re-emphasising UK as a nation-state, and also makes Scottish separatism far more complex in multiple ways. Theoretically, inside the EU, the UK could have broken into different EU member states w/o catastrophe.
@Ezy_Ryder
@KeohaneDan
Many Labour MPs don't believe in the crown (and probably a quiet number of Lib Dem/Tories too, plus many SNP/Plaid MPs).
That being said, UK should pro-actively modernise by changing the oath.
...The best hope for the Union would probably be its reinvention, rehousing it in a new constitutional framework (federal parliament and so on). That would require proper imagination and verve from Westminster elites in a way not shown towards constitutional matters...
@br_nning
Hi Henrik, I'm from Cardiff.
I am 100% on board with the PM on this issue (although probably no other).
We're British. Our country is the UK.
He's right to put a stop to this recent nonsense (although I'm unsure he has the credibility to enforce it).
@LeaveHQ
To be honest, one good reason to be proud of being British is that we generally don't go into this sort of absolute nonsense.
It's a very American idea.
Thread - The launch of the UK movement
1. The UK movement is launched at a crucial time in the history of the British Isles.
We aim to mirror the European Movement which was initiated post WW2 to actively promote integration between the peoples of Europe.
Half-serious question here but could not the Falkland Island authorities claim Argentina on the same grounds* Argentina is claiming the Falklands?
*arguably better since it was established prior to Argentina.
@scotbusinessxx
@Effiedeans
If SNP go down this route, parts of Scotland which want to remain in the UK are 100% entitled to have separate votes on whether they stay in the UK or leave with the rest of Scotland.
This most likely includes southern parts of Scotland, plus obviously Orkney/Shetlands.
Re Gavin Williamson.
Allowing his resignation will set a terrible precedent.
Ministers resigning for incompetence will eventually bring the whole government down
@gorbalsgoebbels
Better to provide a positive alternative - one option is proper decentralisation to council levels, bypassing and thus rendering pointless the regional assemblies created by New Labour.
Thread - The launch of the UK movement
1. The UK movement is launched at a crucial time in the history of the British Isles.
We aim to mirror the European Movement which was initiated post WW2 to actively promote integration between the peoples of Europe.
@RosalindStewart
@LeaveHQ
@OxfordDiplomat
It's alright. She just blocks anyone who dares challenge her or her agenda. Really shows a lack of courage and ability to fight her own case.
The SNP does not want a successful Westminster government led by the Labour party. It destroys one of the central arguments for independence. It's baffling so many people on the left - in England especially - fail to understand this.
@Andrew_Adonis
If true, this is the worst decision taken by a UK PM in recent times.
DfID is very widely respected internationally, a crucial part of UK soft power and a vital link to poorer commonwealth countries.
Abolishing it will wreck UK's internationalist and pro-development reputation
@antcary
@KeohaneDan
So much more could be effectively made of it. It could operate similar to how OECD does, but with far greater west-east and north-south representation and focus. It could be a global thinktank like no other.
This could be magnificent, but it has to be a *NATIONAL* event.
Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Belfast should be hosting games, with perhaps a SF each in Cardiff and Glasgow.
If we have an even vaguely switched-on PM and Cabinet, this is a potential game-changer
@michaelgove
BOOM!
Euro2021 very likely to be played solely in England as UEFA are opting for the one hosting country format and England is the one they believe being in best position to do so.
Decision expected to be taken within mid-April
@LawrieThane
@nunguaeminem
There is as much evidence for this as the idea that Andy Murray is Scottish when he loses but british when he wins I.e. none
@notmynational
It's richly ironic.
Especially when very pale white Scots tell ethnic minority Brits their flag/identity is racist/colonial.
Do they have any self awareness?
@Effiedeans
Yes, I think pro-UK supporters should not really use economic arguments. It makes it sound transactional.
The pro-UK argument needs a British identity at its core.
@ewangibbs
@rosscolquhoun
Name any comparable country where there are provisions for components parts to leave without the say-so of the capital.
Even the Catalonia issue is seen as a Spanish wide issue.
@the_irishguy
Really sad.
Virtually everyone in the UK would support Ireland and want them to win the tournament if they were in the position England are in.
@dishgirl4
@KevinHague
Because it's part of our country.
Should we get rid of the Isle of Wight too? That costs more than it brings in on a fiscal basis.
@labourlewis
1. It's not a union, it's a country
2. It has not been an imperial power for three quarters of a century
3. Tories aren't my cup of my tea but this description is absurd
4. You're a Labour MP. If you don't believe in the UK, then leave the Labour Party
8. There is no reason, and there never has been, why Yorkshire should not have similar powers to Scotland or Greater Manchester similar powers to Wales. A federal UK is heavily overdue, with regional identities encouraged within a shared national framework.