May 14th, 2021
Dear Friends and Supporters
The past two weeks have done more to expose the EU’s desperate attempts to attack the UK in any way they can and even more than any of us could have expected. The highlight of all of this has been the dispute over fishing access in the waters of UK Crown Dependency, Jersey, where French fishermen are complaining about having to apply for licences now, after being given a 4-month leeway period.
This dispute has culminated so far with around 70 French fishing boats blockading Jersey’s St Helier Port, and even French Government officials in Paris threatening to cut off electricity supplies to the island, which are powered by cables from France. This is something many would say is unimaginable – however, this is not the first time such threats have been made against the UK. In October 2020 French President Emmanuel Macron also threatened to cut power cables which run under the sea to the UK, if the UK did not surrender to French demands for access to our waters for fish. A surrender did then take place following the threats, with EU fishing vessels allowed to keep access to UK waters for a minimum of the next 5 years in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, if a permit was granted by the UK Government. Macron and the French intend to keep trying the same tactic.
Just this week President Macron has issued another threat. However, this time he has threatened to block any deal on Financial Services if the UK does not give away even more access to our waters. This is a frankly outrageous suggestion. However, what makes this all the more ridiculous is that after submitting Freedom of Information requests, I can reveal that not a single application by a European fishing vessel to fish in UK waters has been rejected - meaning all French fishermen who want to fish in our waters have been allowed to do so. What more does President Macron want? Evidently, he will not be satisfied until the UK signs over all control of our waters to the French! This is a situation which frankly cannot be allowed to continue and it’s time the Prime Minister took action and fired back at these threats coming from France, but clearly they have the full backing of the EU.
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Before I continue, as I have already said recently, Get Britain Out will try and carry on with our fight to deliver a Real Brexit for the entire UK for as long as we can. However, donations are unfortunately dropping off, so if you want us to keep going, we really need money. As you can see, Brexit is far from over and there will be many fights to maintain our freedom and Sovereignty on the horizon. Most campaigns have shut up shop now, so it is more important than ever to keep the campaign going to give you a voice and to keep up the pressure on the Government. If you can afford to donate to allow us to continue our work, it would be very much appreciated. Thank you.
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The attempts to blackmail the UK using our reliance on foreign imports for electricity have also exposed a crucial failure in the UK. We have become far too dependent on foreign powers for elements of our critical infrastructure. Whether it is energy from France and the Netherlands or technology and metals from China, this is a pattern which cannot be allowed to continue. It is time we became more self-reliant for our crucial infrastructure needs. How can our Government talk about the UK being a stronger independent nation, willing to stand up on the global stage and lead on key issues like human rights abuses and more, if we cannot ensure the safety and security of our own country’s vital infrastructure? This is a topic which needs a lot more attention and you can read my thoughts in the articles at the bottom of the e-Bulletin.
While the French and the EU try to blackmail us into handing over everything we hold dear, this week we saw the re-opening of Parliament and this year’s Queen’s Speech - although without much of the usual pageantry. In what presented itself as a great opportunity for the Government to set out its aggressive plans to push forward the important outstanding issues for post-Brexit Britain, the Speech was sparse on anything to blow you away. It even failed to address the need for changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol – more about this issue below.
However, despite some gaps, Get Britain Out has identified 6 new Bills from the Queen’s Speech which will come forward this year, which should start to get the ball rolling to take full advantage of Brexit:
- Subsidy Control Bill - to replace bureaucratic EU State Aid rules with a UK equivalent;
- Procurement Bill - to simplify over 350 areas of red tape required in bidding for contracts;
- National Insurance Contributions Bill - to create Freeport's in England to increase investment, trade and jobs;
- Planning Bill - to simplify EU planning laws and make building new homes easier;
- Turing Scheme - to create a new student exchange programme which is more global than the EU's Erasmus+ programme;
- Animal Welfare Bill - to increase protection of home and farm animals both domestically and internationally, above and beyond EU standards.
This was a Queen’s Speech which was given in the shadow of the recent Local Election results, in which the Conservatives experienced some of the best results in history for a sitting Government - including winning the constituency of Hartlepool for the very first time. This was a seat which has overwhelmingly backed Brexit. Across the country, the pattern of Leave voters abandoning the Labour Party was repeated, even in areas like Sunderland and Durham, which are so commonly Labour strongholds, the Conservatives took control. People will try and blame Jeremy Corbyn, but it is clear the fundamental reason for this collapse of Labour support is because of their refusal to deliver on the Will of the People. You cannot expect people to vote for you after you have spent 5 years calling them all idiots and racists.
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This is disappointing for a cross-Party campaign like Get Britain Out, but unfortunately, nothing in the mindset of those controlling the Labour Party seems to reflect the views of the majority who voted Leave in the EU Referendum. We should be able to trust the Opposition parties to question and hold the Government to account, including over Brexit, but it is clear the Labour Party has lost connection with its roots and has become a megaphone for the metropolitan ‘Remain’ elite.
There are now a further 2 Westminster by-elections coming up, one in Batley and Spen, a Labour seat and the other in Chesham and Amersham a Conservative seat. If Sir Keir Starmer cannot stop the slide towards the Conservatives, his continuation as Labour Leader will be up for debate, if it isn’t already.
With the Queen’s Speech confirming the Government’s welcome intention to pursue the creation of Freeports, there have been important questions raised this week over clauses in some of the roll-over trade deals we have so far agreed with countries like Canada and Singapore. These deals contain alarming clauses which would stop companies based in Freeports from receiving the beneficial trade terms set out in trade deals. Obviously, this would be of concern to any business and doubt surrounding this could cause a delay in successfully rolling out the policy of Freeports. This is why I have written to the International Trade Secretary, Liz Truss MP this week to ask her to confirm if she will be seeking to correct this issue in the bespoke trade deals we are set to sign, as well as correcting the deals we have recently signed which contain these anomalies. These Freeports need to actually work effectively, and not simply be gigantic PR exercises. You can read my letter to Liz Truss in full HERE.
Back on the Continent, this week has seen a surprising shift from Michel Barnier (the EU’s former Chief Brexit Negotiator), who is very obviously trying to push to become French President in the elections next year. He has suggested France should consider banning all migration into the country and the EU for between 3 and 5 years. The irony of this is beyond belief, after calling Brexiteers ‘small-minded little Englanders’ for years for wanting to control immigration. It appears Barnier now believes the French people are of exactly the same mindset as we have been for more than 5 years – in spite of the EU’s enforced free movement of people!
Perhaps if the EU is set on copying UK policies, one area they could pick up the slack is on their vaccine rollout. Not only does their failure to fully roll out an effective vaccine programme within EU Member States mean most Member States have seen an escalation in the virus over a long period, it. Their refusal to show confidence in the vaccines has created concerns over their effectiveness in parts of this country, slowing down our own rollout, meaning new variants are more likely to flourish.
On top of this, in some EU countries, UK expats are not being granted their legal right to be vaccinated against COVID-19. This is despite the Withdrawal Agreement clearly setting out expats’ rights to healthcare - including vaccines - something the UK is carrying out without complaint. This is simply the latest in a long line of vindictive behaviour from some in EU Member States who are intent on punishing UK expats for the UK having the audacity to vote to Leave the EU.
It has also emerged this week, that the EU will block cancer patients in Northern Ireland receiving a drug which has been approved by the UK medicines regulator - the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency - because it has not been approved by the EU’s regulator. So, yet again we see just how much the Northern Ireland Protocol divides this country and places Northern Ireland under the rule of the EU. These are UK citizens who should be entitled to any medication anyone in the rest of the UK can receive. Just as with citizens’ rights abroad, when will the Prime Minister address these issues and stop simply ignoring them.
This is a divide which is not going anywhere, and with the DUP now electing the controversial Edwin Poots as their new leader - to replace Arlene Foster, who has resigned as First Minister - you can be sure he will want to make a mark and pressure the Prime Minister to make radical changes. Interestingly, Mr Poots does not intend to take up the role of First Minister of Northern Ireland himself, and will instead delegate this responsibility, meaning we do not yet know who will be leading Northern Ireland and fighting against the Protocol - even after this election.
Meanwhile, Boris is meeting with the Irish Prime Minister, Micheál Martin today, to supposedly discuss critical issues over the Northern Ireland Protocol, which Lord Frost stated could not survive for long in its current form. But with no evidence change is likely any time soon, I am not holding my breath. Here is an idea Prime Minister: instead of simply ‘talking about change’ it’s time to get on with it!
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WHAT WE HAVE BEEN UP TO:
Director of Get Britain Out, Jayne Adye has written or featured in the following articles:
In the Daily Express:
Senior Research Executive, Joshua Mackenzie-Lawrie has featured in and been quoted in the following articles for the Daily Express:
IMPORTANT STORIES YOU MAY LIKE TO SEE:
- France blocks post-Brexit EU financial services deal with UK until Boris Johnson allows French fishermen greater access to British waters – Daily Mail
- Shame on you, Brussels! EU blocks life-saving cancer drugs from UK under post-Brexit rules – Daily Express
- As Britain booms again, let us scrub ‘despite Brexit’ from the lexicon – The Daily Telegraph
- Exports to EU almost back to pre-Brexit levels – The Times
- Post-Brexit Northern Ireland treaty not 'sustainable for long' – CityA.M.
- France should ban non-EU immigration for up to FIVE YEARS, says ex Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier – The Sun
- Michel Barnier says UK behaving ‘like buccaneers’ in Jersey fishing row – The Daily Telegraph
- Queen’s Speech: voters will need photo ID for general elections – The Guardian
- The EU’s latest immigration crisis - UnHerd
- Eurostar bailout nightmare: UK signals 'change of heart' after desperate plea – Daily Express
- The French fishermen blockade in Jersey was a political spectacle - but we're all sour on the Brexit deal – CityA.M
- Backlash as Angela Rayner says Labour must 'deal with' anti-immigrant voters in Hartlepool – Daily Express
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That’s all for now
Best wishes from Jayne Adye, Campaign Director - and the Team at Get Britain Out.
P.S. Your ongoing support is very much appreciated – I wish I could personally thank all of those who help with donations. But we still need more money if we are to continue – as many donations have stopped. So please don’t forget if you can. There’s lots more to complete the important outstanding issues, as you can see above, to achieve the Real Brexit we need to be free from the stranglehold of Brussels.
Donations can be made via bank transfer, bank standing order, cheque (please note cheques should be payable to The EU Referendum Campaign Limited and not Get Britain Out) or PayPal. All details are on our website HERE. Your contributions are really appreciated. If you would like an acknowledgement, please can you include your e-mail address or write it on the back of your cheque. Thank you so much.
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Best wishes to everyone and please keep safe.
Jayne and the Team
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