The Campaign for an English Parliament (CEP) has been in existence for some six years or more, but political power is needed for the requisite political action to be effected. Consequently, it is relevant to ask which political parties have adopted during the life of the CEP a policy which closely mirrors the Campaign’s objective.
To my mind, none of the major political parties have adopted a policy which remotely accords to England the powers already devolved to Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland. On the contrary, it may be argued that those ‘Brit’ parties oppose a separate parliament for the people of England and apply their respective resources and influence to that end. The recent creation of a pressure group by one of UKIP’s members in Telford (also a CEP member) is testimony to the shortcomings of that party’s policies here also.
Of the smaller parties, the two largest by far are the BNP and the English Democrats. Leaving aside the BNP, what other party is there with the aim of acquiring political power and establishing an English Parliament whether within or without of the UK framework which is remotely on a par with the English Democrats? I suggest none, and I go further and assert that, in the current circumstances, attempts to damage and to weaken the English Democrats Party in the absence of any feasible alternative can only be construed as attempts to deprive the people of England (whom that party seeks to promote and protect) of the national identity to which they are entitled!
If the English Democrats Party is destroyed, what other party could realistically begin to take its place? If nothing else, the ‘English Cause’ would be set back years politically!
Regrettably, there are individuals who, whilst professing to support the creation of an English Parliament, expend much time and effort denigrating and disparaging the English Democrats Party and certain individuals who support it. Some of them, in their ignorance, aspire to moral superiority over those at whom they sneer, failing to establish more precisely the opinions they oppose. Guilt by association is imposed to an unreasonable degree. It is assumed that those with acceptable views will always be tainted by those with unacceptable positions. [Small wonder then that initial contacts of John Major’ government with Sine Fein and the IRA had to be conducted in utmost secrecy for fear of bigots gaining ascendancy!] The logic of persistent carping and criticising is that the English Democrats Party and those certain individuals associated with it are so effective and influential in England’s politics that they must be stopped. Who really accepts this as being true?
Yes, the persistent attacks on the English Democrats should be seen in context. On one hand there is the English Democrats Party with its modest (one might say minute) resources, and on the other there are three major parties, plus UKIP, plus the BNP! Let us just consider the big three ‘Brit’ parties only.
Between them, the Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem parties account for 95.2% of MPs in the British Parliament and 99.6% of the MPs returned by England’s constituencies.
In the 2008 calendar year, their combined income was some £73million, of which some £5.9million alone was in the form of government grants. Great play has been made about the English Democrats Party’s unsecured financing of the order of some £0.15million which pales into insignificance when compared with the £29.31million credit the big three owe, which is repayable within one year and, in addition, longer term debts of tens of millions of pounds!
On Sunday 23rd August last, in a BBC Radio 4 programme entitled ”The Political Club”, Michael Crick exposed the ‘back door’ state funding the main British political parties now receive via local councillors’ allowances. Indeed, Nigel Farage exposed the finance UKIP receives from its MEPs, a source of income now available to the BNP
Whilst the Lib Dems record their total membership as 59,810 both the Conservative and Labour parties are coy about theirs! Dividing the Conservative Party’s subscription income of £1.2million by £20 [assumed average membership payment] indicates some 60,000 members. The Labour Party with its membership subscription income of £9.49million can be assumed to have around 100,000 members.
There we have it: three long established Brit parties with 524 paid officials between them, £73million income, some 200,000 members and 615 MPs on the one side, against which is pitted the EDP with some £30,000 income, less than 4,000 members, no MPs and no paid officials. Even this scenario takes no account of the regular access to broadcast television and radio withheld from the English Democrats.
Informed and rational minds will be in no doubt about the true nature of the attacks on the English Democrats and their supporters and, more importantly, the likely effect. With no realistic political alternative to the English Democrats, these persistent online campaigns can only be construed as attempts to defeat the campaign for a separate parliament for England and with it English identity. They are deplorable and I do deplore them very much!
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