My Sunday morning walk was this week intended to stave off the sense of impending political catastrophe as an increasing number of public companies, including the pro-Brexit Dyson, announce that they are leaving these shores. Three things, in particular, have shocked me this week: first, the cogency of Sir Ivan Rogers’s speech to the UCL European Institute, demonstrating the realities of leaving the European trading partnerships, which was, after all, why we joined the EEC long ago; the second is the increasing stridency and xenophobia of the Tory brexiteers like Nadine Dorries and Mark Francois vilifying anyone who might not share their views; and the third, most shocking, was Jacob Rees-Mogg’s suggestion that the Queen might be encouraged to prorogue parliament to implement the results of a referendum held over two years ago in case parliament takes the view that some effective solution must be agreed in order to avoid the potential disaster of a No Deal Brexit. Where are we living ? Do we still live under a parliamentary democracy ? Has the right wing of the Tory party taken leave of its senses ?
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
In answer to your last question I think that the right wing of the Tory Party are behaving in the way they always wanted to and considered they had a right to. Now they feel free to say such things. They are a sorry lot, many of limited intelligence, educated in the myths of English exceptionalism and empowered because of their birth. Chaos suits them and they will not suffer. I hope I will live long enough to see them gone, but I fear not. The way we govern and the instruments of our non-existent constitution need stripped out, examined and totally overhauled. It is incomprehensible to me that an advisory referendum which was almost certainly illegally managed should be allowed to destroy most of what was good in the UK. My country – and your city – voted to remain. We are anguished by the way our valued Scottish/EU citizens are being treated. We fear for our Arts organisations and our Educational Institutions without the close cooperation and easy movement of talent and information. We are fighting the most inhumane deportations. Our produce- even Scotch whisky – is being relabelled British. The leader of the third largest UK party, a British MP is told to go back to Islay by Nicholas Soames; in the British Parliament. Legislation, most significantly that pertaining to Human Rights, is being repatriated to London and not to Edinburgh, from the EU. All the contacts, agreements and trust we have built up over many years with European partners is being eroded and put at risk. Yes, Parliamentary democracy is in a very perilous condition and I think perhaps the feelings of powerlessness and futility which Scots know very well is now beginning to be understood in the South. I should add I am not and never have been a member of the Scottish National Party, but I know and admire our First Minister and the way our politicians have tried to defend our little country from the madness in Westminster.
Dear Leslie, Thank you for this very tough description of our national circumstances. Surely the problem is that the likes of Jacob Rees-Mogg and Boris Johnson are not of limited intelligence, but the products of (the same) exceptionally expensive education, which seems to allow them to treat parliament in a buccaneer way as if it was a sixth form debating society, to be ignored if convenient to do so. Charles
Charles, I’m in total agreement on your Brexit view. It fills me with sorrow to observe the bold-faced lies and self-interested actions of its proponents – arsonists, watching the blaze consume others while making sure they themselves are safe. Here was my December view – despite the January tempest we remain devoid of clear leadership. – Monika
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leaderless-brexit-monika-machon/
Dear Monika, What a brilliant analysis. I’ve never worked out Linked In or I might have seen it before. So clear and so dispassionate, just what’s missing from so much of the commentary. Charles
Charles, I think their intelligence is limited in that it is etiolated and only able to operate in one way. They display all the markers of narcissism and narcissists make bad leaders/politicians. Thank you Monika for that analysis.