John Vincent

A couple of subjects have come up during the week.  Both have implications for British agriculture of all shapes and sizes.  One is immigration and the other is State subsidies.

There are some tales being told by the Westminster Government and its supporters that should be making their noses grow in the way of Pinocchio.  Problem is that these tales tap into the basic prejudices held by a high percentage of the readers of the right-wing Press in England.  This is British politics, so I should not be surprised that a faction of the Conservative Party is driving stories to advance its own Brexit fantasies.

Let’s take immigration first.  Evidence is out there to show that free movement of people in Europe does not take jobs from British workers.  It’s true, Mrs May in her Home Office days, endeavoured to supress that evidence but it’s there nevertheless.  With the latest announcements from the Conservative Government there is the expectation that British workers will be queuing up to take the jobs vacated by mainland Europeans as they are all sent home in a couple of years’ time.

The only que I can see forming is a line of salesmen promoting the latest systems of automation to all and sundry in farming and horticulture.  It’s not long ago that the idea of robots milking cows seemed the stuff of science fiction but not any longer.  Relentlessly agriculture is shedding labour and adopting such wonders as self-driving tractors and domes to monitor crops.

Telling low-skilled British workers that there will be fields of jobs post-Brexit is a horrible deception.  I hope people do not fall for it.

The other subject that caught my eye was that of the future of agricultural subsidies.  Whatever assurances Minister may utter to the countryside they cannot run away from the cost of Brexit.  The Treasury’s store of our tax money is going to be needed for health, education and more bureaucrats above the call to spread it on the land.

The removal of subsidies is a political choice and in some cases warranted.  Providing support to highly profitable large-scale farming, like the so-called “grain barons” isn’t sustainable.  However, to invite wide-spread industrialisation and the final destruction of the family farm is inevitable.  It’s likely to empty the hillsides, coastal margins and highlands, import more basic foodstuff and turn the countryside a semi-urban theme park.

Again, Ministers are practicing a horrible post-Brexit deception.

When I hear Mogg, May, Fox, Hannan and other right-wing Tory politicians talk it reminds me of the fable of the scorpion and the frog.  Actually, that’s not quite true because, although that fable was deep in my subconscious somewhere, it wasn’t until my wife remined me of it that it truly came to mind.

All of this started with me listening to “straighten up and fly right” by Nat King Cole in a coffee shop this morning.  What a great song, by the way.

The story goes like this: A scorpion asks a frog to carry it across a pond.  The frog says; “But won’t you sting me?”.  Reassuringly the scorpion answers; “No. if I did that we will both drown”.  After a moment of hesitation, the frog agrees to carry the scorpion.  Then half way across the water the scorpion stings the frog.  Alarmed, the frog goes; “Why did you do that?” and the scorpion replies in the only way it can “Because it’s in my nature.”

Well having given the controls to the ship of State to right-wing Tory politicians at General Election, what do you suppose is happening in the UK?  The way the situation is panning out, I think we might all be the frogs.  It seems illogical, irrational and downright stupid to dooming us all with Brexit but it doesn’t take five minutes with the evidence to see what’s happening.

If ever there was a time we needed to say to the Government either “straighten up and fly right” or go, it’s now.  Our situation is no animal fable but it is the economic success of the Nation that is at stake.  The creature’s nature is becoming evident as we find ourselves midway in the Brexit negotiations.

Given the realisation that Brexit leaves a bad taste in people’s mouth and slowly but surely the public are turning against the politicians who are driving the Country off the cliff, its surprising that those who choose a different course of action are not having more success.  When asked: Brexit would you vote the same again?  It’s clear many people have changed their minds but why are they not being adequately represented?

I think there’s a whole series of reasons.  Like a scatter gun I’ve listed a few here bellow.  Some are big but changeable, some are small but irritating and others hang around like a bad smell.  Here’s my list of mistakes made by pro-European campaigners.

Firstly, recognising that forming ghettos of self-affirming friendly parties hasn’t worked.  Multiple voices in multiple places all with nuanced differences makes for chaos and despair.   Most of all, the inability to form one big coherent group to rally around still evades us.  Yet, pages of history show that one or two great orators can capture a moment and transform a situation.  So far, the great British orator to speak forth on Europe just hasn’t got to the right lectern.  All I can say is; don’t leave it too late.

Secondly, wasting time arguing with trolls, wind-ups and opponents whose wilfully tactics are to keep other people’s wheels springing on unproductive and soul-destroying activity.   It’s so human to want to engage and state why we think and feel the way we do but the web is full of scoundrels who will just tie you up in knots.  The fear of the empty chair is real.  It is to think that by stepping back one’s opponents will have a free hand.  Often the reality is that they will just have an empty room.

Third, is starting off on the wrong foot.  That’s accepting to reason on the ground set by opponents.  It seems obvious but a great deal of time is spent defensively arguing a point of view from the back foot.  I say; Brexiters must justify themselves.  Those forcing changes of massive proportions on a reluctant Country must be made to answer tough questions.  Where they fail to do so, then that’s the place to shine a bright light.

Fourth, backing down when hit with the nastiest of aggressive insults and vile behaviour.  Bullies love Brexit.  It gives them an outlet for anger and rage from deep inside.  The perpetual blaming of “others” but mostly the EU for everything that make people unhappy is just cheap and twisted.  Unfortunately, this taps into something that lingers in the dark condors of human nature.  In the end, the only way to deal with this phenomenon is the way to deal with any bully – stand your ground.

Fifth, not presenting HOPE as the vanguard.  It fundamental that, to win we need a better plan.  Not just a return to the ways of old.  Not just a call for calm and stability, although that’s important.  Not just to dismiss the concerns of others but something bigger.  Projecting a vision of a better Europe where we come together to solve common problems is part of the equation.  Standing on the foundations of western civilisation to make a better world Europe can and will succeed.  Our best hope is a hopeful vision.

Now my list is random and misses a lot but there are points here that need attention.

There’s so much to indicate what’s going wrong that I’m amazed people are not making more noise.  Pound down, inflation up, pay going nowhere, companies moving off-shore and a trade secretary eulogising about selling sunglasses to the world.  I know it’s the annual silly season but these are real and not imaginary events.  If we don’t take heed of such indicators then further troubles will results with certainty.

Last night, travelling back from Victoria station, I couldn’t help but overhear a conversation that made me think that we are living in strange times as a dangerous passivity has swept over the nation.

To my side there were two well-dressed couples probably in their early 60s.  I am guessing that they had been meeting friends at a nice London restaurant for the evening.  Conversation ranged from what their friends were doing to the local church.  Then politics came up.  Loudly one of the men said: “no one is going to invest while we have an unstable Government”.  That struck me.  Here we have a sample of prosperous middle England strongly voicing the opinion that the current Conservative Government is going nowhere.  It’s like people know the Government is failing but they are sitting on their hands waiting for better times.  It’s almost as if middle England has gone into stasis.

Another interesting meeting, I had last night was talking to a young Spanish student at the Proms.  He was from Madrid but had been taking advantage of the Erasmus Programme studying maths at Warwick.  The Erasmus Programme is European funding, offering university students a possibility of studying at European universities.  He spoke some German and was an amateur musician.  I couldn’t help but think how insane it would be to make it difficult for young people, like him, to study in the UK.

The mindless insanity of Brexit continues.  Day-after-day examples show just how wrong the direction we are headed continues to be.  Yet, public inaction is the response to the confusion presented by the present Government.  There ought to be a huge outcry calling for Mrs May to go.  Where is it?

I don’t believe the story that many of those we voted Remain have come around to the idea of Brexit.   What I do think has happened is a lot of people have been turned off the whole debate because of the crude conduct of a great number of Brexit advocates.  There’s the unfortunate “it will be all right on the night” thinking too.   Somewhat because we haven’t been accustomed to extreme politics in Britain there’s an underlying assumption that however crazy the talking, sound, solid and sober people in the background will work it out.  The reality is that assumption no longer stands.

The Leave campaign know what they did. They were singularly cynical about the campaign they ran. Except for the master manipulators most of those who did vote for Brexit had no idea what it meant.

However, in all 48 million did not vote for Brexit.  It’s the future of the whole Country that we should be thinking about and not appeasing the few.  That’s the difference between real democracy and mob rule.

It’s now important to campaign for a reversal of this ill-fated path.   Failure to do so is almost unthinkable.  Young people, now coming of age will be the ones writing the history books.  That story can be one of a new dark age or a brighter internationalist era.  The choice is ours.  As one great, European leader once said: “This is not yet the end … … but it may be the end of the beginning”.

Beginning to awaken to the fact that Europe is better together.