Yesterday, in Barcelona, the Catalonian parliament declared independence from Spain. They did so, just before the Spanish government enacted article 155 against them.
The Spanish government immediately dissolved the Catalan parliament and called a snap election. Madrid then imposed direct rule on the newly self-declared ‘independent’ country.
Last night, following the declaration of independence in the Catalonian parliament, the people of Barcelona and Catalonia celebrated, though not all of its citizens agree with the new situation.
If you look at a map of Europe today, it’s hard to imagine what it might look like in 100 years. It might be much the same as it is now, or it could be totally different, with new countries added and border lines changed.
Consider the situation 100 years ago. One could never have imagined the breakup of the German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Who could have imagined the creation of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia?
The UK has voted to leave the EU. Crimea is now Russian. Catalonia is currently in the news. It wants independence from Spain. Who knows what the outcome will be?
Last week, the President of the European Union, Jean Claude Juncker, said English is losing its importance in Europe. He made the remark, at a meeting of European diplomats and experts in Florence, Italy. Is it true?
Junker said, “Slowly but surely, English is losing importance in Europe. The French will have elections on Sunday, and I would like them to understand what I am saying.” He then switched into French for the rest of his speech. Whilst this might have been done to please the French voters ahead of the election, it is a fair point he raises, and to debate now.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has announced there will be a general election in the UK on June 8. Her decision to hold a snap election comes after she repeatedly claimed she was initially against the idea. She said that her change of mind is because opposition parties, and unelected peers in the House of Lords, were jeopardising her government’s preparations for Brexit.
The Prime Minister said, “We need a general election, and we need one now.” She added, “I have only recently and reluctantly come to this conclusion. But now, I have concluded, it is the only way to guarantee certainty for the years ahead.”
British Prime Minister, Theresa May, on Tuesday, signed the official letter needed, to give notice to leave the EU. Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty allows a country to withdraw from the European Union. No country has ever done this before. It is a historic day for the UK.
The notification letter was presented to European Council President, Donald Tusk, on Wednesday 29th March. He said on Twitter, “After nine months the UK has delivered. #Brexit.” He went on to say, “There is no reason to pretend that this is a happy day, neither in Brussels nor in London. After all, most Europeans, including almost half the British voters, wish that we would stay together, not drift apart.” Many people in the UK, and throughout the EU itself, are against the UK leaving the EU.
Who will replace the EU immigrant workers after Britain leaves the EU? It’s an interesting question that many in the UK and Europe are now asking themselves. Who will work on the farms, factories, or hospitals, or even, in the pubs, restaurants and cafes, after Britain leaves the EU?
Before you answer that, ask yourselves, who did it before the 1st June 2004?
One answer is, many young people from the top five commonwealth countries did some of these jobs. Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and the UK, up till 2008, had a reciprocal agreement, whereby, they could live and work in each other’s countries, for up to two years.
The United Kingdom has voted to leave the European Union. The historic vote took place on the 23rd June 2016. The result was that 48.1% of voters chose to remain in the EU while 51.9% chose to leave. The number of votes cast were 16,141,241 to remain in the EU; 17,410,742 to leave the EU.
England and Wales had an overall majority to leave the EU. London, Scotland and Northern Ireland all voted to remain. The turnout was 72.2%. It’s worth noting the vote shows that in England working class northerners revolted against cosmopolitan rich London.
Recently the UK woke up to news reports that Britain is defenceless to stop a new wave of illegal immigrants entering the UK. They are doing so by quietly slipping in to small harbours that are dotted along the British coastline.
Lax UK border controls are allowing this to happen. Why? Because the government and previous governments have cut back on the armed forces and border controls resulting in the UK only having three Border Force vessels to patrol the whole of the English Channel. It is unbelievable but true!
What this really means is Britain is poorly defended. Any group of migrants can now buy themselves a rubber motor boat in France or Belgium, climb in it, and head for any small port along the English coastline. No one will stop them, and if they do, they will be rescued and taken into the UK anyway.
The referendum vote in the UK on whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union is edging closer. The outcome is still too close to call, as it is still 50/50 as to what the result will be.
Many people in the UK are currently watching on YouTube ‘BREXIT - The Movie’. I did. I wasn’t going to, but I am glad I watched all of it, as it’s an eye opener. The movie, whilst one sided, does show that in politics nothing changes - there is arrogance, people control, and power.
The EU in Europe is currently running its ‘empire’. It functions just like empires did 100 years ago – the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the British Empire. The latter had administrators sent out to places like India and Australia to run the ship. These days it is the likes of the Irish and Swedes working in Luxembourg and Brussels who keep the EU’s cogs working. It is no different.
Today, let’s talk about the migration crisis in Europe. The EU leaders in Brussels have failed to solve the situation. It is now out of control. In fact, in Greece it is at breaking point.
East European and Balkan countries recently hosted a meeting in Vienna to discuss the migrant crisis. Interestingly neither Germany nor Greece were invited. The meeting initiated its own ongoing solutions to those of Brussels.
East European countries have sent police and troops to the Hungarian border with Serbia, and to the Macedonian border and Bulgarian border with Greece, where a barbed wire fence has been built to try to stop and limit the number of migrants allowed up the Balkan peninsular.
