Daily Sabah reported that the violence and death threats against British politicians has soared during recent years. The number of alleged crimes reported by Members of Parliament was 151 in 2017 and 342 in 2018. It is estimated that the amount will be over 450 this year. Women and ethnic minorities have been targeted more than others.
Read the full story on Daily Sabah:
The original Brexit day has come and gone. Minting of the commemorative coin has had to be scrapped (1) and Brexit memorabilia has become collectible for entirely different reason. The situation in Britain remains chaotic and difficult – however, one positive thing is the fact that there haven’t been any serious riots or violent clashes.
On Friday, some planned celebrations of the hard-line Brexiteers were cancelled (1) or turned into a campaign against “Brexit betrayal.” UKIP leader Gerard Batten advertised his party’s event on Twitter:
“Today’s the day we could & should remove ourselves from rule by a foreign power. We know our quisling political establishment will betray Brexit, but the fightback resumes its next phase in Whitehall today. Be there at the UKIP event…” (2)
Another far-right Brexit leader Nigel Farage issued a dire warning to British MPs – he believed that British people would wake up angry on Saturday the 30th because Britain had not left the EU (3). However, perhaps the most memorable event on Friday evening and Saturday morning was the appearance of a lonely trespasser with St. George’s flag on the roof of St. Pancras Station – the incident led to cancellation of several Eurostar trains (4).
References:
1) “Brexit coins and cancelled parties: What is happening on 29 March now?” BBC News 29.3.2019
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-47712530
2) UKIP leader Gerard Batten on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/GerardBattenMEP
3) “Nigel Farage issues DIRE warning to MPs about MORNING of March 30th – ‘Just you wait!'” Alpha News UK 29.3.2019
4) “Eurostar passengers stranded as trespasser with St George’s flag halts trains” The Guardian 30.3.2019
Things are heating up in Britain. Britain was supposed to leave the EU today, but during the recent days it has become more and more likely that there will be a delay – just how long, it is unclear. The chaotic cliffhanger continues. Prime Minister May promised to resign, if her Brexit deal is accepted. Her promise predictably started a fervorous leadership competition within the Conservative Party. (1) The hard-line Brexiteers lead by Nigel Farage will congregate on the Parliament Square around 4 p.m. GMT today. Farage tweeted yesterday:
“Westminster has betrayed the greatest democratic vote in the history of our country, and we won’t let them get away with it.” (2)
The far-right UKIP Party has been advertising their own Make Brexit Happen Rally which is sponsored by notorious far-right figure Tommy Robinson and his TR News service (3). Leader of UKIP Gerard Batten tweeted yesterday:
“There are reports that water cannon may be deployed tomorrow in London, & that some of the police may try to aggregate and provoke Brexiteers. There is always the danger of provocateurs planted to cause trouble. I hope it is not true but I call on everyone present to be peaceful.” (4)
Several far-right extremists and groups are going to try to cause riots and other trouble. For example, members of the UK “yellow vests” threatened on social media:
“If you stop Brexit, we’ll make the Paris riots look like a f***ing tea party.” (5)
Counter-protesters, including anti-fascists and trade unions, are going to oppose the far-right rallies. The police are bracing for possible unrest and clashes between different demonstrators. (5)
References:
1) “At least 10 cabinet ministers considering prime ministerial bids” The Guardian 28.3.2019
2) Nigel Farage on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/nigel_farage
3) UKIP National News 25.3.2019
https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=196
4) Gerard Batten on Twitter:
5) “Brexit protest: Police brace for disorder after far-right threaten to riot at London rallies” The Independent 29.3.2019
With less than three weeks to the official Brexit day, Prime Minister May is expected to face another defeat on Tuesday, when the parliament will vote on her Brexit deal proposal. The hard-line Brexiteers are getting ready to fight for Brexit. The hard-liners also seem to want to polish their image.
Boris Johnson wrote on The Telegraph on the 24th of February:
“…I am getting sick of the constant suggestion that anyone who sticks up for Brexit must have far Right tendencies. I can’t understand why people are suddenly claiming that anyone who wants to get out of the EU – and follow the instructions of the British people – is a zealot, or an extremist, or Ukip, or Blukip, or some kind of ultra-conservative bigot. Where is this stuff coming from?” (1)
Johnson himself has become infamous for his racist and Islamophobic remarks. Last year he caused an uproar by comparing veiled Muslim women to “letter boxes” and “bank robbers.” Bizarrely, Johnson was not considered to have breached the Conservative Party’s code of conduct. (2)
Last Tuesday, chairman of the European Research Group ERG Jacob Rees-Mogg once again accused May’s government and the Remainers of trying to block Brexit. He wrote in The Sun:
“…the extreme Remainers do not just want an extension — they want reversal (i.e. of Brexit referendum) and see this as a first step.
It is worth remembering that those who love the European Union prefer it to democracy and always have done.”
“…the Government must prove that it is committed to the referendum result, for that is the authoritative constitutional voice.
No responsible government ought to allow the constitution to be subverted because of its own weaknesses. The conventions are there for good reasons and, if ignored, confidence in the system that has served well for centuries will be damaged — with consequences that could include the rise of extremist parties. Failure to deliver Brexit would be a gift to Tommy Robinson.” (3)
Leave Means Leave campaigner Nigel Farage tweeted yesterday that “it’s time for some structured anarchy.” He also advertised March To Leave campaign and “historic rally of Brexiteers” on Parliament Square, London, on the 29th of March. (4)
References:
1) “Brexiteers are not far-Right zealots. Just ask the younger Tony Blair” The Telegraph 24.2.2019
2) “Conservatives rule Boris Johnson comparing Muslim women in veils to letter boxes and bank robbers was ‘respectful'” The Independent 21.12.2018
3) “We the people have spoken on Brexit… let us now have have lift-off ” The Sun 5.3.2019
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8570432/jacob-ress-mogg-people-have-spoken-on-brexit/
4) Nigel Farage on Twitter:
The Tories have suspended 14 members after abusive Islamophobic comments were uncovered on social media. Many of the comments were found on a Facebook group supporting hard-line Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg. The Muslim Council of Britain and former Conservative Party chairman Sayeeda Warsi repeated their calls for an inquiry into the anti-Muslim abuse and Islamophobia within the Tory Party. Mrs Warsi said that the party had “a deep-rooted problem of anti-Muslim comments, Islamophobic comments, racist comments” and that the party chairman and the prime minister had not taken the problem seriously enough.
Read the full story on The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/mar/05/tories-suspend-14-members-over-alleged-islamophobia
As Brexit is getting closer, political disintegration seems to continue in Britain. Jeremy Hosking, a multimillionaire financier, has registered a new party Brexit Express in order to support “hard Brexit” – the move increases the risk that the Conservative Party may split (1). Today seven MPs resigned from the Labour Party. According to them, the British politics is “broken” and the Labour Party has been taken over by “hard left.” They also criticized the leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, as well as “antisemitism” and “racism” in the party. (2) One of the defectors, Luciana Berger, accused Labour Party of “institutional antisemitism” (3). Another defector, Angela Smith, caused a racism row by saying that members of ethnic minorities are of a “funny tinge” (4).
The British organization Hope not Hate published their annual “State of Hate Report.” According to the report, “Britain is increasingly divided and that is likely to increase” whatever happens with Brexit. There is also a growing risk of far right terrorism and increasing support for far right. The report also states that “anti-Muslim prejudice has replaced immigration as the key driver of far right growth”, but also attitudes towards immigration “are deteriorating.” The report also pays attention to the antisemitism problem in the Labour Party. On the other hand, Islamophobia seems to have become a significant problem in the Conservative Party. According to the report, “49% of 2017 Conservative voters think that Islam is incompatible to the British way of life and 47% think there are no go areas in Britain where sharia law dominates and non-Muslims cannot enter.” (5)
References:
1) “No-dealers dig in for a fresh battle amid fears of Tory split” The Guardian 17.2.2019
2) “In their own words: why seven MPs are quitting Labour” The Guardian 18.2.2019
3) “MP says UK Labour is ‘institutionally anti-Semitic’ as 7 lawmakers quit party” The Times of Israel 18.2.2019
4) “Britain’s newest political group isn’t even a day old. It’s already been accused of racism” The Washington Post 18.2.2019
5) “State of Hate Report 2019” – Hope not Hate 17.2.2019
https://www.hopenothate.org.uk/research/state-of-hate-report-2019/
British poster-girl for far-right Katie Hopkins has tweeted an image that probably sums up her selective view of the humankind:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyZgkaYWkAARyTs.jpg:large
Forgot to add earlier, that Hopkins had planned a nationwide Stand Strong School Tour in British schools in order to talk about Brexit, racism and President Trump. However, majority of the schools that had initially been willing to take part to her tour pulled out (1, 2). Hopkins has still been able to visit some schools, for example two prestigious schools in London, Harrow School and Westminster School last month. (2, 3)
References:
1) “Katie Hopkins visiting schools to teach kids about Brexit, racism and Donald Trump – but teachers ‘don’t want her'” Mirror 4.2.2018
https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/katie-hopkins-visiting-schools-teach-11258654
2) “‘Funding threats’ force schools to cancel Katie Hopkins speaking tour” Shy Society 8.3.2018
3) Katie Hopkins on Twitter 17.1.2019
It has been quite unbelievable to read news about Brexit and the political situation in Britain, lately. I lived in Britain over 10 years, but Britain seems to have changed beyond recognition – and not in a good way.
Today’s perhaps most stunning news was about hardline Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, who reportedly suggested that PM May “should close parliament temporarily if necessary to stop MPs passing a bill blocking a no-deal Brexit.” (1)
Another worrying news was about the threat posed by far right. Britain’s counter-terrorism chief Neil Basu said that “the far right will exploit Brexit tensions with their propaganda triggering rises in hate crime and creating an atmosphere that terrorists can exploit.” Mr Basu continued:
“My concern is the polarisation, and I fear the far-right politicking and rhetoric leads to a rise in hate crime and a rise in disorder.” (2)
References:
1) “May should close parliament if necessary to stop bill blocking no deal Brexit, says Rees-Mogg – Politics live” The Guardian 23.1.2019
2) “Far right may exploit Brexit tensions, says UK counter-terror chief” The Guardian 23.1.2019
The political situation in Britain seems to continue to be quite tense and chaotic, these days. The Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow has managed to maintain some sort of sanity and humor amidst all the mayhem. He has become a surprising star in Europe and elsewhere.
Some stories and videos about John Bercow:
1) “‘More animal than ever’: Europeans find joy in John Bercow ” The Guardian 17.1.2019
2) “VIDÉO. « Ordeuuur…» Quand John Bercow, le Speaker de la chambre des Communes, devient la star du Brexit” Ouest France 17.1.2019
3) “‘Order! Order!’: Parliament Speaker Is Brexit’s Surprise Star and Villain” The New York Times 19.1.2019
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/19/world/europe/brexit-speaker-john-bercow.html
The Brexit chaos continues and Britain seems more divided than ever. The British hardline Brexiteers have defended Brexit enthusiastically, sometimes even aggressively. Here are some comments made by them:
Jacob Rees-Mogg, chair of the hardline European Research Group ERG, hosted a champagne party after PM May suffered the historical defeat in parliament on Tuesday (1). Rees-Mogg, as many other supporters of No Deal, wants UK to leave on WTO terms:
On Twitter 15.1.2019: “The law is in place for us to leave on WTO terms. The Government ought to go back to Brussels and say: if we can’t agree anything in the interim that is what will happen.” (2)
Rees-Mogg was interviewed by Professor Anand Menon on Wednesday evening. Rees-Mogg believes that Theresa May’s cabinet is “the most pro-European part of the Conservative Party” and that 70 per cent of the people who are voting Conservatives seem to be Eurosceptic. Rees-Mogg said that No Deal would be better alternative than the deal offered by PM May or no Brexit at all (3).
One of the architects of the original Brexit campaign in 2016, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage has been criticizing PM Theresa May and the EU and he has also been promoting Leave Means Leave campaign on his Twitter page (4):
15.1.2019: “Parliament has voted down Theresa May’s terrible Brexit deal. Join us on Thursday in Westminster as Leave Means Leave pushes for a WTO Brexit!”
16.1.2019: “If the betrayal becomes complete and we are forced into a second referendum then some will be in for a shock, the British people will be even more defiant than they were before.”
16.1 2019: “Mrs May’s cross-party talks are all with Remainers and weaken Brexit. She cares about Parliament and not the people. This is betrayal, sadly we must prepare to fight again.”
UKIP leader Gerard Batten has attacked PM May, the British political establishment and the EU:
14.1.2019: “Mrs May’s so-called deal would turn Britain into a vassal state of the EU prepared to go back in in a few short years. What we are witnessing is the political establishment fighting over their preferred method of stopping Brexit – should it be through Mrs May’s surrender document, a General Election or another referendum? In their arrogance and contempt for the will of the 17.4 million who voted to leave the European Union, the political establishment have embarrassed the nation in the eyes of the world. At this point, it is clear that the only way Britain will leave the EU is if the people choose to remove the political establishment through the ballot box.” (5)
16.1.2019: “The British Parliament has the opportunity to redeem itself. If it betrays the result of the referendum then it will destroy what remaining belief or faith there is in our democratic system, which isn’t very high to start with. But they can turn things around if they want to. They can take the initiative, they can stop asking you (i.e. European Union) how we can leave and they can start telling you how we are going to leave, and I can tell you that the British people will never surrender!” (6)
British poster-girl for far-right Katie Hopkins is an ardent admirer of President Trump and she has supported No Deal Brexit. However, she had some kind words for PM May:
“In many ways, I look to America as kind of hope, like inspiration. You’ve got someone tough in the White House that’s determined to get things done. You’ve got a whole group of people who believe they’ve been forgotten which to me is the Brexiteers. It’s the same, it’s the rest of the UK, it’s the rest of America that isn’t California or isn’t New York, and the rest of America got their voice heard and that really speaks to the Brexiteer in me.” (7)
On Twitter 12.7.2018: “No deal Brexit looks exactly like the Brexit I voted for.” (8)
On Twitter 16.1.2019: “Come on @theresa_may You may have really p*ssed on my chips over Brexit. But you are one tough, tenacious bird. And I completely admire you for enduring and withstanding it all. You go girlfriend. Grip that lectern like a sausage in a roll. And Sock it to them.” (8)
References:
1) “Jacob Rees-Mogg hosts champagne party after May Brexit defeat” The Guardian 16.1.2019
2) Jacob Rees-Mogg on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/jacob_rees_mogg
3) “Beer and Brexit with Jacob Rees-Mogg” The UK in a Changing Europe 16.1.2019
http://ukandeu.ac.uk/multimedia/beer-and-brexit-with-jacob-rees-mogg-mp/
4) Nigel Farage on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/nigel_farage
5) “Political establishment fighting over their preferred method of stopping Brexit says UKIP Leader” National UKIP News 14.1.2019
https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=155
6) “‘The British people will never surrender!’ – UKIP Leader tells EU Parliament” National UKIP News 16.1.2019
https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=158
7) “‘We are the forgotten voices!’ Hopkins blasts ‘Londonistan’ saying Brexiteers need Trump” Express 3.8.2017
8) Katie Hopkins on Twitter:
IDIS Observer 
