At The Crossroads

Will Britain Seize the Moment Or Lament Brexit?

Brexit came, saw, and conquered.  We believe on balance that this is a very, very good thing.  Here are some reasons why.

The EC is a step towards humanitarianism too far.  It has evolved from a free trade economic union into an uber-state.  Increasingly Brussels and Strasbourg were imposing the latest human rights d'jour upon member states, overriding their own governments.  A clique of oligarchs who were never exposed to the vote or ratification by ordinary citizens ruled with growing powers.  They have never held to account by citizens at the ballot box.  This represented the worst of all worlds: a kind of divine right to rule, coupled with a belief in truths to which every knee must bow.  Britain is far better off out of it.

Secondly, the EU has always been a reluctant free-trader.  It wants controls, not liberty and respect for the property of others.  Rather, it has served to protect member states from competition from other nations. Consequently, European farmers still enjoy significant subsidies from the government.

At the heart of the mess is the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which was originally agreed too soon after the ill-conceived Common Market came into existence in 1957.  Almost 60 years later it has clearly achieved its primary task of keeping Europe amply fed. But food security is hardly an issue anymore, especially in the context of a global economy built on the premise of free trade.

It was also designed to help the industry manage the impact of fluctuating commodity prices and in so doing safeguard small farming communities. Instead it has rewarded farmers for inefficient agricultural practices and promoted the overproduction of food on a scale previously unseen. Neither is it cheap for the average taxpayer. Although farmers only make up 5.4pc of Europe’s population, they account for 47pc of the EU budget.

Now the system of subsidising farmers in less productive member countries is warping the economics of producing food across the entire region. Taxpayers across Europe pay to fund €58bn of annual farming subsidies and then are hit again by food prices, which some argue are still kept artificially high just to keep farmers in business. Instead of using payments from CAP to develop more efficient farming practices, the industry has instead loaded up on debt which is essentially underwritten by subsidies. [The Telegraph]

Thirdly the EU has shown itself to be a reluctant protector of its own borders.  It has failed miserably to stop the migrant hordes pushing into Europe because of its humanitarianist ideology.  Long before economic migrants reached European shores the EU effectively extended the rights of citizenship in the name of "human decency" and "goodness".  It has been a kindness that kills, however--not just in the easy facilitation of terrorism and mass killings, but in the way it has undermined the very concept of national sovereignty.  National governments in Europe have shown themselves powerless.   Lingering German guilt over World War II and Nazism have driven collective Europe towards the unintended consequence of Europe becoming an Islamic stronghold.

For these reasons amongst others Britain is  better off by far being out of the EU.  That is not to say that it will not face significant challenges--but for the first time in a long time it will have the opportunity to deal with these under the resumption of fundamental sovereign rights.  It would be able to do something.  It may well be that Scotland and Northern Ireland may depart for greener pastures.  But we are confident that in the longer run Britain will be better off if it seizes the opportunity.

Mind you, this is not to be blind towards the British establishment's own commitment to Unbelief and secularism.  Progressive humanitarianism is strong--at least amongst the ruling classes and the elites.   But at least it may now have the means and find the resolve to tackle Islamic no-go zones, politically correct policing a la Rotherham,  and the suppression of Christians bearing witness to their Lord in the public square--to name just a few of the madnesses of modern secular Britain.