Kiron ReidLeave a comment

The MPs who betrayed Britain & Europe.

These are the MPs who took us out of the European Union. They’ve taken away my rights & damaged the peace, prosperity & security of all of Europe. I hold each of them personally responsible and will not forgive them for this defeat they have inflicted on Britain.
European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill Division 14 9 January 2020
https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2020-01-09/division/481FA073-5C1F-4EE0-892E-983C695193FC/EuropeanUnion(WithdrawalAgreement)Bill?outputType=Names

AyesTellers
Adams, Nigel
Afolami, Bim
Afriyie, Adam
Ahmad Khan, Imran
Aiken, Nickie
Aldous, Peter
Allan, Lucy
Amess, Sir David
Anderson, Lee
Anderson, Stuart
Andrew, Stuart
Ansell, Caroline
Argar, Edward
Atherton, Sarah
Atkins, Victoria
Bacon, Mr Gareth
Bacon, Mr Richard
Badenoch, Kemi (Proxy vote cast y Leo Docherty)
Bailey, Shaun
Baillie, Siobhan
Baker, Duncan
Baker, Mr Steve
Baldwin, Harriett
Barclay, rh Steve
Baron, Mr John
Bell, Aaron
Benton, Scott
Beresford, Sir Paul
Bhatti, Saqib
Blackman, Bob
Blunt, Crispin
Bone, Mr Peter
Bottomley, Sir Peter
Bowie, Andrew
Bradley, Ben
Bradley, rh Karen
Brady, Sir Graham
Braverman, Suella
Brereton, Jack
Bridgen, Andrew
Brine, Steve
Bristow, Paul
Britcliffe, Sara
Brokenshire, rh James
Browne, Anthony
Bruce, Fiona
Buchan, Felicity
Buckland, rh Robert
Burghart, Alex
Butler, Rob
Carter, Andy
Cartlidge, James
Cash, Sir William
Cates, Miriam
Caulfield, Maria
Chalk, Alex
Chishti, Rehman
Chope, Sir Christopher
Churchill, Jo
Clark, rh Greg
Clarke, Mr Simon
Clarke, Theo
Clarke-Smith, Brendan
Clarkson, Chris
Cleverly, rh James
Clifton-Brown, Sir Geoffrey
Coffey, rh Dr Thérèse
Colburn, Elliot
Collins, Damian
Costa, Alberto
Courts, Robert
Coutinho, Claire
Cox, rh Mr Geoffrey
Crabb, rh Stephen
Crosbie, Virginia
Crouch, Tracey
Daly, James
Davies, David T. C.
Davies, Gareth
Davies, Dr James
Davies, Mims
Davies, Philip
Davis, rh Mr David
Davison, Dehenna
Dines, Miss Sarah
Djanogly, Mr Jonathan
Docherty, Leo
Dorries, Ms Nadine
Double, Steve
Dowden, rh Oliver
Doyle-Price, Jackie
Drax, Richard
Drummond, Mrs Flick
Duddridge, James
Duguid, David
Duncan Smith, rh Sir Iain
Dunne, rh Philip
Eastwood, Mark
Edwards, Ruth
Ellis, rh Michael
Ellwood, rh Mr Tobias
Elphicke, Mrs Natalie
Eustice, George
Evans, Dr Luke
Evennett, rh Sir David
Everitt, Ben
Fabricant, Michael
Farris, Laura
Fell, Simon
Fletcher, Katherine
Fletcher, Mark
Fletcher, Nick
Ford, Vicky
Foster, Kevin
Fox, rh Dr Liam
Francois, rh Mr Mark
Frazer, Lucy
Freeman, George
Freer, Mike
Fuller, Richard
Garnier, Mark
Ghani, Ms Nusrat
Gibb, rh Nick
Gibson, Peter
Gideon, Jo
Glen, John
Goodwill, rh Mr Robert
Gove, rh Michael
Graham, Richard
Grant, Mrs Helen
Gray, James
Grayling, rh Chris
Green, rh Damian
Griffith, Andrew
Griffiths, Kate
Grundy, James
Gullis, Jonathan
Halfon, rh Robert
Hall, Luke
Hammond, Stephen
Hancock, rh Matt
Hands, rh Greg
Harper, rh Mr Mark
Harris, Rebecca
Hart, Sally-Ann
Hart, rh Simon
Hayes, rh Sir John
Heald, rh Sir Oliver
Heaton-Harris, Chris
Henderson, Gordon
Henry, Darren
Higginbotham, Antony
Hinds, rh Damian
Hoare, Simon
Holden, Mr Richard
Hollinrake, Kevin
Hollobone, Mr Philip
Holloway, Adam
Holmes, Paul
Howell, John
Howell, Paul
Huddleston, Nigel
Hudson, Dr Neil
Hughes, Eddie
Hunt, Jane
Hunt, rh Jeremy
Hunt, Tom
Jack, rh Mr Alister
Javid, rh Sajid
Jenkin, Sir Bernard
Jenkinson, Mark
Jenkyns, Mrs Andrea
Jenrick, rh Robert
Johnson, rh Boris
Johnson, Dr Caroline
Johnson, Gareth
Johnston, David
Jones, Andrew
Jones, rh Mr David
Jones, Fay
Jones, Mr Marcus
Jupp, Simon
Kawczynski, Daniel
Kearns, Alicia
Keegan, Gillian
Knight, Julian
Kruger, Danny
Kwarteng, rh Kwasi
Largan, Robert
Latham, Mrs Pauline
Leadsom, rh Andrea
Leigh, rh Sir Edward
Levy, Ian
Lewer, Andrew
Lewis, rh Brandon
Lewis, rh Dr Julian
Liddell-Grainger, Mr Ian
Loder, Chris
Logan, Mark
Longhi, Marco
Lopez, Julia (Proxy vote cast by Lee Rowley)
Lopresti, Jack
Lord, Mr Jonathan
Loughton, Tim
Mackinlay, Craig
Mackrory, Cherilyn
Maclean, Rachel
Mak, Alan
Malthouse, Kit
Mangnall, Anthony
Mann, Scott
Marson, Julie
May, rh Mrs Theresa
Mayhew, Jerome
Maynard, Paul
McCartney, Jason
McCartney, Karl
McPartland, Stephen
McVey, rh Esther
Menzies, Mark
Mercer, Johnny
Merriman, Huw
Metcalfe, Stephen
Millar, Robin
Miller, rh Mrs Maria
Milling, Amanda
Mills, Nigel
Mohindra, Gagan
Moore, Damien
Moore, Robbie
Mordaunt, rh Penny
Morris, Anne Marie
Morris, David
Morrissey, Joy
Morton, Wendy
Mullan, Dr Kieran
Mumby-Croft, Holly
Mundell, rh David
Murray, Mrs Sheryll
Murrison, rh Dr Andrew
Neill, Sir Robert
Nici, Lia
Nokes, rh Caroline
Norman, rh Jesse
O’Brien, Neil
Offord, Dr Matthew
Opperman, Guy
Parish, Neil
Paterson, rh Mr Owen
Pawsey, Mark
Penning, rh Sir Mike
Penrose, John
Percy, Andrew
Philp, Chris
Pincher, rh Christopher
Poulter, Dr Dan
Pow, Rebecca
Prentis, Victoria
Pritchard, Mark
Quin, Jeremy
Quince, Will
Randall, Tom
Redwood, rh John
Rees-Mogg, rh Mr Jacob
Richards, Nicola
Richardson, Angela
Roberts, Rob
Robertson, Mr Laurence
Robinson, Mary
Rosindell, Andrew
Rowley, Lee
Russell, Dean
Rutley, David
Sambrook, Gary
Saxby, Selaine
Scully, Paul
Seely, Bob
Selous, Andrew
Sharma, rh Alok
Shelbrooke, rh Alec
Skidmore, rh Chris
Smith, Chloe
Smith, Greg
Smith, Henry
Solloway, Amanda
Spencer, Dr Ben
Spencer, rh Mark
Stevenson, Jane
Stevenson, John
Stewart, Iain
Stride, rh Mel
Sturdy, Julian
Sunak, rh Rishi
Sunderland, James
Swayne, rh Sir Desmond
Syms, Sir Robert
Thomas, Derek
Throup, Maggie
Timpson, Edward
Tolhurst, Kelly
Tomlinson, Justin
Tomlinson, Michael
Tracey, Craig
Trevelyan, Anne-Marie
Trott, Laura
Truss, rh Elizabeth
Tugendhat, Tom
Vara, Mr Shailesh
Vickers, Martin
Vickers, Matt
Villiers, rh Theresa
Wakeford, Christian
Walker, Sir Charles
Walker, Mr Robin
Wallis, Dr Jamie
Warman, Matt
Watling, Giles
Webb, Suzanne
Whately, Helen
Whittaker, Craig
Whittingdale, rh Mr John
Wiggin, Bill
Wild, James
Williams, Craig
Williamson, rh Gavin
Wood, Mike
Wragg, Mr William
Wright, rh Jeremy
Young, Jacob
Zahawi, Nadhim

Division-14-European-Union-Withdrawal-Agreement-Bill-Hansard.pdf (2118 downloads )

Kiron ReidLeave a comment

The least honest lowest quality Government Britain has ever had in democratic times.

The weakest, least principled, least honest, poorest quality crop of MPs & Cabinet that the UK has had since the start of the 20th Century. This Cabinet is the lowest calibre & weakest in my lifetime (I’m 48) but the 43% did vote for them. The Independent Group / Change UK / independent Conservatives / Lib Dem joiners failed but they demonstrated principles, leadership & political bravery in great abundance. Matching when Roy Jenkins famously lost Warrington for the SDP doing the right thing in trying to modernise British politics & challenge the extremes. Their vanquishers have sold out our country to the agenda of Putin & Trump, backed by 45.6% of the people who voted. But at least the Tory MPs can cut and paste tweets & maybe in this magical season there will be a miracle & Boris Johson will actually keep a promise he’s made

 

[This post was in response to seeing a flurry of inane copy paste tweets from new Tory MPs celebrating Britain leaving the European Union and claiming this bunch of unprincipled carpetbaggers were trying to bring people together.]

Did all Tory MPs get this tosh to parrot, the equivalent of New Labour paging soundbites. They started the populism but by God this Boris Johnson Farage-Brexit-UKIP Tory Party is putting the boot into Britain and Europe for the delight of Trump and Putin

It really is a carbon copy of New Labour pushing lines by pager but far worse. Populism yes like Labour but for these Johnson Farage-Brexit-UKIP Conservatives it is in the service of Putin, Trump & billionaire tax exiles who have thrice fooled most voters

Other tweets on the same theme:
Even in a small town in rural Uzbekistan an English teacher who loves Britain could not understand how Britain could do this to itself, the same sad, baffled, reaction from our friends abroad I’ve found everywhere in Europe.

 

Both men [talking about honours for Iain Duncan Smith and Zack Goldsmith] have though (backed by most voting public) inflicted the greatest national humiliation on Britain & damage to peace & prosperity in Europe since Munich. All of us suffer the consequences (& benefits if any happen & unicorns fly). [It is the worst British defeat since Dunkirk, and self-inflicted by a section of the British people].

 

And the peace and security, progress and increased living standards across Europe endangered by profiteers and populism. Labour lost when they accepted referendum ‘won’ by lies fraud & tax exile propaganda. Which did same against them this time

 

Tweets from December 20 – 31 2019.

Original tweet thread here: https://twitter.com/KironReid/status/1208118332316114944

Examples include: https://twitter.com/KironReid/status/1212068343034908672

Kiron Reid1 Comment

How much money have British households spent stocking up on food and consumer goods because of the previous abortive Brexit deadlines?

‘How much money have British households spent stocking up on food and consumer goods because of the previous abortive Brexit deadlines?’ https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/how_much_money_have_british_hous via @whatdotheyknow to @DExEUgov

 

We’re keeping our Brexit box and cupboard stocked as we have done for more than a year as we don’t trust this dishonest and incompetent Government one bit.

Kiron Reid1 Comment

How many British citizens will likely lose their jobs in European Union institutions & agencies because of Brexit?

‘How many British citizens will likely lose their jobs in European Union institutions & agencies because of Brexit?’ https://whatdotheyknow.com/request/how_many_british_citizens_will_l via @whatdotheyknow
Latest request to @DExEUgov
Will they be able to answer this one? (a first)

It seems clear that our Farage / Boris Conservative Party politicians, and the 43.5% that voted for them do not care about the effect of leaving the EU on British citizens who live or work in Europe and want to be able to continue having the freedom to do so. Here are my latest questions to the Quitters and Quislings’ thankless department, the poor slaves of the Department for Exiting the European Union.

Kiron ReidLeave a comment

An encounter with non-European wide standardisation & regulation.

So all this European standardisation that is forced on us :-). In the UK if I apply for a refund from a company on my card, physically or online, they automotically make the refund. From a French company – a form, two pieces of paperwork, & up to 28 days for them to make the refund of €48 which was charged by their mistake. (Ignoring the several phone calls & emails to work out the system & why they needed the paperwork, which was mainly down to my lack of French).

And Regular reminder, all that health & safety ‘from Europe’. In Northern Ireland (surprisingly), the Republic of Ireland (the bit further north), Spain & France Aug – Nov none of the British health & safety culture. I appreciate our and EU health & safety when I see the shocking absence of it in non-EU countries. But maybe again it’s the UK not the EU responsible for over cautious bureaucracy. And each of those countries I visited were distinctively (Northern) Irish, Spanish and French, very different from England and Wales. No sign of being merged into a European culture

Kiron ReidLeave a comment

Catalan nationalists are wrong but crushing peaceful political dissent is not the answer.

I don’t sympathise with Catalan nationalists at all, and don’t buy all the ‘perfidious Spain’ nonsense. And it’s not Easter 1916. But on the day of the unofficial referendum I thought the heavy handedness (or rather the probably provoked filmed heavy handedness) of the national police would turn people over to the secessionists. Jailing democratically elected political leaders, forcing others into (self-imposed) exile for entirely peaceful political actions is not the way for a confident democratic State to behave. The extreme prison sentences of 14 October imposed on peaceful political leaders are making the same mistake that the British authorities made in Ireland in 1916 – short of killing people – overreacting and alienating the majority who did not sympathise with a minority of extremists or romantic (if violent) nationalists, instead relying on ridicule and horror to undermine the ‘radical’ cause. Though there was an actual war on and armed rebellion at that time, so the British failure to realise they were making a serious tactical error with public opinion was understandable. How the Spanish Supreme Court can think such sentences are justified for peaceful, political illegal acts, is flabbergasting.

 

Spanish nationalists are as bad as Catalan ones – many nationalists in Catalonia / Catalunya seem motivated only by financial self interest; and taking peace, democracy and quality of life for granted. Spanish nationalists promote intolerance and stifling conformity of thought, ferment nasty petty rivalries and stir hatred with hypocrisy. Their blinkered hatred of Gibraltarians’ self-determination reduces Spanish and Gibraltarian stability and economic prosperity when Spain and Britain, local and regional Spanish authorities and Gibraltar could all work together for the benefit of the whole region. Catalonians stirring secession should look at how disastrous for each statelet the break up of larger units in the last thirty years has been, the pain and suffering – personally, economically and culturally – that has occurred. This is no reason in principle for people not to have self-determination, but it is high high time to stop and be careful what you wish for, and to stop and think you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. A mistake that a majority of voting British public have made in destroying a key basis of our country’s cultural, economic, security and environmental progress over the last forty years, because they – many of the public – have believed lies, blamed others for their misfortunes, and taken a good life for granted.

 

Spain and Britain, Catalonia, London and Madrid, Barcelona, Gibraltar, we’re all better when we work cooperatively together in a fair and non-exploitative way. Easier said than done perhaps but remember as people we all get on. Politicians and youth who stir difference and divides should remember that. And judges are sometimes advised to use commonsense and judicial discretion rather than following the letter of an unjust law.

Kiron Reid1 Comment

You can’t trust anything Boris Johnson’s Tories say. The choice in the election is clear.

The choice in the election is clear. You can’t trust anything Boris Johnson’s Tories say. The Prime Minister is a lying, dishonest trickster. Jeremy Corbyn is a danger to the security of Britain and Europe, ideologically dangerous for the economy, and has a blindspot when it comes to dictators and brutal corrupt leaders as long as they are not the ones that Governments in Britain, America and France usually support. Boris Johnson is far more dangerous to the security of Britain and Europe, utterly reckless & clueless on the economy, and as most Conservative leaders has few morals when it comes to dictators and brutal corrupt leaders as long as there’s a profit to be made. Jo Swinson would make a better Prime Minister than either of them but in our electoral system that is not how you vote. How can people vote against both extremes?

Vote Liberal Democrat in any seat the Liberal Democrats can win and any safe Labour seat or Conservative seat. Vote Plaid Cymru or Green Party in any seat they can win where they are a challenger to Labour or the Conservatives. Vote independent pro-EU Conservative in seats they hold. Vote SNP if it is a choice in Scotland between SNP and Labour or Conservative. If it is a clear Labour v Conservative contest vote for whichever candidate is less extreme on Brexit – if in doubt the Labour Party policy is less destructive than the Boris Johnson party. Any vote for Johnson’s Tory Party is a vote for dishonesty and fraud on an industrial scale against the electorate. Jeremy Corbyn’s ideologically blinkered Labour want to take Britain back to the 1970s in many of their policies. This was a pretty terrible time for Britain. The current vampire Conservative Party wants to take Britain back to the 1930s which was a pretty terrible time for the whole World. They have to be stopped.

Kiron ReidLeave a comment

Brexit EU passport insurance and Brexit refugees.

How many British citizens have applied for passports of other EU countries since the Brexit vote and how many have moved to other EU countries?

I asked these questions for this important information last year to the UK Government department responsible for making arrangements for Britain to leave the European Union. In response to my request of 25 August 2018 the Department for Exiting the European Union did not have the information requested.

I have just asked the questions again to see if our highly clueless department care any more now about this disruption, cost and inconvenience to British citizens who will lose their rights as EU citizens, than they did a year ago. I don’t blame the civil servants, I blame the political masters who have given them this thankless task. The following request for information has been submitted via the admirable WhatDoTheyKnow site. https://www.whatdotheyknow.com Many thanks to them for the public service in assisting open government.

Dear Department for Exiting the European Union,

Please tell me how many British citizens have applied for passports of other EU countries since the Brexit vote and how many have moved to other EU countries?

Further to my request in August last year. Your department presumably is responsible for considering the effect of Britain leaving the EU on British citizens. Last year you said that you did not hold information on UK citizens applying for passports of other European Union countries or moving to other EU countries.

This must be a hugely important side effect of the vote in the referendum. I would like to know now what monitoring is the UK Government doing on this issue and what steps the Department for Exiting the European Union is taking to evaluate this effect on British citizens?

Yours faithfully,

Kiron Reid

20 West Albert Road,
Liverpool
UK

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/how_many_british_citizens_have_a_2

Kiron Reid1 Comment

My article on the Ukraine elections, and new President, Zelenskyi.

My article on the Ukraine elections and new President was published here in the newsletter of Liberal International (British Group). At pages 13 – 15. With thanks to the editor, Stewart Rayment, and for editing the text to Mark Smulian of Liberator magazine, which is due to publish the article as well next month.
InterLib September 2019: https://libg.co.uk/en/document/interlib-september-2019#document

It is a .pdf file, which you can download, my article is at pages 13 – 15.

I have also put the unedited text of the Liberator magazine article, below.

In the space I didn’t have time to cover in any detail what the election observation involves, or what was and wasn’t done during the election that either broke election law or in inventive and imaginative ways got round the spirit of the election laws. I give some account of why I am sympathetic to former President Petro Poroshenko – I could give rather more reasons and concrete examples – but at the same time I didn’t have enough space to outline my criticisms of him, and more reasons why I am cautiously optimistic about President Zelenskyi. Nor was I able to talk about what living in Ukraine is actually like and the many normal and unusual things (for someone from Britain), huge number of extreme contrasts and paradoxes. I’m always happy to talk about these topics from my own experience to anyone interested.

For those who want some detail about the mechanics and outcome of the election I recommend this blog by my friend and Long Term Observer election colleague, Alex Folkes:
Ukraine’s President gets what he wants out of Parliamentary polls but wants more

July 27 ‘Ukraine’s president gets what he wants out of parliamentary polls but wants more’.

I have also put the unedited text of the Liberator magazine draft article, here:

Ukraine’s Comedian is no comic. Great hope & some chance on democracy’s eastern border.

 

Article for Liberator magazine (UK Liberal political magazine), published edited in the newsletter of Liberal International British Group. This is a Word .doc document.