EU Elections - Will you be voting?

[outwar6010]

I’m undecided - I’m not quite sure what role an MEP has.


I mean my MP is my representative in Parliament and if I have an issue with policy or other U.K. matter, I can take it to my MO who has considerable power in finding answers. He also represents a party.

But I can’t think of a single issue I would want to take to an MEP. So what else do they do? I suppose they represent political parties - and I suppose they are supposed to stand up for the interests of the U.K. - but as a minority in the European Parliament they are pretty toothless.

So that leaves voting as a protest activity and on that I’m still undecided if or how I will vote.
Pa

Basically an mep votes on eu legislation. So all the nonsense we've heard on the eu taking away our sovereignty or how they are undemocratic and other bollocks were in fact lies.

[TeePee]

Basically an mep votes on eu legislation. So all the nonsense we've heard on the eu taking away our sovereignty or how they are undemocratic and other bollocks were in fact lies.

An MEP votes on EU legislation for the entire EU, not just the UK. This is the process in which MEP's from around Europe pass legislation that is controlling over the UK. Literally taking away national sovereignty. Now it may be democratic for a European nation state, and it may or may not be in the UK's best interest to give up that sovereignty in exchange for a small say in the design of that legislation, but to suggest that sovereignty is maintained by MEP's really is bollocks, and the kind of dishonest argument that has plagued both sides of the Brexit debate.

[Corky34]

They don't take it away we trade it for various other advantages and so called EU legislation is our legislation because we are part of the EU, just like UK legislation is north Yorkshire (or any other region of the UK) legislation because they're part of the UK. Honestly the whole sovereignty things is a red herring as by the very essence of living in a community you agree to exchange some sovereignty for the advantages that come with living in that community, from living with a partner to getting married, from living in a village, town, or city to living in a region or a country you've agreed to forgo some of your power to govern yourself in exchange for other things.

We've been doing it since humans walked the earth and we've been doing it because we can achieve more together than apart.

[Cammy]

Ill be voting SNP in the upcoming EU election, my mum is an snp supporter but shes decided shes voting the brexit party - mainly due to being a buisness owner and wanting brexit.

Ive got leaflets here side by side from every political party, and conservatives in scotland only mention brexit once in the leaflet, and the rest of it is slamming other political party's - i cant see them scraping through here in the EU elections, the greens, and surprisingly lib dems were very convincing for their veiws, but lib dems wont do well with wullie rennie at the top of the roost.

Where i live, this is the first time ive ever gotten a conservative poster through (not that i live in a poor place for them to avoid) but they sent it out via post, which is probably the reason why its a first.

[Saracen999]

They don't take it away we trade it for various other advantages and so called EU legislation is our legislation because we are part of the EU, just like UK legislation is north Yorkshire (or any other region of the UK) legislation because they're part of the UK. Honestly the whole sovereignty things is a red herring as by the very essence of living in a community you agree to exchange some sovereignty for the advantages that come with living in that community, from living with a partner to getting married, from living in a village, town, or city to living in a region or a country you've agreed to forgo some of your power to govern yourself in exchange for other things.

We've been doing it since humans walked the earth and we've been doing it because we can achieve more together than apart.

Except that Yorkshire isn't a sovereign nation, and the UK supposedly is. Except that an external body can write laws and require us to implement them.

And yes, it's a trade-off, and for sure, some of those EU laws are ones that had not the EU done it for us, I would hope Westminster would have done it.

But ultimately, that usurping of power is one reason I want out. We, and I mean the people, were never asked if we wanted that authority given away, or traded away. We weren't even asked if we wanted to join the Common Market. We were taken in, by Heath, and only after a couple of years, after huge damage to trust with traditional partners like Australia and New Zesland had already been done and they were distinctly not hsppy about finding themzelves on the outside of a Customs Union with what had been a major trading partner, only then were we given a load of guff ( Project Fear Mark 1) about doom and gloom if we left, by the entire establishment, and a load of promises (just about all of which either already have been broken, or are in the process of being broken) by the EU. That is to say, OUR politicians did the promising, not the EU, but EU actions made those promises into lies.

And then, not content with excluding any choice from the people, Major signed up to Maastricht and Brown to Lisbon, again without asking the people. Though we've been promised that say repeatedly, and not until this referendum did we get it.

The vast bulk of ability to inflict whether we want it or not, those EU laws comes from Maastrict and especially Lisbon, which at no point did we, the people,get to vote on .... until now.

And that is the sovereignty issue. Leaders might have signed up but the people didn't, and the constitional point is that we elected a government to govern, not to either give or trade governance to someone else. Anybody else.

That should have been put go the people before bigh Maastricht and Lisbon. If it had we wouldn't be in this mess because either the people would have voted for it, or they wouldn't and we either would already be out, in in but exempt from Maastricht/Lisbon .... or the entire EU would not be what it us now.

[TeePee]

It will be interesting to see what happens if BoJo takes the Iron Throne....

[Corky34]

Except that Yorkshire isn't a sovereign nation, and the UK supposedly is. Except that an external body can write laws and require us to implement them.

At some point in ancient history it was, at least i think it was based on what little knowledge i have of ancient Britain.

As for the whole were we weren't we asked thing i think we've covered it in the past so you probably know where i stand on it and i don't think either of us are going to change our minds so it's probably best not to go over old ground.

[Ciber]

It will be interesting to see what happens if BoJo takes the Iron Throne....

As in an interesting sh**storm of bad decisions and soured international relations?

[AC81]

It will be interesting to see what happens if BoJo takes the Iron Throne....

Rofl...

The comedy continues....

Although i don't like the EU, and wouldn't have a problem with us slipping away from it. I don't think many want to have bojo in charge...

It is however, quite likely.

Whoever takes the conservative leadership, they're likely to be in favour of a hard brexit. Although no deal is likely to be voted through in parliment.
The new leader almost certinaly will, as the deadline with the EU runs out. Just not seek an extension.
Conservative figures will likely see Bojo as the most likely to deliver that and vote him in.

I can see the next general election again being about the EU, with some partys running to get us back in. Labour probably running to get us in the economic area, and Conservatives keeping us out.

It will be difficult to vote for a party on any other issue. If you like Change UK for example, on every issue thay have. Except thier position on the EU, you can't vote for them in the next General election, as they are likely to run with the manifesto promise of keeping us (or getting us) in.....
Yet if you want 'in' to the EU, it's unlikely Labour or the conservatives will deliver what you want.

A real fine mess, and i can see 'brexit' being at the forefront of british politics for years and years to come. It's defenatly not going to be over.

[TeePee]

Rofl...

The comedy continues....

Although i don't like the EU, and wouldn't have a problem with us slipping away from it. I don't think many want to have bojo in charge...

It is however, quite likely.

Whoever takes the conservative leadership, they're likely to be in favour of a hard brexit. Although no deal is likely to be voted through in parliment.
The new leader almost certinaly will, as the deadline with the EU runs out. Just not seek an extension.
Conservative figures will likely see Bojo as the most likely to deliver that and vote him in.

I can see the next general election again being about the EU, with some partys running to get us back in. Labour probably running to get us in the economic area, and Conservatives keeping us out.

It will be difficult to vote for a party on any other issue. If you like Change UK for example, on every issue thay have. Except thier position on the EU, you can't vote for them in the next General election, as they are likely to run with the manifesto promise of keeping us (or getting us) in.....
Yet if you want 'in' to the EU, it's unlikely Labour or the conservatives will deliver what you want.

A real fine mess, and i can see 'brexit' being at the forefront of british politics for years and years to come. It's defenatly not going to be over.

I don't know, I think, once we're out, other countries will follow, probably quite rapidly. The attraction of being back in will vanish swiftly.

[Saracen999]

At some point in ancient history it was, at least i think it was based on what little knowledge i have of ancient Britain.

As for the whole were we weren't we asked thing i think we've covered it in the past so you probably know where i stand on it and i don't think either of us are going to change our minds so it's probably best not to go over old ground.

On the first point, how far back do you want to go? I mean, at some point the whole planet was either a morass of spinning space debris or part of a big bang explosion before it all started the planet-forming process, and Yorkshire wasn't sovereign I grant you that.

Okay, I know I'm stretching it a bit further than you, but you're taking it back about a thousand years (I don't need an exact date, before anyone Goo ..... I mean, Search Engines it for me) before England was England, and even several hundred before the Scots were added ... much to the 'irkitation' of the current SNP.


As for the second point, we haven't argued it for ...., dunno, weeks, msybe months so surely it's overdue?

But to be serious (it does happen occasionally), and to drop the Corky-baiting (seeing as you seem you have caught me) for now ..... yes, agreed. We have, we won't agree, and why bother?

Especially seeing as I'm right.

Dammit, this Corky-baiting thing is automatic. Sorry Pal, I slipped.

Honest.

[Saracen999]

Hey, Corky ... we agree on something. Even if it's only that we don't agree.

I feel like I ought to bake a cake.

Or call a doctor.

Currently trying to decide which.

[Corky34]

Especially seeing as I'm right.

I was so thinking of saying exactly that when i made that post this morning.

I wasn't sure if it would come across in the jest i was intending it though..

Defiantly a cake if you ask me, although I'd buy one as it just feels more special when someone else has made it.

[TeePee]

Hey, Corky ... we agree on something. Even if it's only that we don't agree.

I feel like I ought to bake a cake.

Or call a doctor.

Currently trying to decide which.

Lemon drizzle?

[Saracen999]

Lemon drizzle?

With Amalfi lemons, I presume?

[Saracen999]

I was so thinking of saying exactly that when i made that post this morning.

I wasn't sure if it would come across in the jest i was intendingvit, though.

That thought crossed my mind, too. That might just be the single biggest weakness of forum discussions .... it's hard to convey what woukd normally be in body language and/or tone of voice. And therefore easy to entirely unintentionally light the blue touch-paper.