The public mood swings against Brexit

Molly

Molly Scott Cato, Green MEP: speaking sense on Brexit

Brexit is unfolding as an unmitigated disaster. Never has the British political establishment looked more dysfunctional, confused and weak. But as big a deal as Brexit undoubtedly is, it is only part of a bigger picture. The economic self interest of some very wealthy individuals is aligned with the Russian policy of weakening democratic structures and institutions on a global scale. Weakening tax and safety regulations is part of these people’s agenda, so too climate change denial and protecting the interests of the fossil fuel industries.

For those of us wanting a more peaceful, socially just, democratically accountable and ecologically sustainable future, where do we look? Economic equality is fundamental, and it was the rising inequality linked to globalization that led to the vulnerability of the liberal institutions to be attacked. It has been easy for the far right to tap into people’s anger and insecurities. How best to achieve radical equality and all the other goals to which this blog aspires?t

A few weeks ago I watched the film ‘Accidental Anarchist’, the account of Carne Ross’s trajectory from career diplomat to advocate of anarchism. A very powerful film and one I’d highly recommend. We certainly need more grassroots self organising democracy. Practically the most many of us can do is to engage in as many grassroots organisations as possible, but in the context of states such as the UK this has little effect on government. We do need good politicians and good journalists to expose the wrongdoing and to propose better ideas and policies. We need better technological options in order to pollute less, more grassroots organizations to help us effect bottom up change. Last week the Green MEP Molly Scott Cato spoke in Hereford to a packed hall on the subject of Brexit, and she was excellent. Do read her Bad Boys of Brexit. Also see her new Brexit Syndicate website.

As the UK disintegrates into chaos, many countries are flourishing. Sweden has just reached its 2030 renewable energy goal twelve years ahead of schedule; its policies on everything from pollution reduction to economic equality seem to be working well. Its system of proportional representation has resulted in a very well functioning red/green coalition government. In ‘Why Nations Fail: the origins of power, prosperity and poverty’ Daron Acemoglu and James A Robinson argue that the Glorious Revolution of 1688 when the English invited to Dutch to have our throne was a critical turning point in the growth of democracy in England. Might now be the time to say our main political parties are simply failing us? Should we simply invite the Swedes to run our country until we can get our act together? Of course I say this at least partly in jest, but we do certainly have a lot to learn from the Swedes about democracy, equality and sustainability. The EU is such an important institution where countries can learn from each other and collectively strive to improve the future for all of us.

Molly Scott Cato quoted the Joni Mitchell lines ‘you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone’. Only now that we are on the verge of leaving the EU are many people realizing what a good institution it is in many ways, and how it is worth staying in and working with our European friends to continually improve it. I feel the public mood swinging strongly against Brexit and the ghastly clique in whose interests Brexit is being pursued.

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