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Euro hustings Scotland 2009
James Irvine
Editor: www.land-care.org.uk
Filed 04 June 09
©www.land-care.org.uk
Just who are these MEPs who want to be re-elected? And just who are the new candidates?
It has not been easy to find out. MEPs who have been supposedly acting on behalf of the citizens of the various regions of the UK (such as the seven representing Scotland) have been rarely seen over the past five years, with few exceptions. Because of the expansion of the EU to 27 member states, the number representing Scotland has been reduced to six. The total number for the UK was 78, now reduced to 72. The electorate has the opportunity to vote for one party only. The parties themselves determine their own pecking order as to who gets the job or jobs, according to the distribution of votes registered among the various parties.
Having an interest in both rural and urban affairs in Scotland, I thought it would be informative to attend a Euro hustings in Perth and another in Edinburgh. Would the party policies be consistent? May be I might see different MEP candidates.
As a member of NFU Scotland I was well informed about the hustings organised for Perthshire farmers. As editor of this website, I was also well informed by one political party regarding its launch of its Euro manifesto (1). But for those contacts, I would not have known where any hustings were taking place.
Thursday 4th June is polling day for the election of MEPs throughout the UK.
and for Local Government in England.
What the results are going to be is difficult to predict in view of the
potential meltdown at Westminster.
Following the political sleaze and alleged fraud amidst MPs,
will there be apathy or a protest vote favouring
minority parties?
(Photo ©Kimpton Graphics)
I learned about the Edinburgh hustings the day before they took place, after repeatedly making a request to one political party for information. I ended up attending a Euro hustings organised by Poverty Alliance and Scottish Voluntary Sector European Policy Group.
What the Euro candidates, or those representing them, said at these two meetings was strikingly different. They were so very different that one wondered what the underlying policy of each party really was, apart from particular brands of illogical ideology. Were the candidates, or their stand-ins, just saying what they thought their particular audience of the day wanted to hear?
Take for example the Labour Party.
Scottish Labour Party
The number three listed Labour MEP candidate at Perth did not have any direct link or particular knowledge about farming, but she did speak well about the interest of consumers and the need to curtail the powers of supermarkets. The number one listed Labour party candidate at the Edinburgh hustings was as severe old Labour as you could imagine, with no hint of any sense of financial know-how in relation to the current economic crisis. He was a caricature of what Maggie Thatcher had to overcome to save the country from ruin. Surely we don't want extreme left wing socialism, just as surely as we don't want a repeat of what Maggie Thatcher had to do.
According to Scotland's Labour's number one MEP candidate the future was just keep on with government spending and preserving jobs, but making no coherent suggestions as to how the UK, and Scotland in particular, could try and get itself out of the current financial mess. According to him, all we needed to do is to keep going with government spending and wait until someone else sorts out the economic crisis. More and more directives from the EU the better with more and more rules on working times, minimum wage, more time off work, etc is what he wanted. In other words, more of the EC directives that have so undermined small business in Scotland and elsewhere, and are now threatening the NHS and much else. In an economic crisis it is necessary to tighten the belt, and work harder for longer for less. "Solidarity" was his cry. I think we have heard that before. His type of solidarity did not appear to be logical in the present circumstances in Scotland or elsewhere in the UK, or indeed the EU.
Scottish Liberal Democrats
The Scottish Liberal Democrat speaker at the Edinburgh hustings is standing down. What she said was yet more ideology with little sense of any pragmatism. She seemed to personify why it is the the EU parliament seems so out of touch with realistic government. It is fine to have ideologies, but who is going to pay for them to be put into effect?
It was pointed out by others that voluntary work (one of her crusading issues) has been carried out globally very effectively long before the EU parliament came into existence. What she said had little relevance to what her Lib/Dem colleague said at Perth.
At Perth the Scottish Liberal Democrats were represented by someone who had been a tenant farmer for many years. He had previously been president of NFU Scotland, but gained much criticism when he jumped from that position to become a Liberal Democrat MSP. Many farmers thought that he had sold them down the river to the politicians of his favoured party. Subsequent candidates for the NFUS presidency had to undertake to make no such political moves in the future.
From the time of devolution until two years ago, a Labour/LibDem Coalition was in power. They lost that power at the last Holyrood general election in 2007 for good reason. In particular, Ross Finnie was the Liberal Democrat Minister for the Environment and Rural Affairs for eight years. He did much damage to Scottish farming (2).
Scottish National Party
At Edinburgh the SNP was represented by an SNP member of Edinburgh City Council, as no SNP candidate was available. This gave a frightening insight as to why Edinburgh City Council is so badly run. Ideology was served up by the bucket full. There was again no sense of how to manage the current economic crisis in a credible manner.
In my view, he seriously undermined what Alyn Smith (SNP MEP for the past five years and standing for re-election) has been trying to do. And what he presented at Perth and at Braco. That was a great pity as Alyn Smith has been productively active as an MEP. Was it Alyn Smith who reflects SNP policy, or the joker from Edinburgh City Council who apparently had endless sources of taxpayers' money to pay for numerous goodies that his party promised to provide.
Another problem about voting for a SNP MEP is that the SNP Euro members mate up with the Greens at Brussels. They are likely to have the same problems as the home team. In order to further their SNP agenda, they may well need to make concessions to Green policies that they may not wish to do. There is a serious lack of balance between making sensible policies to help combat climate change on the one hand, and spending scarce resources on so called environmental projects that will make little positive contribution or indeed cause harm.
Scottish Conservative Party
The Scottish Conservatives were represented at Perth by a current MEP, while in Edinburgh they were represented by a retiring MEP who had been in post for 15 years. The former has clearly been active at the EU parliament: indeed the EU parliament had recognised his efforts, along with those of SNP Alyn Smith. But one did wonder just how active the retiring Conservative member had been.
He gave the impression that he had done very well from the MEP gravy train and was now content to enjoy a handsome pension for his efforts, or lack of them. He gave the impression of the old guard Conservative Party: an image which that party has to shake off rather quickly if it is going to have much credibility. This appeared to be happening at the Perth hustings, but not at the Edinburgh event. Could the Scottish Conservatives not have found someone to represent them who might have shown what hopefully might be the new face of Scottish Conservatism?
Green Party
Not unsurprisingly, the Green Party was not represented at Perth, but it was at Edinburgh. Yet again, still more ideology served up with enthusiastic fervour but little logic. It would be nice if their friends in the Soil Association could learn some lessons in integrity when claiming to talk about science (3).
UKIP
Perhaps surprisingly, the best speaker at the Edinburgh hustings was the UKIP candidate. UKIP was not represented at Perth. Whether it is possible to come out of the EU may be questionable, but at least he was the only speaker at Edinburgh who was emphatically against signing up to the Lisbon Constitution which would give the EU much more power over us all. The Conservatives wanted a referendum, and wanted to be "in the EU but not controlled by it". At least with UKIP you know where they stand regarding the EU.
Why is the EU parliament perceived to be so inefficient?
In answer to the question as to why the EU Parliament is perceived to be so ineffective and slow in its deliberations, with a one-rule-fits-all attitude, it was disappointing to hear most of the MEP members and candidates claim otherwise. Worse, most maintained that the efficiency of the EU Parliament would be improved if the Lisbon Constitution was agreed. But efficiency in terms of what? An unelected presidential system?
Having tried to sort out how to vote on 4th June after the Perth hustings, my thoughts were thrown into disarray following attendance at the Edinburgh hustings. This was largely due to the inconsistencies in presentation by the various parties at the two meetings.
There is little wonder that the public in general are so disillusioned with politicians, and with MEPs in particular. There appears to be a serious lack on the part of the various political parties as to how they communicate with the public on the matter of the EU elections, or indeed what their MEPS are doing. After all, the EU along with the European Commission, is responsible for some 75% of the laws that now operate in the UK.
While the polls of the UK electorate show that the majority of voters are against the Lisbon Constitution, most of the MEPs (or MEP candidates) support it. This suggests that perhaps the MEP hopefuls see supporting the Constitution as a good career move for themselves within the EU Parliament.
Westminster Parliament heading for meltdown
Just as this article was being completed, Hazel Blears, Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government and in charge of the local elections in England that are running concurrently with the Euro elections, announces her resignation from the Westminster Cabinet (4). What a disloyal little bissum, what a cheeky wee brat, to act in such a manner within her own party! It looks as though the little so-and-so chose to cause her PM and her Party the greatest trouble she could muster, just when she was about to get the push for her dubious dealings over her expenses - labelled by her PM as "totally unacceptable".
Jacqui Smith, the Westminster Home Secretary, also resigned within the past 24 hours after continuing pressure on her regarding the integrity of her claims for expenses. There have been two other junior ministerial resignations at Westminster within the past 24 hours. Clearly, the Labour Party, who still hold power at Westminster with a substantial majority, are in big trouble even within their own ranks. The rats seem to be running from a sinking ship.
So which political party can be at least half convincing that they should gain the votes of the electorate?
The Labour Party is clearly a non-runner
While their Labour number three candidate presented herself well to the farmers at Perth, the number one Labour Candidate at Edinburgh was so severely left wing and old labour that he should be unelectable. To vote for a Labour MEP would inevitably be voting to get this guy in. Did the number three candidate really have the same views beneath her facade as the number one candidate?
The Green Party is also a non-runner
Platitudinous statements about green energy and how it will save the economy for Scotland is not really enough. The MEP| candidate did not seems to have any realistic notion about the economy or about food security or what it takes to run either a farm or an urban small business. Her driving force was an ideology of narrow perspective, with a singular absence of rational thinking or an objective assessment of facts.
The Liberal Democrat Party is also a non-runner
The Lib/Dem candidate at Perth was a former president of NFUS but he gained considerable disapproval for jumping from there to become a Lib/Dem MSP. he was perceived by some as selling NFUS members down the river in order to further his own political ambitions. He subsequently lost his MSP seat at the last general election, as the Labour/LibDem Coalition lost power after a long and poor period in charge at Holyrood.
The retiring LibDem MEP speaking at Edinburgh simply did not appear to have a grip in terms of the real world as opposed to yet more ideology without any reasoned economic base.
Vince Cable may talk economic sense at Westminster. The problem is his colleagues don't.
Possible runners: Conservatives, SNP and UKIP (in alphabetical order)
While I was not expecting too much from UKIP, their MEP candidate at Edinburgh did in fact give the best presentation in terms of a realistic assessment of the EU Parliament. It would be tempting to vote for UKIP if only to register a protest vote over the way we are controlled from Brussels.
While the Conservative MEP candidate for re-election at Perth was convincingly active in a productive manner, the lack luster performance of the retiring Conservative MEP at Edinburgh did much to undermine the former's efforts. Somehow the Conservatives in Scotland have got to get their act together a bit better.
The SNP was strong on agriculture with an able and energetic candidate. But the SNP number one choice might be very different. Certainly, the stand-in at the Edinburgh hustings which I attended did much to undermine confidence as to what the SNP was all about.
So which party to vote for?
If it was not for an overriding feeling of responsibility that one should take part in the voting and vote for somebody - or rather, for a party - I would opt not to vote at all. A plague on their houses. But vote I shall.
I would have much preferred to vote for a person and not just for a party, but that regrettably is not an available option.
As a despairing floating voter on the eve of the Euro elections, I am still floating.
©www.land-care.org.uk
Reference
1. Irvine, James (2009). Euro candidate launches SNP manifesto for agriculture.
See Homepage, filed 24 May 09, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View
2. Irvine, James (2007). Eight years of Ross Finnie as Scottish Minister for Environment and Rural Affairs: what did he have to say for himself at NFUS agm, Dunblane, February 2007?
See SOCIAL/ECONOMIC/POLITICAL Homepage, filed 02 Mar 07, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View
3. Irvine, James (2005). The unhealthy relationships between the Scottish Executive, the Soil Association, the Scottish Agricultural College, the lobby group Environment LINK, and the media need to be addressed. Review of conference presented by Soil Association, Scottish Agricultural College, and Scottish Natural Heritage: "Farming, food and health: an indivisible chain"
Battleby, Perth, 25th May 2005
See SOCIAL/ECONOMIC/POLITICAL Homepage, filed 21 Jun 05, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View
4. Treneman, Ann (2009). Gordon Brown faces Chamber on resignations, smiling but staggering
See HOMEPAGE, filed 04 Jun 09, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View
Finis
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