One of the
outcomes of the referendum on June 23rd has been politicians lining
up to say that the people have spoken and their verdict must be respected. It’s a variation on the theme that Brexit
means Brexit; and one of the results of that is that debate is now largely
limited to the question of what type of Brexit.
But is that really a necessary concomitant of ‘respecting the voice of
the people’?
There’s a
comparison with the result of the 1999 referendum on the setting up of the
National Assembly. Those who disagree
are still free to argue that it should be abolished, and to set up parties and
campaigns to that end if they wish.
Respecting the vote of the people seems to me to mean only two things in
this context, namely (a) a decision taken by direct vote of the electorate can
only be reversed by another direct vote of the electorate, and (b) that there’s
little point holding another vote unless or until there are clear signs that
public opinion has moved. And at
present, all the signs are that there’s growing support for the Assembly rather
than a huge wish for its abolition. But that
doesn’t – and shouldn’t – stop people making the argument if they wish and trying to change opinion.
Take another
example. If there were to be a referendum
on the return of capital punishment tomorrow, I have a horrible feeling that I’d
find myself on the losing side and that such a proposal would be carried. (There couldn’t be a referendum on that as
things stand, of course, because no-one, as far as I’m aware, has yet suggested
that the UK should opt out of membership of the Council of Europe, which bans
the use of capital punishment.) But if
it were to happen, would anyone seriously suggest that all debate from that
point on should be limited to discussing what type of rope to use? Of course not; those opposed to the move
would continue to make their case and seek to reverse the decision.
In both cases people
see (or would see) themselves as being free to disagree with the decision
taken, and to continue to argue for the course of action which they believe to
be in the best interests of the country as a whole, with a view to changing the
decision. So why are we seeing so little
of that approach over the question of EU membership?
I’m clear that
the outcome that I want to see for Wales is direct independent membership of a
changed and developing European Union, alongside other new states appearing from within the existing member states, such as Scotland, Wallonia, Flanders, Catalunya,
and Euskadi. I understand and accept
that that’s currently a minority view; but minority views do not become
majority ones by not being expressed. Yet
at present no politicians or parties in Wales are arguing for that outcome;
they’re all too busy ‘accepting’ the result of a single referendum and debating
the terms under which a UK outside the EU relates to the remaining member states of the
EU.
If a majority
decided by a democratic vote that the earth were flat, that wouldn’t make it so. And surely no-one would suggest that the
decision had been taken and the only question for debate was how to cope with
the changes involved in moving from a round earth to a flat one? Democracy is a lot more nuanced than that.
It’s an
exaggerated parallel, of course. But it
seems not far off the position of many of those who argued that we should
remain in the EU. If they thought leaving
was a bad idea until June 22nd, why is it not still a bad idea now? Have they changed their minds or are they
just afraid to say what they think?
Standing up for
the best interests of Wales isn’t the same as saying that the people are always
right. Sometimes, it involves telling
people that a particular decision is a bad one, explaining why, and persuading
them to change their opinions. I call it leadership. Why do so
few politicians apparently have the courage to provide that?
Posts
2 comments:
Welsh politicians don’t lead because they’ve no inspiring vision and no incentive to change from a distrustful and disengaged electorate.
Labour stays as top dog by default and has ossified since winning the 1999 Assembly elections.
The Conservatives have too much historical baggage in Wales who ever leads them.
Plaid Cymru can decide if it’s a political party wanting power or a pressure group to keep Labour honest and are still learning the wrong lessons form the SNP.
The Liberal Democrats are mostly invisible and the Green Party is too small.
In fact, the only party that could make progress is UKIP and they can’t stop fighting like rats in sack long enough to play the Cardiff Bay game.
Brexit will expose the Welsh Government and Assembly’s shortcoming and failings in the coming weeks and months, if politicians want to be relevant now it’s the time to act because time is running out for Wales as a political entity to survive this most turbulent of times.
I respect the result - but that doesnt mean those of us on the losing side on june 23rd have to change our minds on membership of the EU. The anti europeans didnt give up campaigning against the EU after the 1975 referendum.
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