Saturday, June 5, 2010

UKIP now has two Deputy Leaders

Back to British politics: UKIP has announced that it now has two Deputy Leaders, David Campbell Bannerman (yes, he is a scion of that family but as there is no strong Liberal Party any more, he was a Conservative for a while and has been in UKIP for a number of years) remains in charge of policy but he is joined by Lord Monckton, the scourge of the AGW fanatics. With some exceptions it is the same group of sceptics that opposes both the main secular religions of British politics.

Do read, Lord Monckton's statement of acceptance. It is absolutely hilarious. He indulges in a very fine bit of alliteration, worthy of the late, lamented Leonard Sachs himself:
After 1000 years of inexorable progress towards democracy, in the last 30 years pernicious peculation by Parliament’s political pygmies has thrown Britain’s democracy away.
Ignore the rubbish about "1,000 years of inexorable progress towards democracy". Don't you love the "pernicious peculation by Parliament’s political pygmies"? Incidentally, some of those 30 years, Christopher Monckton was adviser to the Prime Minister, one Margaret Thatcher. It is good to know that they both saw the light eventually.

All the same, one can't help wondering whether Lord Monckton ever bothers to re-read his statements or think them through before he delivers them.

For example, I cannot find the Initiative Referendum Bill on the Parliamentary website. It is possible that they have not put it up yet as the Bill was not tabled till late Friday. I shall, of course, blog about it as soon as I find it.

However, it is a little disturbing to read the following comment:
My first task will be to build on the Initiative Referendum Bill already tabled in the House of Lords by Lord Pearson and Lord Willoughby de Broke by drafting new, radically democratic constitutions for Britain and for Europe.
Britain may or may not need a radical new written constitution. Given the mess that has been made of the previous one, there is a very good argument that there should be a new Bill of Rights, at the very least. Certainly a single constitutional document like the Constitution of the United States may not be a bad idea. But Europe? On what basis does his lordship think that Europe is the sort of single entity that needs a constitution or that the Europeans want UKIP to write one for them?

Meanwhile, one cannot help asking: what of the future? Will Lord Monckton be content to be Deputy Leader for any real length of time?

1 comment:

  1. "Will Lord Monckton be content to be Deputy Leader for any real length of time?"
    Yes, I rather think he will.
    As deputy he can leap on his shining charger and go tilting at windmills (figuratively obviously, but what an image! Lord M in full armour, lance lowered, thundering towards a wind-farm :D:D ).
    He has a sharp brain and prefers projects rather than the ephemera of admin., at least that's my reading of him.
    I deeply object to the concept of a 'New' Constitution since there is no-one who has the Right to grant us our Ancient Liberties.
    Actually our current Constitution is perfectly OK, just needs dusting off and actually being applied.
    I would strongly suggest UKIP open a public forum for Constitutional discussions, and obviously I volunteer to geek/moderate it.
    People need to understand the history of the British Constitution before they start talking of changing it. As it stands it is flexible enough for our rapidly changing world, but it must be honoured in Spirit at least.

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