WILL we, won’t we? Vote in the EU elections that is. Will there be a Brenda moment, voicing the danger that we might see voting fatigue?
Surely though, with such chaos in Westminster, now is the time to be voting, making our choices, seeking change, and some form of sanity.
In England, Labour have retained a Westminster seat, with Conservatives second, ahead of Ukip. Does it matter? Well, it’s no sign of a Labour revival, more like a clinging on. But perhaps there will be Tory jitters, since the Ukip vote share is up, taken from the Tories and probably Labour, too – a possible outcome to be repeated in the future.
As we see the rise of right-wing politicians anxious to make their mark in any and every recognised political arena, those of use agin such ideologies should be represented, should be heard and seen rebutting their mantras of division and drawing up the drawbridge.
We know from experience the lesser number of MEPs we have going from Scotland in relation to England, but in light of the Brexitshambles we can see and understand what the SNP presence there has both meant and achieved. The news that the Greens are prepared to stand against the blot on the landscape that is David Coburn is welcome.
At the time when Europe and the EU are in danger of lurching to the right, do we now see Jacob Rees-Mogg, and therefore the ERG, in more of their true blue colour?
Rees-Mogg’s retweet of a video of a speech by Alice Weidel, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) politician, should not be seen in isolation. That would enable it to be dismissed as just a tweet, but this week it was confirmed that Matteo Salvini, the far-right Deputy PM of Italy, has issued an invite to the very same AfD to help launch a new alliance prior to the EU elections next month.
And who will be in this “alliance”? Representatives from the right-wing parties in Austria, Belgium, Denmark. Finland, Spain, Sweeten and Germany. And their agenda? Though not yet clarified, there is the commonality and desire to crack down on immigration, the “austerity” imposed by the EU which in their eyes is presumably exacerbated by the presence of too many refugees, asylum seekers and refugees.
Can Scotland afford to be excluded from the EU, to be without a voice and presence when this is happening on our doorstep? If the UK does take part in the elections, where would Ukip sit in relation to such a new alliance if it were to emerge and take hold?
And can we afford to ignore the Tory right and far-right Tories being returned to the EU Parliament?
If we do take part, I hope we can show that we stand not for fear and hatred of the outsider, not the language of division, not walls, not barriers, but inclusion and plurality. If not, then it’s back to the dark days of fortress Europe.
Oh, and just a moment of light-heartedness in all of this. Where did “left” and “right” in relation to politics, policies and politicians originate? You guessed it! Mainland Europe and France, from the time of the French Revolution.
In their parliament of that revolutionary era, if you sat to the right of the chair (the Parliamentary President – yes, a President!) it signified your support of the institutions of the monarchs – monarchists, and the “old regime”, so-called entitlement, stability, regularity, continuity. And those sitting on the left therefore? Says it all, doesn’t it.
Selma Rahman
Edinburgh
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