Why was the Referendum question held in June 2016 on EU membership and what’s its connection to EU Defence Union?

A huge thank you to Simon J Blanchard for submitting this article to UNN.

The question asked was simple “Do you want the UK to remain in the European Union or Leave the European Union? Remain or Leave.

We have been gifted this question, because a referendum question on the EU Defence Union, would have guaranteed to have lost by a landslide.  Confused? You should be. EU Defence Union was not even discussed during the referendum campaigns on either side, yet waiting in the wings the following week in Brussels… I’ll get back to this meeting further down this article.

 Why not mention the EU defence Union? Do any dodgy salesmen, (in this case Remainer politicians) point out the flaws in what they are trying to sell? No.

Brussels, David Cameron and the rest of the Remain establishment were confident a vote on EU membership was a shoo-in for a Remain win, so the question should be on this, rather than EU Defence Union.

Years earlier, assurances were given to placate the “eurosceptic” European Research Group (ERG) in the Tory party, that any major changes to EU membership, such as adopting the Euro, EU Justice, EU Defence Union required an Act of parliament and a referendum. 

European Union Act 2011 Section 6(2) (copied from UK Government website)

 Where the European Council has recommended to the member States the adoption of a decision under Article 42(2) of TEU in relation to a common EU defence, a Minister of the Crown may not notify the European Council that the decision is adopted by the United Kingdom unless—

(a)the decision is approved by Act of Parliament, and

(b)the referendum condition is met.

 What you may notice in the EU Act 2011 section 6 (2) –since repealed in the Withdrawal Act 2018, it did not stipulate what question should be asked in said referendum to take place, Just that “the referendum condition is met” 

The trap was now set, for UKIP and other Brexiteers to think they had won a major victory and to take the credit, to getting what they wanted- a referendum. There is an old proverb that goes like this. “Be careful what you wish for, it might come true”

Fortunately, the trap backfires spectacularly. After they had lost, the Remainer establishment kept repeating in a condescending way.

 “you didn’t know what you voted for” .

Ironically, they were spot on with that comment, the voting public thought they were voting for independence from the EU, not for surrendering control of their defence, security and foreign policy to the technocrats in Brussels

The fallout from this catastrophe was David Cameron resigns in disgrace on the morning of June 24th 2016, to then be replaced by Theresa May in a coronation affair, who would then try undeterred, to row back from this disaster in their eyes throughout her reign in Number 10 deploying various delaying tactics, in case the Brexit public changed their minds.

By coincidence, on 28th June 2016 (the next working day) in Brussels was the launch of the EU’s Global Strategy to centralize sovereign control of security, defence and foreign policy, AKA EU Defence Union. With a well train media who daren’t mention what was waiting in the wings, a compliant Libdems, Labour, SNP and smoke & mirrors trick the Tories like to play, they almost managed to pull off the biggest con and diversionary trick since the 1975 referendum. However this time we voted the “wrong” way.  

A question remains unanswered,  would Cameron have used a Remain win as all the consent he needed, to join the UK up to EU Defence Union?  I think we can assume he would have and a Remain Parliament would have legislated accordingly.

https://eeas.europa.eu/topics/eu-global-strategy/49750/eu-global-strategy-%E2%80%93-year-1_en

Theresa May undaunted, assemble a team within Downing Street, headed by Olly Robbins to agree to everything the EU asked for in the EU Global Strategy, to negotiate a new treaty that would eventually hand sovereign control of UK defence, security and foreign policy (CSDP & CFSP) in an unconditional “Deep and Special Partnership” as mentioned in her Munich speech and then in the Political Declaration section 92 to 107 (never mentioned in the media).

There are many who suspect for a long time that a conspiracy of silence exists in Westminster not to mention EU defence union in parliamentary debates or in the media. To paraphrase a famous speech by Hugh Gaitskell, The Tories have been indulging in their usual double talk. When they go to Brussels they show the greatest enthusiasm for the EU Defence Union. When they speak in the House of Commons they are most anxious to aver that there is no commitment whatever to an “EU Army”. 

So it was quite a pleasant surprise to see and hear Lord James of Blackheath raise the alarm in the Lords on 8th September 2019, after he visited a venue hosted by Veterans For Britain at the RUSI building in Whitehall earlier in the week.

His bombshell and enlightening questions were

1/ “Can someone please tell us the truth about the EU Defence Union? This is by far the biggest issue being faced by the British public and they know nothing about it, officially.”

2/ “Can we have a proper account of what it entails?

3/ “Is it really true that the government has entered into private agreements with the European Community that they will on completion of remain or whatever it is, transfer to the European Union in Brussels the entire control of our fighting forces, including all their equipment” (Yes, it is true)

He was then asked to withdraw his questions, but it was too late, he had spilt the beans on the whole con of what the last 4 years has really been about – EU Defence Union.

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeI7khz6TKE[/embedyt]

Beans properly spilt all over Youtube, the Tories were forced to backtrack on the Maybot treaty and Political Declaration.

The Conservatives now have “Eurosceptic” Boris Johnson as their new leader, since 24th July 2019 and he won a great victory commanding an 80 seat majority, in the subsequent December 2019 General Election. He has a fresh mandate to “Get Brexit Done”.

 The question in the public eye and the media should be Will the Conservatives still be plotting for UK involvement in EU Defence Union… despite Brexit being done?

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