Telegraph confirms Slog fears, runs piece previewing Coalition report on EU ‘environmental impact’
Forced into the open about past flood directives, the Government has clearly leaked its intention to admit to the contributory role of the EU in the Somerset floods disaster. In a James Kirkup piece this morning, it is reported that ‘Transport and the Environment are the areas of British life where excessive European Union regulation has the greatest impact, an official study will disclose on Thursday. The Government’s “Balance of Competences” review will highlight the negative effects of European environmental and transport rules on British businesses and households.’
Yet even at this eleventh hour of disgrace for the Conservative Right and its secret allies opponents UKip on the Somerset floods scandal, there are still attempts to obfuscate, blur and bullsh*t. I’m told I haven’t understood the motion, that I’ve got it arse-about-face, and that in reality the so-called eurosceptics did indeed vote to overturn eco-lunatic madness in Brussels.
None of this piffle stands up to rigorous interrogation. I’ll leave to the end of this brief piece the obvious perfidy that UKip and others in the political class have been unwilling to address for 72 hours now: for the next few paragraphs, I’d like to make the reality crystal clear for the uninformed/bored readers who have better things to do with their lives than listen to wonks. The facts are these:
The 2012 European Parliament motion referred to here and at Political Scrapbook was in fact a reaction to the previous madness…a rare case of MEPs spotting a crass stupidity. The wording of it could not have been clearer – that there was a need to tackle the
“rise in the frequency and intensity of floods with adaptation and mitigation policies”.
The motion stressed
“the importance of risk prevention, mitigation and response strategies to prevent water-related extreme phenomena….some countries do not suffer from shortages of water but are having difficulty in managing the excess of water resulting from regular or heavy rainfall, flooding, river erosion and pollution affecting river basins and coastal areas, as well as the effects of these phenomena on the local population”
The motion therefore called upon the lunatics
“to conduct a relevant analysis of the ways to prevent the effects of flooding, given the noticeable increase in the flood risk in Member States in recent years”.
Now whether the diehards like it or not, the overwhelming majority of Tories voted AGAINST this motion. In doing so, they were toeing a line established from 2004 onwards about NOT defending Somerset against floods that had been expounded in the bonkers 2003 Warsaw paper pinpointed in the Slogpost of Tuesday. And just to confirm the fact so there is no room for doubt, NIGEL FARAGE DID NOT TURN UP TO VOTE AT ALL. This is a page capture of the motion:
floodsJune62012Those bothering to read the extracts from the Tuesday Slogpost about earlier nutcase desires to return Somerset Levels to its pointless beginnings as an infertile bog will note that UK MEPs very happily went along with all this nonsense, and that the UK’s environmental agencies including Defra did not demur at a single word of it.
And so the finale. Can somebody of sound mind now please give me a reasoned, remotely credible answer to these SPECIFIC HYPOCRISIES:
1. Why did David Cameron, Eric Pickles and Philip Hammond fail to mention any of this documented history? Why did they express helplessness as to the cause (and blame the climate severity alone) when they knew that Brussels flood management policy was all over the place and their own MEPs had followed a slavish line on the issue?
2. If Nigel Farage didn’t bother to support this crucial appeal for common sense, then ordinarily that would be a cause for little surprise or censure. But to ponce around up to his goolies in Somerset water all week knowing full well there was a key EU element to the scale of the disaster must surely raise doubts about the sincerity of this man. It simply will not do to dismiss my charges against him as an anti-Farage rant: that is risible. He had a chance to challenge the eco-nutters in Brussels, and he didn’t turn up to do so. To give the quotes he’s given this week in that context doesn’t just stink: it demands an answer – not gratuitous insults aimed at me.
3. Why, after what is now a grand total of 33 Slog tweets poking fun at UKip’s double standards, has there been but one response from Comms Director Patrick O’Flynn saying the Party was “looking at the issue”? What’s to look at? Their leader has been saying one thing while knowing another.
4. Why has nobody in the MSM got to grips with this, and asked awkward questions of Lord Smith and Owen Paterson? Smith had the audacity to say yesterday that “owners knew the risks when they bought these properties”. They did not know the hugely increased risks involved in adopting the EU’s Aquatic Playground policy.
5. Why didn’t the construction industry comply with ANY of the new protective measures to take account of the fact that, after 2006, the EU policy was very clearly for Somerset to flood and be damned?
6. Why did nobody pick up on the fact that Eric Pickles said two days ago, “The decision not to dredge was a mistake”?
7. Why – knowing full well that Somerset Levels is a 160,000 acre area of population living off arable land, peat and wood cropping – did Defra OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD sign up to a policy condemning the dwellings and economy of the region to death?
A small selection of some of the codswallop I’ve so far had over the last 48 hours:
‘Lots of anti-Farage rhetoric there, but not sure of the relevance to my original point about preventative action.’
‘old hat, and piffle. See the EA doc on their dredging pilots, and note some of the grot put in rivers, or washed down.’
‘we have spoken about this and have plans to explore it further’ (Patrick O’Flynn)
‘Yes, it seems your (John’s) hatred of Farage is clouding your judgement. The problems go back to and before the 2008 directive.’ Geddaway!
‘Very disappointed with the quality of posts by JW now, and I feel that there is just mud slinging against Farage for the sake of it.’
Sorry folks, 0/10 – must try harder. Now the Daily Telegraph says you’re wrong, too.
There is a disturbing tendency in the UK nowadays to be constantly hoping for a Messiah to turn up. In 2006 it was Cameron, in 2010 it was Clegg, and now in 2014 it’s Nigel Farage. This is a worrying development: we are turning into a nation of Believers unwilling to smell sh*t masquerading as putty.
Anyway naysayers, I’ve offered up six very clear questions to be answered. Go to it, and good luck: you’re going to need it.
Earlier at The Slog: having tried to drown you, the EU now wants your pension. Troika’s Greek plan to be rolled out.
www.hat4uk.wordpress.com / link to original article
Lucas 2012 Infos 