Stop Brexit March Manchester – The Countdown Begins

Stop Brexit March Manchester – The Countdown Begins

Sep 28, 2017 | Campaigns & Events, News, Video

Join us on the first of October in Manchester as we march on the Conservative Party Conference to demand that Brexit is stopped!

“Marching there on the first day of the Conference offers the opportunity for our voices to be actually heard by the party members as they arrive at the Convention Centre.”

 

Conference is where the party decides its policies, and politicians make new alliances.
Manchester is where the party will have to face up the reality of Brexit.
Manchester is where the power of the Brexit Bulldogs must stop.
Manchester is where Brexit must be stopped.

Countdown to Make Manchester Massive!

Day(s)

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Hour(s)

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Minute(s)

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As Guy Verhofstadt said, “Brexit is all about a cat fight in the Tory party that got out of hand“, it is time that we, the people, tell the Tories to end this madness and put the interests of the country first.”

#StopBrexit #StopBrexitMarch #StopBrexitinManchester #Bremain

The #StopBrexit March Route

ALSO

 

Manchester For Europe
and North West For Europe

will be hosting a STREET PARTY on

Sunday 1st October in Cathedral Gardens, Manchester.

Join the Autumn of Dissent #StopBrexit

Make no mistake: this is a Stop Brexit demonstration!

The Stop Brexit March is a national protest, supported by A C Grayling and Alastair Campbell. It brings people together from across the country on Sunday 1 October 2017 in a protest at the Conservative Party Conference: to demand Stop Brexit.

Marching in Manchester on the first day of the Tory party conference offers the opportunity for our voices to be actually heard by Theresa May and her colleagues in the Convention Centre.

We shall be marching along the Oxford Road to the Convention Centre where the Conservative Party Conference will be in full session.

It’s essential that the Conservative Party and the rest of the world know that we want to Stop Brexit. So please come dressed in blue, with yellow accessories (if you have any), and your EU flags, banners and placards.

Please visit the #StopBrexit National March website for full details

We are working with full approval from Greater Manchester Police. It would really help us to help them if we have a good idea of how many people we are expecting, so please head on over to our EventBrite page  to register your interest, or sign up through our Facebook event page. There’s no cost for tickets, we just need to know how many people we are expecting.

The theme will be a celebration of the EU in general and its achievements with a reinforcement of our message that we believe the UK is better off as a full member of the EU.
Events details HERE

Another Flying Trip to London: Sue Wilson – September 2017

Another Flying Trip to London: Sue Wilson – September 2017

Sep 25, 2017 | Articles, News, Newsletter

DExEU – with British in Europe and the3Million

My first meeting of day 1 in London was with fellow British in Europe Steering Committee members, Jane Golding (Chair) from Germany and Fiona Godfrey from Luxembourg. We were meeting in advance of our scheduled appointment at the Department for Exiting the EU, to compare notes and talk strategy. We then headed over to DExEU, which is located in the Ministry of Defence building in Whitehall. Although I had previously attended a DExEU meeting at the British Embassy in Madrid, this was my first time at their offices in Whitehall.

The meeting was hosted by civil servants, and as usual, Chatham House rules apply, so I am not at liberty to discuss our deliberations. Suffice it to say that there was a genuine feeling that some progress is being made on citizens’ rights issues, and I do believe there is a strong will to ensure that we are protected. I just wish that we felt the same level of reassurance after listening to May and her Ministers, as we do when speaking with the Civil Service. The meeting was also attended by 3 members of the 3Million, including their Chair, Nicolas Hatton.

The DExEU meeting overran by 30 minutes, giving me just 15 minutes to get to my next appointment at the Remainiacs recording studio in Soho. In my haste, walking briskly across Trafalgar Square, my “trip” took on new meaning when I went flying landing on my hands & knees. I was more concerned about my phone, which went flying from my hand – I had been using it as a GPS. Thankfully, no damage to phone or person, more embarrassment than injury.

Remainiacs Podcast

 

I arrived in Soho in time, especially as the Remainiacs podcast was running late. My appearance on the weekly anti-Brexit show had been planned for weeks. However, at the last minute and after weeks of trying, Gina Miller also agreed to be on the show. It was a real bonus for me to finally be able to meet her, having seen her twice at the Supreme Court, but not having been able to get close enough to speak.

She was absolutely charming, and told me that she is currently looking into pensions regarding Brits abroad, so I gave her my business card and will hopefully be able to continue a dialogue. It was also a great pleasure to meet host Ian Dunt, number one on the Insurgents Power 250 List. I was interviewed and recorded for 20 minutes, but will have to wait for a future broadcast date.

Naturally, with Gina being available at the last minute, the broadcast episode on 22nd September was dedicated entirely to her, and I can’t think of anyone I would rather be bumped for.

Listen to the broadcast
The One with Gina Miller

Best for Britain

In the evening, I met with Eloise Todd (CEO) and Sara John of Best for Britain. We were joined by Nacho Romero of Españoles de Reino Unido, who I have worked with often and am happy to call a close friend. I had met with Sara before but this was the first time of meeting with Eloise.

Best for Britain have been very active recently and have very definitely shifted their stance from one of support for a Soft Brexit to a strong position of No Brexit. They are very supportive of everything we are doing and have had some great initiatives recently. A few weeks ago we helped them put together a YouGov survey, and just last week, they brought out an excellent template allowing anyone to write to their MP regarding how they had voted on the Withdrawal Bill. We will continue to work very closely with them, and I will be meeting Eloise again in Brussels, her home town, at the beginning on November. If you are not already a member, please join, so you can keep abreast of their activities.

Sign up to Best for Britain HERE

#StopBrexit Ltd

My final meeting was with Peter French & Patrick Lohlein to discuss the march and rally in Manchester on 1st October. I have met Peter many times before, and was delighted that he asked me again to speak at the #StopBrexit rally. We are all really excited at the prospect of marching on the Tory Party Conference, with our whistles, claxons, bells and horns. The Tory government have not been listening to Brits in EU – on 1st March, we will be impossible to ignore!

Peter tells me that the Jacques Tilly float for the march is coming along nicely, but he is keeping the design a closely guarded secret, despite all my pleas for a sneak preview. Apparently we will love it! Can’t wait for the big reveal in Manchester. I’m sure it will draw a great deal of attention from the world’s press.

What Next?

I have 3 more anti-Brexit trips planned over the next few weeks:

  • 1st October – #Stopbrexit Rally & March on Tory Party conference
  • 3rd November – British in Europe Steering Committee in Brussels
  • 2nd December – Bremain in Spain Annual General Meeting in Málaga
  • 5th December – Next visit to London

If only Ryanair had a frequent flier programme!

 

Sue Wilson
Chair – Bremain in Spain

Theresa May’s Speech in Florence: British in Europe

Theresa May’s Speech in Florence: British in Europe

Sep 23, 2017 | News

British in Europe respond to Theresa May Speech in Florence …..

The hopes of UK citizens living in Europe were dashed when they were largely ignored in the Prime Minister’s speech in Florence.  There was little reference to citizens’ rights, despite its position as first priority in the negotiations.

According to Jane Golding, chair of British in Europe, the coalition of citizens groups which represents some 30,000 UK nationals, Mrs May’s comments do not go far enough and don’t reflect the seriousness of the situation. She said: “We don’t share the PM’s view that significant progress has been made on this most fundamental of issues and are thus astonished that our Prime Minister missed such an important opportunity to remedy this, not just for the 4.2 million citizens affected, but for the future of the UK­EU relationship post-Brexit.

“We now appeal to her to listen to the voice of British Citizens in the EU and all those EU citizens who make such a valuable contribution to the UK.

“The Government must offer a real lifelong guarantee of the existing rights of EU citizens in the UK, to break the deadlock with the EU over similar rights for some 1.2 million UK citizens in the EU, especially free movement.  Then it must reach agreement on that and ring fence it.  After all TM said that we should have the same rights as we have at the moment.”

The coalition has sent a comprehensive letter to the Prime Minister asking her to scrap Government proposals to make all EU workers and their family members to apply for a new ‘settled status’ in favour of this guarantee.  The letter notes that otherwise the repercussions on the lives of British working families and pensioners could be disastrous because reciprocity means reciprocity.

The letter appeals for the UK to go back to what the PM said in her Lancaster House speech: that all citizens should retain their current rights.

Added Ms Golding: “Her speech gives no clear comfort that she has listened to us and is moving in the right direction. All these citizens have built lives for themselves and their families based on existing rights and freedoms. More than half of British living in Europe and most EU citizens in the UK were not allowed to vote in the referendum or general election. This is a question of fundamental justice.  Raise the bar on citizens’ rights, we can do better than this.”

The Full Statement can be downloaded HERE

 

Letter to Theresa May – Signed by the British in Europe Coalition Partners
22nd September 2017

Dear Prime Minister,
We write on behalf of British in Europe, the coalition of 10 groups of British citizens living in the EU27. There are approximately 1.2 million British in Europe. Some 20% of UK nationals in the EU27 are the famous pensioners in Spain and elsewhere. Seventy per cent of British nationals in Europe are of working age and economically active across the EU27 …. Read the Full Letter HERE

Season of Anti-Brexit Marches Begins

Season of Anti-Brexit Marches Begins

Sep 19, 2017 | News

THE PEOPLE’S March for Europe rally took place on Saturday (September 9) in London marking a start to the ‘autumn of discontent’.

The event attracted an estimated 50,000 people including speakers from all major political parties – Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems and Greens.

Organisers reported that they united under the pro-EU banner of ‘rethink and reject Brexit’.

After the rally they noted that news outlets across the UK, Europe and the world ‘took notice’.

“We showed that the public is deeply unhappy with Brexit and the way this country is heading,” they stated.

“This fight isn’t just about today, it’s about tomorrow and the future we create for our children and grandchildren.”

Graham Hughes, one of the spokespeople for the march stated: “It’s important not just to allow people to express their democratic right to protest, but to show people that they’re not powerless and they are not alone.

“I’m talking about the millions who are terrified of what a post-Brexit Britain will look like, the millions who are deeply concerned about their children and grand-children’s future in an increasingly isolated and intolerant Britain, the millions who feel a deep shame at our arrogance and stupidity in thinking that ‘we can stand on our own two feet’.”

As part of the autumn of discontent, marches and demonstrations are taking place across the UK to protest against the government plans to withdraw from the EU.

The second of these took place on Wednesday, with the British in Europe and the3million Mass Lobby also staging a rally in London.

Bremain in Spain’s Sue Wilson, who lives in Valencia, said: “It was great to see so many MPs at the Mass Lobby and rally yesterday, pledging their support on citizens’ rights.

“The three million EU citizens in the UK and 1.5 million British citizens in the EU are still living in fear and anxiety, waiting for reassurance that their rights and freedoms will be protected.

“We have been treated as bargaining chips for too long and enough is enough.

“Bremain in Spain will keep fighting to protect the rights of all citizens, but the best way to achieve that is to stop Brexit altogether.”

The remaining dates are as follows –
September 17 – #StopBrexit March, Bournemouth
Sept 24 – #Stopbrexit March, Brighton, UK
Oct 1 – #StopBrexit National March,Manchester UK
Oct 1 – Street Party, Manchester for Europe, UK
Oct 1 – Labour against Brexit March, Manchester UK
Oct 14 – 12 regional rallies across the UK

The People’s March note that they are ‘a platform and a voice for the many organisations and ordinary citizens that are pro-Remain’.

 

Costa Blanca News – 15th September 2017 
by Dave Jones djones@cbnews.es

Protest in Firenze, Italy – Friday September 22nd 2017

Protest in Firenze, Italy – Friday September 22nd 2017

Sep 18, 2017 | News

Theresa May has chosen Firenze as the location for her next BREXIT speech on Friday 22nd September. British in Italy are organising members to make their voices heard at the venue on Friday 22nd September.

Their message is clear: “We want to show solidarity to our friends, the EU citizens in the UK, and have our own EU rights protected.”

British in Italy members have made Italy their home in most cases, and many of them feel strongly that being present on Friday 22nd September 2017 in Firenze is an important step to letting the UK Government know how strongly they feel about being left in limbo and used as bargaining chips in the BREXIT negotiations.

If you are interested in coming along, you can find out up to date details on their Facebook page HERE

They look forward to seeing you there!