Member Gregory Hunt represented Bremain in Spain on the channel À Punt on Friday Oct 26 2018.
The programme is in a mix of Valencian, Catalan and Spanish and Gregory can be seen taking part in the discussion from around 1:13:04 onwards.
We have some brave and very talented people in our group and are very grateful to Gregory for participating and getting our message across here in Spain.
Click the link below to watch the discussion.
97-year-old Mr. Shindler, a resident of Italy, is a vocal campaigner for voting rights for British citizens resident abroad. He is currently a claimant in a case lodged against the Council of the European Union by lawyer Julien Fouchet, in a bid to have the Brexit referendum declared illegal since Brits abroad were not allowed to vote if they had been out of the country for more than 15 years.
Harry kindly answered our members’ questions about his campaigning and views on Europe.
Sandra Stretton: “Has bringing this action given you a new lease of life?”
Harry Shindler: “The present case against the EU is, of course, not the first. As you may know, we have made our case in many courts in the EU, including the highest. In fact, I started with a petition to the Commission in Brussels, and that was 14 years ago. Whilst it may not have given me a ‘new lease of life’, it certainly helps you not getting too old!
It’s said that the UK loses many battles – but wins the war in the end. We’ve lost in most courts. Let’s hope that we win this one!”
Steve Wilson: “What was the first event in your life that motivated you to become politically active?”
Harry Shindler: “There was no ‘one event’. I could do no other than become active in politics. We were a very poor family in one of the poorest areas of the UK, for though I was born in Lambeth, I grew up in the Portobello Market area of North Kensington. I didn’t just see the poverty all around, but lived it.
I went to school in Portobello Road and worked on Saturdays in the market. I left school (and schooling) at 14 and entered an engineering factory in Park Royal. There I met men and women who wanted to change and improve our lot. I joined with them. I went on to work as an election agent for 17 years and served as the General Secretary of a national organisation in the pub industry. I took early retirement to be with my grandsons in Italy.”
Rachelle Hughes: “What can we do as individuals to help speed your [Votes for Life] campaign through Parliament?”
Harry Shindler: “Sadly, our ‘Votes for Life’ bill still needs to go through all of the stages in Parliament. We can do little to speed up the parliamentary process. But of course, the more MPs we win over, the easier the road will be.
We have been very patient as the years have passed. And this patience has paid off. As has our not making the issue a party political issue. We work with all who support our aim. We just want the right to vote.”
Pam Wallace: “I have written to many MPs regarding Votes for Life. Are there other people that would be worth contacting?”
Harry Shindler: “You’ve done a great job in contacting MPs – so what else? May I suggest letters to Glyn Davies MP, who is the sponsor of our bill? Let him show in Parliament his postbag, with hundreds of letters of support.
Of course, letters to MPs from “groups of British citizens in Spain” etc. carry a lot of weight with MPs. Moreover, if they include a reminder that our family in his constituency expects him/her not to block the bill in Parliament, well that might give him/her food for thought!”
Ruth Woodhouse: “What would you say to the MP who told me, with regard to Votes for Life, ‘If someone chooses to live in another country, I don’t see why they need to have a say in the government of this country when they are not going to have to live with the consequences’?”
Harry Shindler: “The ‘someone’ is a British citizen, and wherever he/she goes, that goes with them. We don’t measure Britishness by so many miles from Charing Cross, and the further you go, the less British you are! No, you are born British and no matter where and how far you travel, you will always be British. If I go to work and live in Hong Kong, does that make me Chinese? We are the unpaid ambassadors for our country. But not all ‘choose’ to be abroad. A large percentage are abroad for reasons of employment.
Ray Stonebridge: “What would your old wartime colleagues have made of this separation from Europe after the 70 years of peace you all earned?”
Harry Shindler: “This is the most important part of our work – PEACE – 70 years of PEACE. If only for this we should remain in the European Union. Many of my old comrades will be as sad as I am when we’re told the older generation voted to leave Europe. We, who went through it all, as did the citizens in the UK, must hammer the message – it’s peace within the EU, but for how long outside the Union? I believe that if membership of the Eu gives us peace, then with all its faults, I’m for staying in.”
Many thanks to Mr. Shindler for giving us an insight into the reasons behind your campaigning – you’re an inspiration to us all!
Bremain Chair, Sue Wilson recently appeared on two Talk Radio Europe shows. To listen to Sue, please just click on the links below:
The Sunday Supplement with Howard Brereton
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson and Council member Elspeth Williams, Brexpats-Hear our Voice Chair Debbie Williams and Molly Williams from Young European Voices were recently in Brussels for meetings with MEPs and to attend the EUnite event. Here’s Sue’s story:
On Tuesday 4th September, I flew from Valencia with Debbie & Molly Williams. We met up with Elena Remigi of In Limbo Project at Brussels airport & made our way to the city centre for the start of a 3 day visit. We were all in town for the EUnite event, where we all scheduled to make speeches.
The EUnite event had to be moved to a restaurant at the last minute due to a thunderstorm, but was well attended. Bremain’s own council member Elspeth Williams had travelled to Brussels especially to be with us, & was joined in the audience by many staunch Remain campaigners, some of whom we knew & some that we were meeting for the first time. There were some excellent speeches, especially from MEPs Julie Ward, Molly Scott-Cato, Richard Corbett & Seb Dance. We had some fun in the bar afterwards as Elspeth came up with the brilliant idea of a sign for Seb Dance to hold saying “She’s telling the truth”. It was a lovely companion photo to the one I had from my last trip, with Seb & I with his framed “He’s Lying” sign, which he had pointed at Nigel Farage in the European Parliament a few months ago.
Following the EUnite event, Elspeth, Debbie, Molly, Elena & I attended the “Beehive” event in a park in the city centre. This event was attended by around 50 people, including MEPs Julie Ward & Alyn Smith, & was an open mike event. The floor was open for anyone that wanted to tell their Brexit story, with the tagline “Brexit is personal”. I sat this one out, but my travel companions, & Elspeth, all took the floor & told their moving stories to an appreciative audience.
I had the privilege of staying in the home of a British MEP, though we were rather like ships that passed in the night, as we both had very busy agendas. We did manage one midnight feast together though!
During my visit, I had scheduled 8 MEP appointments, some with politicians I had never met before, but every one a Remainer! It was a pleasure to meet up with Jean Lambert (Green), Catherine Bearder (LibDem), Seb Dance, Julie Ward & Richard Corbett (all Labour) again. I also enjoyed meeting for the first time Molly Scott-Cato (Green), Alyn Smith (SNP) & my first Conservative, Charles Tannock.
We discussed a number of topics in relation to Brexit: how it is going (or not going); shifting public opinion; the impossibility of a “no-deal” scenario; the increasing support for a #FinalSay #PeoplesVote (which they all support); the EU’s attitude towards Brexit; the Labour party’s position & the increasing pressure they are under.
We also spoke about the UK in EU legal challenge. Most had heard about our court case, but I filled in the blanks & promised them copies of the government’s response once it was in the public domain. They were all very interested in finding out more information, especially the 2 lawyers amongst them!
I got an overwhelming sense from everyone I met that we have the momentum & that our arguments are breaking through. Everyone agreed that public opinion in the UK has shifted, especially with regard to the chances of another referendum. Whilst nobody suggested our fight would be easy, or that there weren’t significant obstacles still to overcome, there was a real sense of hope & optimism that I hadn’t experienced on my last visit.
I finished my trip in style, having been offered a ride to the European Parliament in a company car with my host. To be chauffeur driven with my suitcase in tow was a real treat, & I have never seen such a clean car in my entire life! Not something I am accustomed to, but I could get used to it!
Many thanks to Samit and EUnite is EUnique for allowing us to share the following videos of the event:
Elena Remigi, Debbie and Molly Williams:
Julie Ward MEP’s speech:
Molly Scott Cato MEP’s speech:
Richard Corbett MEP’s speech:
Seb Dance MEP’s speech:
Sue Wilson’s speech:
In the fourth of our exclusive Bremain interviews with high profile Remain activists, we meet Kyle Taylor, Director of Fair Vote Project. Kyle set up the project in the wake of whistleblower allegations relating to global data misappropriation and law-breaking in the EU Referendum.
Based in London, United Kingdom, Kyle Taylor is the founder and director of The Fair Vote Project which is focused on lasting reform, campaigning for fundamental changes to the Electoral Commission and a Digital Bill of Rights for Democracy. He also works across a range of progressive political, cause-based and social enterprise projects through his Social Enterprise: Overton Group, with a particular specialisation in Millennial and Gen Z engagement.
Previously, Kyle was the national campaign strategist for Best for Britain, one of the UK’s largest second referendum organisations. He has also campaigned for a binding government-sanctioned NHS and care convention, worked on a migrant rights campaign in the Middle East and regularly supports an international education charity across a range of areas.
He co-managed the coordinated campaign for Hillary Clinton in North Carolina and in 2015 finished a four-year post as the Chief of Staff and Campaigns Director to the former Minister of State for Justice, Sir Simon Hughes. Kyle has lived on four continents and travelled and worked in over 100 countries. He also enjoys taking on immense physical challenges to raise money for charity. He has run the London marathon, swam an opener water marathon in the English channel, trekked to Everest Base Camp and summited Mount Kilimanjaro twice, personally raising over £30,000 for various charities. Kyle was a Presidential Scholar at The American University and graduated Summa cum Laude in 2006 with two bachelor’s degrees. While there he served as Student Government President and was selected to be student commencement speaker. He gained a Master’s Degree with distinction in International Politics and Communication from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2009.
Kyle is currently heading a legal challenge against the government, calling for a public inquiry into Brexit cheating
Sian Shaw: “What is the likely time frame for the legal process & how high do you rate your chances of success?”
Kyle Taylor: “Legal processes can take quite a while but we believe our aim has a high chance of success because it’s a very reasonable request of the government. The goal is for a decision by the end of the year but for the claim to be in progress when Parliament debates whatever deal (or no deal) that has been secured to put additional pressure on MPs.”
Pam Wallace: “There have been many court cases since Brexit and only one that has succeeded (Gina Miller). What do you see as different about this one?”
Kyle Taylor: “I think what’s different about this case is the basis of its claim. This suit isn’t about the merits of Leave or Remain – it’s about the fundamental institution of democracy, how that was undermined and abused in the referendum and why that justifies proper scrutiny, reform and remedy. This is something that everyone should be able to get behind whether leave or remain because it’s so much bigger than a single issue. This is about the very fabric that is meant to hold our democratic society together.”
Karen Watling: “Bearing in mind the vitriol that the referendum has wrought setting friend against friend and family against family, how do you see the future of the UK?”
Kyle Taylor: “I think – regardless of what happens with Brexit – we’re looking at another 5-10 years of discontent. I know that’s not an easy answer but I think it’s accurate. We’re at a crossroads as a country and, more broadly, as a collection of liberal democracies. This happens about every 100 years in the UK – a realignment of political parties and of the fundamental ideals that frame those parties’ core reason for being. This time, it’s the internationalists vs. the nativists. Brexit showed us this is the new fault line and no political party in its current iteration accurately represents those interests, leaving everyone feeling like they don’t REALLY have a proper partisan home. This realignment will be exhausting, fraught and complicated but in the end it will leave us with two new main parties that look and feel nothing like what they look and feel like now. The last thing I’ll say is that the core problem that will complicate this process is the propogation of “fake news” as it’s called. We need to – for the sake of democracy – fight the idea that there are mutliple truths immediately, incessantly and fully. A functioning society is dependent on shared information and shared experience. We’ve got to all be working from the same baseline truth and fact or else we’re genuinely living in alternate realities. There is a lot of work to do but I believe we can do it. Never give up. Never surrender!”
John Bentley: “Are you working in conjunction with other groups, especially those trying to secure either a second Brexit referendum or a people’s vote on the deal?”
Kyle Taylor: “Fair Vote is filing as the claimant but we very much welcome interventions from any and all interested parties. It’s important for the government, the courts and the public to see a broad range of organisations and individuals taking part in this case. Since the basis of our suit surrounds illegal activity in the referendum and our focus is on issues of democracy we are also hoping that organisations and individuals who supported leave but can see that some things – like safeguarding our democracy – are bigger than Brexit will also intervene.”
Roy Stonebridge: “Is Internet and social media campaigning controllable?”
Kyle Taylor: “In short, the answer is yes. That doesn’t mean, however, that we’re close to controlling these mediums. The biggest hurdles remain public awareness about these issues and lawmaker “literacy” around how digital spaces work. We’ve got 20th-Century lawmakers attempting to regulate 21st-Century technologies. The easiest “first step” is to require digital advertising to be treated the same as a leaflet that comes through a letterbox with an imprint so people know who sent it and from where. Couple that with an online database of all adds and easy access to targeting information (so people can find out exactly how and why something is showing up in their newsfeed) and we will be on our way. The next step is getting a full public inquiry started with a 12-month remit to investigate, take evidence and recommend immediate action to safeguard our democracy.”
Elspeth Williams: “Long-term campaigning is exhausting. How do you keep focused, stay positive, pick yourself up after a bad day?”
Kyle Taylor: “Oh my goodness, isn’t it?! This is particularly true when you feel like “your side” hasn’t had even a small victory in a long time. That’s because progress is always 8 little steps back then one GIANT step forward. I keep focussed – ironically – by checking out for at least an hour a day. I check out by watching an episode or two of my favourite TV show – Parks and Recreation – to get some inspiration from Leslie Knope. I also read fiction that’s entirely escapism every day. After a bad day I pick myself up by speaking to close friends while I fold laundry. I know it sounds bizarre but combining a mundane physical activity with “real” conversation to a close friend forces the brain to be fully present and pushes the bad day away. I also never make big decisions in the moment. Sleep on it and things inevitably make more sense the next day. I stay positive by remembering how many people there are working so hard to fight for what they believe in and also reminding myself that I am a very privileged person and with privilege comes responsibility to fight for those who aren’t able to.”
Pat Kennedy: “Can you give us one inspirational comment or quote to help keep us focused through this difficult time when it can be hard to keep optimistic.”
Kyle Taylor: “My goodness, there are so many quotes that keep me going. I’ll share two that I have written on my wall: “Things do not happen. Things are made to happen.” – JFK. Have any truer words been spoken? “Never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it.” – Hillary Rodham Clinton. This resonates with me more than anything else right now because we’re in an environment that those opposed to our point of view suggest somehow it’s anti-country or anti-democracy to believe passionately in what we believe in. This is always the tactic of the powerful to suppress those resisting wrong. Did the suffragettes stop when it got hard? No. Did the allied forces give up when the Nazis were storming across Europe? No. Fighting for what’s right, true and just is always worth it.”
You can find out more information at Fair Vote or on Twitter @fairvoteuk
Next month Bremainers will be putting questions to Votes for Life campaigner Harry Shindler MBE.
