Democracy British style.

I read an excellent book a while back called ‘Prisoners of Geography’ by Tim Marshall and in the chapter on Western Europe he wrote this:-

“ There is a theory that the relative security of the UK over the past few hundred years is why it has experienced more freedom and less despotism than the countries across the channel. The theory goes that there were fewer requirements for ‘strong men’ or dictators, which, starting with Magna Carta (1215) and then the Provisions of Oxford (1258), led to forms of democracy years ahead of other countries.” *

While, as he goes on to say, this is not provable it is none the less an interesting observation and helps explain why we have been a reluctant member of the political EU project. That is not to say we don’t wish to trade with our neighbours which is of an entirely different order.

Anyway this got me thinking about the few THA supporters, since our formation in 2012, who have ‘dropped out’ because they maintain we are not going fast enough or making sufficient progress.

However the facts are that revolutionary political reform, of the magnitude advocated by our six demands, will not happen overnight. Just look at the state of our democracy now, since the signing of the Magna Carta 813 years ago, we still don’t have proper democracy based on the true meaning of the word expressed as ‘People and Power’. I have said before and I’ll say it again at 70, while I hope to see our demands enacted in my life time,  I may well not but that is no reason not to have started the ball rolling for the reform of our governance so desperately needed in this country.

 

* Tim Marshall is also very clear about the Russian Ukrainian geopolitical relationship and I highly recommend his book.