Robert Oulds
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As well serving on the volatile North West Frontier of the Raj prior to the
First World War and again in the 1930s Bernard Law Montgomery, later Field
Marshal Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, fought two wars on terror. He faced
first the IRA in Ireland in the early 1920s when he commanded British troops
in County Cork, hotbed of terrorist violence. Next he faced Islamic insurgents
in Palestine during the Arab Revolt on the eve of World War II. In both
conflicts he introduced new tactics, new training and new techniques that
surprised and defeated his enemies. He also came to profound conclusions as to
how the contrasting wars in Ireland and the Middle East should be handled
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This weekend, at an international conference in Westminster organised by
The Bruges Group, speakers from across Europe will be making the case that the
Euro is at the heart of the economic crisis within the European Union. It will
be argued that to dismantle the Single Currency now in an orderly fashion, as
opposed to repeatedly raising money to lend to Eurozone countries who are
struggling to service their debts, like Greece, Italy or Spain, will
ultimately prove to be both safer and less costly for the world economy
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Cameron’s reneging on his “Cast Iron Guarantee” to hold a referendum on the
Lisbon Treaty damaged trust in him, which contributed to his failure to gain a
full majority at the 2010 General Election. He now risks leading his Party to
the same fate as that of the Liberal Democrats, who have suffered dearly in
the estimation of the public for repeatedly failing to keep their manifesto
pledges
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Triggered by an enquiry from a constituent of Philip Davies MP, a series of
correspondence began
between Mr Davies, the Bruges Group and the Europe Minister, the Rt Hon David
Lidington MP.
The Minister originally claimed that there were a number of benefits that
follow from Britain’s
EU membership. The Bruges Group rebutted these erroneous claims. The Europe
Minister then
responded to the Bruges Group’s countering of his pro-EU propaganda. Here the
Bruges Group
analyses David Lidington’s assertions. His response to the Bruges Group
analysis poses important
questions about the Governments attitude to the EU. These questions need to be
answered
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The euro is creating a crisis across the EU, yet as always Brussels is
determined to turn this into a beneficial crisis and take more power over tax
and spend; powers which Brussels has long coveted as occupying these important
policy fields will allow the EU to truly eliminate the last vestiges of the
nation-state. Yet it is greatly disappointing that we do not have a Prime
Minister that is prepared to take advantage of the crisis in the eurozone and
stand up to the Euro-elite by forcing the return of power to our elected
representatives
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The Government’s EU Bill being presented to Parliament on Thursday 11th
November is ‘a fig leaf designed to hide Cameron and Hague’s blushes’ says
Bruges Group. There is no reason to believe that this latest round of pledges
is any more reliable than the original ‘cast-iron guarantee’, given by Hague
and Cameron, so why should we trust them this time?
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David Cameron like too many of his predecessors talks tough at home but
chooses to comply with the EU when abroad. The Prime Minister stated, as his
first failed pledge, that he would block any increase in contributions to the
EU. Second, when faced with a proposed increase of nearly 6% - which equates
to the UK having to pay an extra £900 million to the EU in the
forthcoming year – David Cameron claimed that he had thus secured a fantastic
British victory in Brussels by limiting any increase in the EU’s budget to
merely 2.9%. And to wrap up these triumphs, the Prime Minister further claimed
to have won an agreement to limit future budgets by making them reflect the
austerity measures being taken by governments across the EU. But then the
small print emerged, and we see that he achieved nothing of the sort
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Keeping watch on the European Union's plans and the laws it is forcing
on the UK
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For the past 15 years, Conservative MEPs have been shackled to a political
group that does not share their beliefs - the centrist and corporatist
European Peoples Party. That body is strongly in favour of an
"ever-closer union" and the gradual establishment of an EU
superstate - anathema to true Conservatives
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Mr Cameron's pledge was to leave the EPP within a matter of days. Those
days became a gap of three and a half years.
In the face of questions on the future Conservative alliance in Brussels, the
Bruges Group proclaims its vocal support for the rapid and determined
establishment of a new centre-right grouping in the European Parliament; and
re-launches its original Adieu-EPP campaign which advocated the case for
separation from the European People's Party
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Saturday, 20th September 2008 was the twentieth anniversary of Margaret
Thatcher's seminal Bruges Speech in which she outlined an alternative
vision for Britain and Europe. Margaret Thatcher’s speech is as true today as
it was twenty years ago
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In this paper it is explained how successive British governments have
surrendered our democracy to layers of international bureaucracy which have
acquired completely unaccountable power over our legal, political, economic
and social decisions. At the heart of the matter, Professor Minogue argues, is
the curious form of idealism that disdains pride in Britain and British
culture, preferring to give allegiance to a far more vaguely defined ideology
of internationalism. This rejection of national sovereignty, and the
subsequent embracing of unaccountable transnational institutions, as advocated
by our political establishment, has led to the British people submitting to
more and more authority which comes dressed as virtue
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British eurosceptic think-tank, the Bruges Group, has welcomed the Irish
'No' vote to the Lisbon Treaty, which is nothing more than the
Constitutional Treaty Mark II. The Constitutional Treaty had been rejected by
the people of France and Netherlands. Now the people of Ireland, the only
country that had a referendum on Lisbon, have also rejected the re-heated EU
Constitution. The peoples of other member states were refused a say on the
Lisbon Treaty
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This paper looks at the development of the regulatory structure and the
forces that drive it – political ambition, the need for officials to make a
mark for their career, single-issue lobbying organisations that do not have to
deal with the consequences and, above all, the European Union. It analyses the
sorry state of affairs we have found ourselves in, gives examples and even
provides the solutions of how to create a freer and more harmonious society -
better able to help each individual achieve his or her potential
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In 2005 every major party promised that the people of the United Kingdom
will have a referendum on the Constitutional Treaty. The Lisbon Treaty is
clearly no different from the previous one. This has been affirmed by numerous
political leaders and commentators. Yet the government, Labour MPs and the
Liberal-Democrats do not intend to honour their promise and vote for the
referendum amendment
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In support of the case for a referendum the Bruges Group is exposing the
damage that the Lisbon Treaty will do to our freedom, prosperity and democracy
if it is ratified. Our research clealy shows that the Lisbon Treaty is
essentially the same as the Constitution rejected in the French and Dutch
referenda
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On Thursday, 15th November, the Foreign Secretary, David Miliband MP, made
a speech on the European Union. This was made in the College of Europe, Bruges
– where Margaret Thatcher delivered her famous Bruges Speech, from which the
Bruges Group derived its name.
Referring directly to Margaret Thatcher’s original Bruges Speech the Foreign
Secretary set out his vision for the EU in 2030.
In short, David Miliband’s attempt to set out his vision for Europe is in
reality just a weak attempt to sidestep the debate about the government’s
failure to keep their promise on a referendum and divert attention away from
the facts of EU membership. In this he will surely fail.
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Two years ago the Bruges Group predicted the path of the EU treaty and
warned of the consequences of railroading integration on Britain. Now the
Bruges Group looks at what will happen next. And how Britain can finally
resolve the EU question and become a good neighbour to the continent, rather
than being an overcharged lodger
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Gordon Brown’s surrender in Portugal will sign Britain up to a Treaty that
will allow the European Union to undermine the last vestiges of Britain’s
competitive free market, bringing to an end the reforms introduced by Margaret
Thatcher.
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The Bruges Group has uncovered that the revived and renamed EU Constitution
will blow a hole wide open in Britain’s borders allowing the EU to take full
control over Britain’s asylum and immigration policies
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Gordon Brown’s Government has watered down the UK’s opt-out on justice
& security matters so that it becomes almost meaningless. As the text of
the new treaty to be decided at the IGC Summit this month has become
available, no doubt can remain in anybody’s mind that this is the same treaty
that was rejected two years ago by the electorates of France and the
Netherlands. The Bruges Group has pointed to many aspects of the text that
show that those politicians who maintained that the constitution had been
saved were right and our own government has been economical with the truth
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As the Conservative Party Conference gets underway the Bruges Group calls
for the Conservative Party to stand firm on the subject of the referendum and
to make it central to their political campaign
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The British Government is conspiring with the EU to force through further
integration using Article 308 of Britain’s membership of the European Union
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The European Parliament approves the mandate for the Reform Treaty and
exposes the fact that it is a guise for reviving the EU Constitution
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Referring directly to the once thought dead EU Constitution the IGC mandate
agreement, under the guise of bringing forth a new treaty to reform the EU,
will bring in the key aspects contained in the Constitution that were rejected
in the French and Dutch referenda
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The European Court of Juctice ruling delivered on Tuesday, 16th May
regarding the case of Yvonne Watts. The British Government attempted to argue
that the unique nature of the NHS meant that it was not an area in which EU
was relevant has been overturned. This leaves the EU free to begin interfering
in British health care matters. In short, NHS health care now has the legal
status of any other commodity and service which can be bought and sold and
will therefore become a subject for EU regulation just like every other
transaction
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The Advocate General on Thursday, 15th December, gave his long awaited
ruling on the case of Yvonne Watts who, because of the long NHS waiting lists
had to go abroad to recieve treatment. This decision is set to be ratified by
the European Court of Justice in the spring. Combined with provisions in the
EU treaties this decision covers much more than allowing one person to have
the costs of a hip operation reimbursed. It paves the way for the EU to extend
its powers into the area of health care
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Today the ECJ ruled on British tax law. The long awaited judgement from the
unaccountable ECJ could cost the British taxpayer billions of Pounds. The fact
that the EU has overturned UK tax law shows that Blair’s famous red-line,
which he claimed he secured when the EU Constitution was being drafted, was in
fact a red-herring. British governments had already surrendered the UK’s right
to determine about 20% of this country’s taxation. The decision today shows
that the EU has usurped the right to make UK tax laws. The ECJ has struck-out
well-established UK rules in pursuing the Brussels goal of tax harmonisation.
This will cause uncertainty for business and government funding. The
government has known about this risk since at least 1999, and should now act
to bring back control of the UK’s tax affairs
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Calls for reform of the European Union’s outmoded practices and policies
are the latest platitudes emanating from the Government during the British
Presidency of the EU, even Commission President José Manuel
Durão Barroso has been calling for change, but is this just propaganda
or is there a chance that the supporters of integration can be persuaded that
the European project was a mistake. In the first of the Bruges Group’s four
page Micro guides Robert Oulds analyses the ability of the EU to deliver the
policies that Britain needs to compete. The character, customs and culture of
the European Union and its member-states are also examined and the conclusions
are stark
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The booklet proves that the EU is dragging Britain down and unless the
alternatives to the EU are explored integration will continue to threaten your
job, your bank balance, your democracy and your freedom
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To highlight the importance of the European question as an election issue a
senior member of the Bruges Group, Dr Lee Rotherham, is standing against the
Europhile Europe Minister Denis MacShane in the constituency of Rotherham. The
voters will be invited to decide
Who Governs Britain? Westminster or Brussels?
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An analysis of the terms of a renegotiated British membership of the
European Union with a Foreword by Lord Tebbit
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The EU's Common Agricultural Policy and French-inspired aggressive
trade practices, such as the dumping of sugar on the world market is according
to Michael Moore "literally killing people in the third world. In fact it
is killing more people than all of Dubya's bombs"
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Billions are being spent in the EU's battle for the hearts and minds of
Europe's citizens.
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For the sake of the world economy Britain must take a leading role in the
EU and veto the EU Constitution
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The costly 'rights' culture has overwhelmed Britain. The font of
this is the European Union. And the EU Constitution is set to make it worse,
it is time that the tap was switched of at source
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In the House of Commons on Tuesday, 30th March 2004 Jack Straw envisaged
that the UK may withdraw from the European Union if it follows through with
its policies to standardise health care provision
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The EU's world view and international ambitions will create a world
where big brother knows best. Their supranationalism dictates that cordial
deals should be struck with tyrants. It dictates that international relations
should not be a matter governed by the democratically elected governments of
nation-states. Instead international affairs, and subsequently every other
matter, should be handed to supranational institutions and regional blocks
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Internal bun-fights in the EU and an end to the largesse could mean that
there is a parting of the ways, but only if the Conservative Party is bold
enough to divorce the EPP and lead a fight back
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The Prime Minister's claims about the EU Constitution are merely a
smokescreen designed to hide the true economic implications of the EU
Constitution. In reality it is a threat to jobs and democracy
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IDS needs to reaffirm his desired policy of severing the MEPs ties with the
federalist European People's Party. An announcement should be made at the
Conservative Party Conference in Blackpool
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Future British Governments must become leaders in the quest for
a European and global free-trade association. The positive alternatives to
the EU exist and must be vigorously pursued.
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A legal revolution and the loss of key rights means that the government can
no longer pretend that the EU Constitution is just a 'tidying up
exercise'. Valéry Giscard d'Estaing's proposals will create
a unitary European state where civil liberties do not apply
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Tony Blair’s Government is steadily signing Britain up to the illiberal and
authoritarian Unitary European Superstate, where civil liberties do not
apply
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Help counter the EU propaganda aimed at undermining Estonia's liberal
economy and sovereign constitutional independence
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The Prime Minister's pledges on Europe and the euro fail to match the
reality - he must be closely watched
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On the 30th Anniversary of the United Kindgom's Accesion to the
European Union the Bruges Group assesses the consequences of membership
EMBARGOED UNTIL MIDNIGHT ON 31ST DECEMBER 2002
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Norman Tebbit discusses the European Union and reveals that he was once a
Europhile
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Andrew Rosindell, former Chairman of the National Young Conservatives, the
European Young Conservatives and the International Young Democrat Union,
speaks about the Conservative Party, the EU and he outlines his unique
solution to change the face of Europe.
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John Redwood, MP - writer, politician, former Cabinet Minister and
Conservative Party leadership challenger - speaks exclusively to the Bruges
Group about the future of the European Union.
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Time to stop pandering to the EU and ask the electorate, 'do you want
to give control of your country to the corrupt, unaccountable, undemocratic
and incompetent Brussels Bureaucracy'
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Peter Hain, Minister for Europe, unveils a Federalist proposal for a
European Superstate.
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A score of prominent Conservative politicians reveal their blueprint for a
democratic EU. This statement is from; 1) The Earl of Onslow 2) the Earl of
Liverpool 3) the Rt Hon. Lord Tebbit of Chingford, CH 4) the Rt Hon. the Lord
Hanson 5) Lord Blake 6) Lord Pearson of Rannoch 7) the Rt Hon. John Redwood,
MP 8) Sir Teddy Taylor, MP 9) Andrew Rosindell, MP 10) Angela Watkinson, MP
11) John Wilkinson, MP 12) Murdo Fraser, MSP 13) Alun Cairns, AM 14) David
Davies, AM 15) David I. Jones, AM 16) Roger Helmer, MEP 17) Sir Richard Body
18) Christopher Gill (Chairman, Freedom Association) 19) Cllr Robert Oulds
(Director, the Bruges Group) and 20) Dr Lee Rotherham.
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A revealing interview with the Director of the Bruges Group in These Tides
magazine
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‘Federalist Thought Control: The Brussels Propaganda Machine’, exposes that
the European Union is spending at least €250m on subsidising pro-EU groups and
campaigns with the intention of manipulating public opinion to support the
integrationist vision of Europe. The consequence of this will be to subvert
fair and democratic debate as to whether or not Britain adopts the Euro.
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The Director of the Bruges Group speaks to the Warsaw Business Journal and
offers his advice to our Eurosceptic comrades in Poland.
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We must offer young voters something to believe in, something to fight for.
This will be their tag of identity, and will contrast with the shallowness of
the Europhiles
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Baroness Thatcher has dramatically moved forward the boundaries of the
European debate
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The British Government and the Brussels bureaucracy hammer the final nail
into the coffin of Britain's once mighty fishing fleet
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Brussels plans to codify its left-leaning authoritarianism
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The European Commission uses the the 9/11 tradegy in the United States to
increase it's own power - at the expense of freedom
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