UK a ‘tyranny of the majority’ for England, says Welsh Green Party councillor
The UK is not an equal union of nations but a “tyranny of the majority” for England, a Welsh Green Party member has said.
Chris Evans of the Swansea and Gower Green Party made the comment after the UK Supreme Court unanimously decided that the Scottish Government does not have the power to call an independence referendum.
Cllr Evans said: “The United Kingdom is supposed to be an equal union of nations. The decision by the Supreme Court means that this is no longer true.
“One member is unable to leave under its own volition and is left with no effective mechanism for deciding its own destiny. This is true for each of the members except England which effectively holds a Tyranny of the Majority over the other three nations.
“A number of promises were made to Scottish voters before the last independence referendum, the vast majority of which have either been abandoned or ignored.
“Scotland was dragged out of the European Union against its will, even though the percentage of those wishing to remain in the European Union was larger than the percentage who wished to remain in the United Kingdom.
“Any claims to be a democratic union of equals has ended in the Supreme Court in London. It is for the people of Scotland to choose whether they wish to remain in the United Kingdom, it is not a matter on which an English government with no mandate in any of the Celtic countries should dictate.
“The Green Party firmly believes in democracy, which is why we support Proportional Representation, the devolution of power to the most appropriate level of government, and the fundamental right of each member nation to decide how and when it will leave the union or remain in it.”
‘Involuntary inmates’
Referencing Tryweryn, Plaid Cymru Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts MP has described the people of Wales as ‘involuntary inmates’ in the UK Union, saying: “The Tryweryn vote in 1957 taught people in Wales that Welsh MPs can always be over-ridden by the structural tyranny of the majority here in Westminster.
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Use the next General Election to show the imperialsts in Westminster that self determination is an essential democratic right. Remember the Irish election of 1918 when Sinn Fein demonstrated that a Republic was not just a pipe dream!
Exactly the sort of negativity that is holding us back!
Yeah facts are pretty bad like that.
And Iceland? Are they too small?
Why is Cymru too small to support itself? It has a larger population and as many or more natural resources than Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Slovenia and only a slightly smaller population than Denmark, Norway, Croatia, and Slovakia to name but a few independent countries.
That argument has been proven incorrect. There are plenty of independent countries with smaller populations and GDPs.
Alone in the world amongst nations smaller than us, Cymru is singularly unable to govern itself.
The lie told to gullible idiots by foul oppressors for a thousand years
Yes, but Sinn Fein was united, organised, well led and totally committed in its aim of independence.
Everything that Plaid Cymru is not.
Plaid Cymru is committed to Welsh independence as much as the Scottish and Irish. You know that Dr Ball. We are there to represent to the Welsh people. How can you say we were not when we were not elected as the majority party at the Senedd? It would be better if you were to campaign against the unionists in the Labour party and the other unionists sham that are still in Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Ireland were well organised, but it took many lives, including 12 of the Irish nationalist leaders that were murdered by the British empire. Many… Read more »
I’m not sure whether this is worthy of a response but since you have repeated the fallacy that P C is in favour of independence, a reply is required. Please read the “Independence” document released a while ago and represents the party’s policy on this issue. After a series of meetings, a new commission and three referenda, the first to set the question for the second, can you think of anything more ridiculous; the party’s policy is federalism. Dressed as “Confederation” (Con being the relevant syllable) much power is retained by the central state – Westminster. Please don’t lecture me… Read more »
Categorically wrong on the Confederalism policy John. It is not federalism. It is more akin to the EU than the US which is a Federal State. You might not agree with the policy but deliberately conflating the two does not help your cause.
The EU? that’s another fine mess to get back into, unless you are the USA, which has done mighty fine due to the comission’s recent acts.
Cymru needs Indy and hard work. Are our people up to it? Hope so.
Excellent points, well made.
John your views and comments are a light in Wales but perhaps on this one youve let your personal concerns about Plaid influence your usually anilitical and evidence led modus.
Plaid certainly for many years showed little real interest in many of the issues Gwynfor and the founders articulated but at last they appear to be re focusing on bread and butter issues around the strengths and individuality of Cymru.
We need to
Welcome this return to
Traditional Values
“We need to Welcome this return to Traditional Values” When it happens, Yes. In the meantime we out in the electorate see a party at Y Senedd that finds it far easier to dwell on deflection. Talk is easy, taking hard decisions like ripping the Labour regime a “new one” on key issues is harder especially when PC are joined at the hip with them on so much.
It has always been a tyranny; aggressive at first then gradually more passive and persuasive, but always with a mighty dose of contempt for the Cymry. Remind me of the year that the people of Wales decided that they wished to be part of the UK?
1485! When we were fooled into thinking Henry Tudor was the Mab Darogan. The Conquest of England at Bosworth Field was the most damaging event for the Britons In British History
The British establishment will lose eventually as refusing the devolved powers their own path just makes them more determined to go their own way anyway.
It has always been a tyranny. Westminster is used by the rich and their corporate friends to suck up wealth from Wales and the other two smaller nations. Westminster keeps Wales as a poor relation. We need to take control of our own destiny.
Exactly Linda 💯%.
It has clearly always been this way. All that’s happened is unionists have stopped lying about it for a second. They’re now gloating. Showing their true colours. They actually seem proud of this. It doesn’t “affect” them. They love the hypocrisy, it’s funny to them, unless it’s rights they use or want on the block. Happy to be undemocratic, immoral, imperialist. Finally being able to be open about Scotland, Wales and the North of Ireland being second class; colonies. Some even happy to be second class themselves, all for the sake of feeling they are with the “winners”. (Until the… Read more »
Wel, dyna ni; mae tra-arglwyddiaeth Lloegr wedi lleisio ei gwir farn trwy ddyfarniad y Goruchel Lys – Ei Goruchel-Lys. ~ So there we have it; the English hegemon has finally spoken its truth via the Supreme Court – ITS Supreme Court.
I understand the sentiment, but the judicial aspect of this is just one aspect. Westminster could always grant and ratify such a referendum. The Court was just accurately interpretating the law. If any given judge were to step away from the law and decide “we’ll, I’m going to buck this because I would prefer a different outcome”, then there is no law and trust would collapse. Politics should stay in politics – politicisation of the legal system is a death knell for democracy, whether we want to be part of the nation the system resides in or not. Culture and… Read more »
Follow the money
Who pays for the Supreme Court and funds its pronouncement
They were never going to say Yes
Lloegr yw ein Rwsia.
England is our Russia.
surprise, surprise, English Supreme court finds in favour of the English government, I imagine that all the judges are fully paid up members of the tory party as well, I wonder what the Sottish Supreme court would have decided? Because unlike Cymru, Scotland has its own law and justice system, because when that was on offer to us, the Labour ex first minister Carwyn Jones rejected it.
I really hope that the Scots stay within the UK and polls seem to reflect it but there is no mandate but we still accept a thin victory of over 50 %. We accepted that low vote and turnout at the last and final devolution vote in Wales. The Ron BADGER Davies vote carried it. I also think that when Scotland considers independence the other parts of the UK must have an input too. Perhaps any voting at political elections should be made mandatory as many people wish not to vote as they deserve more. Our system is being abused… Read more »
Why should the other parts of the so-called United Kingdom have a say on Scottish independence? It’s up to the Scots not the English.
According to your way of thinking Ireland, India and the rest of the former English empire would still be ruled by the Tory party (that is essentially what the so-called United Kingdom is).
Also, what would you have said if the rest of the EU had a say on the Brexit referendum? According to your logic it would have been a decision for the other 27 EU members not England.
England has had a say via their “supreme” court.