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The C and NL branch of European Movement had a stand at the recent annual Westmorland county show near Kendal. The show’s organisers estimated a 30,000 attendance over the two days.
Our gazebo was supported by display banners and a Brexitometer, attracting the attention of the passing visitors.

We were able to engage around 250 people with the Brexitometer and give out about 400 of our own leaflets highlighting why we should be part of the EU, together with local and national membership information.

Branch Chair, Winston Collinge said ‘it was probably our best ever local campaign event, we look forward to repeating this and taking part in  similar events next year’.

Lib Dem leader Ed Davey’s Brexit awakening at conference

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Lord Heseltine - 'Brexit has failed. The only way forward is with Europe.'

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Renowned art historian, BBC broadcaster and former Director of the National Gallery and the British Museum, Neil MacGregor, joined the European Movement UK (EM UK) for an in-depth discussion on the future of the European community, on Wednesday September 6th. 

A committed European, the event was MacGregor’s first time publicly speaking about how he imagines the future of Europe and the European identity to develop. More than 350 people attended the online event, organised by EM UK's International Committee, entitled ‘Imagining Europe – searching for new histories’. 

Speaking about European institutions and the importance of programmes such as Horizon, MacGregor said: 

“I think we’re now again at a moment where the energy that comes from not wanting to be what we were can be harnessed. The great political development of the last few years across Europe, if we leave aside the war in Ukraine, has been the revulsion across the whole continent against racism, against systemic inequality, and against historic exploitation.  

“There are other areas of Europe that we can talk about, and heroize. The Erasmus programme and above all, now Horizon. What can Europe do together? Horizon, we all know, is absolutely central and we have to be a part of it.  

“The European Court of Human Rights – here is an institution that we ought to be talking about much more. Praising much more highly, and insisting that this is the part of Europe that we want to be.” 

Speaking about the future of the European identity and solidarity, MacGregor, added: 

“I believe that we are all starting at the same point where we want to encourage our fellow citizens to engage more fully in the kind of Europe that we want to be part of again. The question remains; how do we find a way of thinking that holds us together - other than war against an outside enemy? 

“For most of the nation states of Europe, the solution has been pretty simple and pretty much the same. You focus on what we’ve done, and you focus on a few heroes. The main question is; can Europe do this? Is there a way for Europe to find an agreed story of what we did together, and agreed heroes we can celebrate? 

“With mass immigration, the arrival of new populations for whom the stories of heroes and victories have much less resonance, the old idea of the single national hero or the nation fighting its neighbours has lost its power. And so, the museums, the place where normally you set your national history, have had to change and reflect that.” 

On the event, Sir Nick Harvey, CEO of European Movement UK, said: 

“It was a great privilege to have renowned historian and proud European Neil MacGregor join us for our event on the future of Europe. MacGregor brought invaluable insights to the conversation and laid out a roadmap for how the European identity and community will likely develop over the coming years.  

“Crucially, Neil also highlighted the importance of the European institutions and programmes which Britain must engage with, including the European Court of Human Rights, Erasmus and, of course, Horizon – which we are delighted to have rejoined after months of tireless campaigning by EM UK.” 

Watch the webinar, in full, here:

The UK has rejoined the EU's science programme, Horizon Europe, as an associate member.

We have been campaigning on this hard in the last few months, with thousands of our members and supporters signing our open letter and writing to their MP, whilst I myself have been pushing on this for years.

The deal struck by Rishi Sunak has been a long time coming. We have been campaigning for months to urge the Government to solve the impasse over the Horizon programme. A deal is now done – but the long delays have cost the UK’s scientific community dearly.  

Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal: 

“After months of frustrating delay, this decision will be received with overwhelming approval – not only by UK scientists but by all who recognized the benefits of an ‘open’ community where collaboration has fewer impediments. The UK will be perceived worldwide as a better place to do science.” 

Sir Fraser Stoddart, 2016 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry: 

“When it comes to participation in Horizon Europe, the United Kingdom should be front and centre.” 

Being on the outside of Horizon Europe for 2.5 years has done huge damage to our scientific and research community. As well as missing out on millions in funding, the reputational damage is incalculable. 

UK scientists no longer had the chance to work with world-leading partners from all over Europe and beyond, on cutting edge projects to find new cancer treatments, clean up our water networks, tackle climate change and much more. It put the UK’s status as a global scientific leader under threat. 

We’ve consistently called for the government to stop stalling and find a way back into the EU-wide funding and collaboration scheme. We can now start to rebuild links with our EU neighbours, and prevent UK scientists from being further hamstrung by our hard Brexit. 

Michael Browne, CEO, Crowdhelix 

"As a company whose business is to forge links between an international network of excellent researchers and innovating companies, we saw first-hand the tragic damage that Brexit and then failing to join Horizon Europe have done. Collaboration is the lifeblood of research and innovation, so we profoundly hope that this re-opens the door for the UK's researchers and innovators once again to the environments within which they were once doing so well." 

I know first-hand the unique value to our scientists of these collaborative frameworks. I’ve worked on amazing multinational projects funded by Horizon Europe, with pooled science funds into a single vast pot to support discovery at scale. It’s uniquely powerful in the global science landscape. It pains me to think of the opportunities we have lost while the Government has dragged its feet in doing a deal that could have been completed months ago.   

Dr Mike Galsworthy, Chair of European Movement UK, studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge, before completing a PhD in Behaviour Genetics at King's College London. He is an expert on EU science policy and has written academic papers analysing EU science programmes. 

Welcome back to school, everyone!

What’s happened over the summer? The very short answer is that we’ve been throwing everything into prepping this coming two months because IT’S CONFERENCE SEASON!

Yes, it’s the most crazy time of year when everything political restarts with fireworks. Here are some events you need to be aware of over the next two months:

Neil McGregor “Imagining Europe” talk (online - exclusively for EM members) – Sept 6^th

“Unlocked” with our President Lord Heseltine (online only now as event sold out) – Sept 20^th

National Rejoin March (Parliament Square, London) – Sept 23^rd

Liberal Democrat Party Conference (in Bournemouth) – Sept 23^rd-26^th

Conservative Party Conference (in Manchester) – Oct 1^st-4^th

Brexit Documentary screening (in Leicester Square) – Oct 2^nd

Labour Party Conference (in Liverpool) – Oct 8^th-11^th

And we also have, internally, *two* National Council meetings (Sept 9^th and Oct 21^st) as we prepare for the European Movement internal elections in November (AGM – Nov 25^th). So it’s an incredibly busy schedule coming up!

Let’s talk about those in a bit more detail

Over 500 people have already signed up to Neil MacGregor’s talk (EM members only).  Hosted by EM’s International Committee, we’re delighted to offer access to this talk to all members. Neil MacGregor is an art historian, ex-Museum Director, writer and BBC broadcaster. He will argue that, for a new European future, we need new European histories – exploring how we can shape up ideas of Europe that speak to the imagination and inspire our European identity and path forward. Sign up here.

The “Unlocked” event with Lord Heseltine is hosted by UK in a Changing Europe at the Science Gallery London and he will be interviewed by their Director, Prof Anand Menon. Although the physical event is sold-out, you can join the waiting list or attend online.

The National Rejoin March II on Sept 23^rd follows on from the same event last year and promises to be big, colourful and fun! I will be speaking onstage in Parliament Square alongside Gina Miller, Guy Verhofstadt, Femi Oluwole and others. Many European Movement local branches are mobilising to get there, so do make sure you’re in touch with your local group. You can find your local group contact here. Please also note the many dedicated coaches available if you’re looking for transport there.

As to the Lib Dem, Conservative and Labour party conferences – European Movement will be at all of them. We’re a proudly cross-party organisation and we are looking to build our base from supporters of all parties and none. Last year, our European Movement event at Conservative Party Conference packed out the room, while the main hall was embarrassingly sparse! If you are at any of the conferences, do look up our events and come along! We’ll be sharing more on those later.

Finally, I’m really delighted to tell you that my Brexit Documentary with BylineTV is going to have its first screenings on Oct 2^nd in the Prince Charles Cinema, just off Leicester Square, London. We launched the Crowdfunder for the documentary nearly a year ago and, despite BylineTV completing another documentary on the war in Ukraine in the meantime, this Brexit Documentary is now in the editing phase. After 3,000 miles of travel around the UK and 60 hours of interview, we’re compressing that all into 90mins of top quality documentary. You can be one of the first to see it by booking here. I’m incredibly proud of the work put in and the stories we have captured. It is going to have impact on how many people view Brexit for years to come.

Get Brexit Done… But, er, not quite yet.

In the news yet again has been the fifth delay of Brexit import checks. The most succinct summary I have seen of this of this humiliation is this article by CNN Business: “The UK government has delayed health and safety checks on food imports from the European Union for the fifth time in three years amid fears that the extra controls will push up food prices and disrupt vital supplies.

The latest foot-dragging demonstrates that Britain is still struggling to come to terms with the painful consequences of leaving the European Union in January 2020, which has piled costs on UK businesses and weighed on trade, investment and, ultimately, economic growth. Brexit has already contributed to Britain’s particularly high inflation by introducing friction into the country’s most important trading relationship, and hitting the value of the pound, which has made imports more expensive. A recent study by the London School of Economics found that Brexit was responsible for about a third of UK food price inflation since 2019, adding nearly £7 billion ($8.8 billion) to Britain’s grocery bill.”

However, as I touched on in my Chair’s Update last month – although this delay is a relief for consumers, it is a continuation of a huge competitive disadvantage for British farmers who face border checks sending produce to the EU, while their EU counterparts still face no border checks sending to the UK (or anywhere in the Single Market).

As Liz Webster, of Save British Farming, pointed out on Newsnight a few days ago, the UK is stuck in a Catch 22 where they are damned if they do bring in border checks and damned if they don’t – with the only get-out being a return to the Single Market.

“But more than that, Brexit, with the right decisions, can enhance our natural environment.”

…and so spoke Michael Gove, in this speech of 2018 entitled “Green Brexit: a new era for farming, fishing and the environment”. Yes, the same Michael Gove that has just now hailed “Brexit freedoms” to rip up EU water pollution rules.

By labelling current protections inherited from the EU as “defective EU laws”, Gove plans to instruct local authorities in England to discount the extra sewage pollution from new developments, including environmentally-fragile areas such as the Norfolk Broads and Lake District.

The government, of course, have played down the environmental impact of the measure – but the acid test of course, is whether you can assure British organisations which genuinely care about the environment. On that front, the move is a colossal failure.

“LIARS!” tweeted RSPB “@RishiSunak @michaelgove @theresecoffey you said you wouldn’t weaken environmental protections. And yet that’s just what you are doing. You lie, and you lie, and you lie again. And we’ve had enough.” – the RSPB were attacked in return for entering the political fray and forced to apologise. But they were hardly alone.

Craig Bennett, the CEO of Wildlife Trusts also openly accused the government of lying. He tweeted: “In May, June and July, the Government made promises to the British people, and to Parliament that they would "not lower environmental protections or standards". They lied.”

Craig Bennett further pointed out to the i paper that the “nutrient neutrality” law around which all this hinges had helped create one of the most advanced markets for ecosystem services. A new market, ironically of central utility to the government’s own environmental plans, just got killed stone dead by the government. “They’ve destroyed a new environmental market,” Craig Bennett said “So all the people that invested in this will now be losing their money. They [the ministers] didn’t seem to have an answer to that.”

So, a slow hand clap for Michael Gove and the lamentably predictable death of his own pretentious “Green Brexit”. The battle of the actual changes to law is very much still raging, so it’s not game over, but one thing is now for sure – Gove, and the government, lied on this matter. And no-one, rightly, trusted them on this anyway.

Dr. Mike Galsworthy, Sep 2023