9 Comments

• frankie 20th Oct '18 - 6:54pm

  For the sake of balance I feel it should be pointed out that Nigel Farage organised a counter demonstration in Harrogate, I believe as many as 1,600 attend and some of them where not even members of the media. However he did claim bigglie numbers had followed it on Facebook and Twitter. Interesting the BBC mentioned this

  “The march was held at the same time as a pro-Brexit rally in Harrogate, organised by the group Leave Means Leave and led by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage.

  Mr Farage said: “The evidence suggests about a third of those that voted remain now say we’re democrats and think the government should simply get on with it.”

  “And that’s our message – get on with it, fulfil your promises to us, you said if we voted to leave it would happen, it needs to.”

  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45925542

  but failed to mention that 1,600 is a dammed sight less than

  “Young voters led the People’s Vote march to London’s Parliament Square, which supporters say attracted approximately 700,000 protesters.”

  I fear their idea of balance is not really balanced at all. As an aside the Depress and Scum highlighted a smoke bomb was set off along the march, what a desperate clutching at straws.

• Richard Underhill 20th Oct '18 - 8:27pm

  I remember a demonstration against the poll tax.
  It ended with violence in Trafalgar Square which the police had difficulty controlling.
  Charing Cross station (overground) and Embankment station (underground) were closed.
  I walked from Westminster to Waterloo, took a train home and watched tv news.
  The police report … estimated the crowd at 200,000.
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poll_tax_riots
  The PM was determined that she would not change her policy, but was brought down by democratic elections in Eastbourne and Ribble Valley. Her successors, john Major and Michael Heseltine, abolished the (very unfair) poll tax.
  Today’s demonstration was much larger and totally non-violent. Parents and grand-parents brought babes in arms and toddlers who will all be able to say “I was there!”
  There now needs to be a people’s vote on where we are now.

• Yeovil Yokel 20th Oct '18 - 9:49pm

  Magnificent effort, everybody, well done.

• Graham Evans 20th Oct '18 - 10:18pm

  @ frankie Your point about BBC balance is well made. The Corporation still has not grasped that an organisation whose ethos is to entertain, inform and educate has a responsibility to provide context and correct misleading claims and downright lies. The BBC seems to be running scared of offending the Government and Tory right wingers who want to abolish the licence fee. However in doing so it is weakening the support of those of us who believe in public service broadcasting.

• James Marrs 20th Oct '18 - 11:36pm

  Well im all for a peoples vote yet please dont forget the most effected like myself living in the EU many were DENIED a vote yet no one in the UK even CARES about us.
  Still nothing abour our rights after a no deal brexit no support no help NOTHING.
  This isnt demcoracy , 100 years after women got a vote ex pats living 15 years outside the UK are still even today DENIED a vote yet even a second referendum wouldnt change the fact its for me undemocratic.
  Maybe as well be dictatorship cause Brexit is being forced on me and 3 million British CITIZENS without a say……….

• William Fowler 21st Oct '18 - 8:53am

  Mrs May has now “guaranteed” the rights of EU citizens already in the country, regardless of the outcome of the talks with the EU (how much that means in the light of Windrush etc remains to be seen), all the EU has done is let Macron threaten Brits in France… does that tell you something about the EU? I actually want to remain, BTW.

• frankie 21st Oct '18 - 10:35am

  No William it doesn’t tell us anything about the EU. It does however tell us something about the power balance in these negotiations. May cannot afford to upset anyone or give anyone another stick to beat her with, those on the other side can do and say as they wish. If the UK was in a position of power, I’m sure the likes of Rabb and Co would be unable to resist rubbing in that fact, but they are not and they cannot. We come as supplicants to these talks, with no cards, not even Mr Bunn the Baker and the EU are ruthlessly pointing that out to the world and his wife. Leave means our politicians are parading us before the world resplendent in our Emperors New clothes and everyone is pointing at us while whisperring “What a small tassle they have, I thought it would be much bigger than that”.

• Yeovil Yokel 21st Oct '18 - 2:31pm

  On this morning’s Andrew Marr Show Dominic Raab is supposed to have said: “the end is in sight in terms of a good deal”. To me that can be read in two ways, one of which is a lie and the other of which is hilarious.

• Tony Greaves 21st Oct '18 - 7:19pm

  Yet again the BBC was a disgrace. Their obsession with right-wing populists and worse is a national scandal.