15 Comments

• John Marriott 2nd Jul '19 - 10:54pm

  I don’t know what’s worse, the Brexit Party’s puerile ‘protest’ or the Lib Dem T shirt wearers (particularly those words on the back) looking more like a hen party group descending on a motorway services. Such childish behaviour just makes the U.K. look foolish. I bet that there will be a few European MEPs hoping that a deal can be reached by Halloween.

• Awkward Squad 2nd Jul '19 - 11:16pm

  LOL thank you for putting our moaning in this, and yes, if people want a politer version they only have to ask 🙂

• Sue Sutherland 2nd Jul '19 - 11:47pm

  It was wonderful to see our joyous yellow army of MEPs on the news today. Brilliantly done everyone and it made the Brexit party look like sulky schoolchildren wanting to take their bat and ball home.

• expats 3rd Jul '19 - 6:46am

  John Marriott 2nd Jul ’19 – 10:54pm………………..I don’t know what’s worse, the Brexit Party’s puerile ‘protest’ or the Lib Dem T shirt wearers (particularly those words on the back) looking more like a hen party group descending on a motorway services. Such childish behaviour just makes the U.K. look foolish. I bet that there will be a few European MEPs hoping that a deal can be reached by Halloween……………………

  My thoughts exactly! So, so, sad that such an important matter as Britain’s EU membership has descended into a Brian Rix (showing my age) farce from both sides

• Peter Martin 3rd Jul '19 - 7:03am

  The Lib Dems are saying “Bollocks to Brexit”. The Brexit Party are indicating by their actions they think EU is a load of ”bollocks”.

  What’s the problem? Isn’t this just democracy?

  “Bollocks” is a fine English word. There’s no need to apologise for its use. “Bollocks” has been defined in a court of law not to be an obscenity. See 1970 Sex Pistols “Never Mind the Bollocks” legal case.

• David Raw 3rd Jul '19 - 7:05am

  John’s correct, childish on both sides in every sense. Other European MEP’s must think the British have lost the plot. We’re becoming the laughing stock of Europe.

  My only surprise is that John should choose to use rip off motorway service stations……

• Richard C 3rd Jul '19 - 7:42am

  Just when the Lib Dems were beginning to be taken seriously as a party again, the best they can do is resort to dubious slogans. Wouldn’t “We Want to Stay” or something like that (maybe a bit more catchy) have given a more positive message.

  As a “Remainer” I despair at the negativity of the campaign. Why does no one ever shout out the positives of being in the EU rather than just rubbishing those who want to leave?

• Nick Baird 3rd Jul '19 - 7:53am

  @John Marriott – I agree the UK looks foolish at the moment, but that’s not because of some T shirts…….

  Bollocks to Brexit worked very well during the European election campaign, and got us media coverage when we might otherwise have been ignored.

• expats 3rd Jul '19 - 9:03am

  Nick Baird 3rd Jul ’19 – 7:53am,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Bollocks to Brexit worked very well during the European election campaign, and got us media coverage when we might otherwise have been ignored…………………..

  I think being the only party, in England, united on a ‘Remain’ platform might have had rather more to do with it than a ‘fourth form playground slogan’..

• Ian Sanderson (RM3) 3rd Jul '19 - 9:25am

  I am of the same sort of age as John Marriott, David Raw and, possibly, expats, so I have a frisson of horror when I see man in a suit without a tie (see video from Antony Hook MEP above).
  But I am more with Peter Martin on this; what UKIP and its clones have done over the decades is persuade people that the issue is something to feel strongly about and to reinforce this message by expressing it by stunts from time to time. Perhaps we respectable people also need to do that from time to time, so that people are aware, not only of our views, but how strongly they are held. This demo was going to be widely seen; immediately afterwards, no doubt, our MEPs would be going about their business dressed conventionally.
  By contrast, whereas our demo looked good-tempered, the Brexit Party one looked merely discourteous and rude. What would be the reaction in our papers if this was done to Presidents Trump or Putin?

• David Evans 3rd Jul '19 - 11:02am

  I must admit, I find it a bit disappointing that so many people’s comments seem to come out on totally on one side or other as to whether “Bollocks to Brexit” is a good or a bad thing.

  The simple fact is that since about 2011 the public’s view of the Lib Dems had plummeted because of the mess our leaders made of coalition. Initially trust was lost and when we failed to do anything about that our relevance was lost. The public didn’t like us and the media decided we were history. We were first despised but then ignored, and the very future of our party as a parliamentary force was in danger.

  The things that gave us the chance to save ourselves was David Cameron’s arrogance in believing he could win a Brexit referendum and Tim Farron’s decision to make fighting Brexit our number one objective. Even then it was touch and go and 2017 could have gone so much worse if it wasn’t for the Witney and Richmond Park by-elections.

  Now we have to build again and “Bollocks to Brexit” is the cornerstone that has meant the press cannot ignore us, but it doesn’t mean we can only rely on that slogan, but need a considered and planned approach to making the entire campaign work.

  Neither will have any chance of real success without the other. Accept it, work with it and make it better, but don’t decry it as inadequate or against polite sensibilities. It has given us a chance, no more and no less. We have to make it deliver.

• Peter Martin 3rd Jul '19 - 11:51am

  Perhaps we ought to consider ourselves lucky that the Brexit Party MEPs only turned their backs.

  They could have mooned! ie bared their backsides!

• John Marriott 3rd Jul '19 - 4:06pm

  @David Raw
  Sorry, David, I was not intending to ‘rip off’ motorway services. I’ve been very grateful for them over the years (and so, with increasing age has my bladder). The phenomenon to which I was referring was that of the arrival of minibus loads of excited ladies, usually of a certain age, and usually in some form of fancy dress on their way to somewhere to ‘celebrate’ some colleague’s wedding.

  They often raise a smile from onlookers, myself included. It’s good to see that someone is having fun. However, places like the European Parliament, and any other administrative council chamber for that matter deserve to be taken a little more seriously. Unlike a motorway services, their main purpose is surely not to satisfy the culinary or physical needs of man and womankind, but more likely the spiritual.

• Alisdair Gibbs-Barton 3rd Jul '19 - 5:57pm

  “Never mind the Bollocks …..here’s the Liberal Democrats” should be the follow on slogan !

• David Raw 4th Jul '19 - 9:24am

  @ John Marriott Yes, John, I have to admit that two hours is about my limit too these days and when a man’s gotta go a man’s gotta go.

  I also have to admit I try to avoid Edinburgh Waverley and Newcastle Central on Friday nights where far too much is revealed often about far too much and where I reflect on the imperfectability of the human race and the need for minimum pricing of alcohol and a ban on alcohol on the trains. That’s my grumpy old git ration done for the day.