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Electric Scotland News
The really big news this week is how well the new Brexit party is doing so thought I'd make this the main news item this week...
90,000 Britons build Brexit Party coffers to £2m ahead of European elections
NIGEL FARAGE has sent shockwaves through Westminster following his return to frontline politics after support for his newly-formed Brexit Party surpassed 90,000 registered members.
The former Ukip leader has enjoyed a resurgence to the political cauldron and has galvanised frustrated Brexiteers after the Government failed to deliver Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. Mr Farage has called for the grassroots eurosceptic party to overthrow the establishment and has vowed to fight the upcoming European elections, the Peterborough by-election and any future general elections. The leading Brexiteer has revealed the Brexit Party has raised an astonishing £2million from its members in the past month.
During a fiery encounter on ITV’s Peston show, Mr Farage hit back at Robert Peston who questioned where Mr Farage had received a huge £100,000 donation from.
The Brexit Party leader said the ITV political editor’s line of questioning was “quite extraordinary” and stated the finances would be revealed after the European Parliament elections on May 23.
Mr Farage said: “I find your question quite extraordinary. I’ve answered it once already, let’s try it again.
"Ninety-thousand individuals living in this country in the last four weeks have paid us £25 to become registered supporters of the Brexit Party. That’s over £2 million.
“I said we’ve received one big donation of £100,000, I can now tell you today, we’ve received several more. All of them have been reported to the Electoral Commission, and they will tell you who they are.”
Mr Farage, who was instrumental in campaigning to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum, insisted his return was not just “gesture politics” but the start of a “more ambitious project”.
The frustrated Brexiteer claimed the only way to deliver on the will of the 17.4 million people who voted to leave the bloc is to replace the Remainer MPs in the House of Commons.
Mr Farage added: “Please believe me, this is far from that. This is the first step in a much much bigger, much more ambitious project. We’re never going to get the Brexit we voted for with this current Parliament.
“So we need to change the kinds of people that are sitting in the House of Commons, and we will go on from the European elections, we’ll fight by-elections and general elections.”
The first true test of the Brexit Party will come when Britons head to the polls in 14 days time.
An exclusive Express.co.uk survey revealed overwhelming support for the Brexit Party.
A huge 86 percent of online respondents signalled their intention to vote for Mr Farage’s Party.
Participants highlighted the backlash against the mainstream parties with just one percent voting for Labour and zero percent for the Tories.
Elsewhere the Liberal Democrats received five percent, Change UK and Ukip were on three percent, whilst the Green Party and ‘other’ received just one percent.
A total of 48,465 people took part in the poll, which was conducted online at Express.co.uk between 3pm on Tuesday May 7 and 5pm on Wednesday May 8.
You can watch a coupe of speeches given by Nigel Farage at;
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...e-Brexit-Party
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You can view a video introduction to this newsletter at:
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines. I might also add that in newspapers such as the Guardian, Scotsman, Courier, etc. you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish.
Who’s afraid of Chlorinated Chicken?
Discussion of Brexit and food has been grossly distorted by ill-informed scare stories, of which concerning America ‘chlorinated chicken’ is the most notorious.
Read more at;
https://briefingsforbrexit.com/whos-...nated-chicken/
Tories call for unity after election drubbing
The Conservatives lost 1,334 councillors in Thursday's votes.
Read more at;
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48157991
Out, out, out
For the third time running, our survey finds a record proportion of party members wanting May gone now.
Read more at;
https://www.conservativehome.com/the...-gone-now.html
Fed up Canada tells U.S. to help with China crisis or forget about favours
Canada is leaning on the United States to help settle a dispute with China, which has started to block imports of vital Canadian commodities amid a dispute over a detained Huawei executive.
Read more at;
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-ca...-idUKKCN1SB0MX
The true test of Brexit opinion will come on May 23
The Brexit party is an impressively slick operation
Read more at:
https://capx.co/the-true-test-of-bre...come-on-may-23
Pamela Steer named Canada’s CFO of the Year
The organization was dealing with a crushing $14-billion deficit. Now, only a few years later, the WSIB boasts a surplus of several billion dollars.
Read more at:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/busi...o-of-the-year/
The Edinburgh entrepreneurs churning out butter that’s taking the capital’s food scene by storm
A recently launched Edinburgh-based butter company has become so popular it now supplies some of the capital's top hotels, restaurants and delis.
Read more at;
https://foodanddrink.scotsman.com/ge...ng-out-butter/
Peterborough by-election
Brexit Party unveil Secret Millionaire Mike Greene as candidate
Read more at;
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...e-nigel-farage
Billionaire Jeff Bezos to unveil plans for moon presence
Billionaire entrepreneur Jeff Bezos will unveil plans on Thursday for missions to the moon tailored to the U.S. government’s renewed push to establish a lunar outpost in just five years
Read more at;
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-sp...-idUKKCN1SF1WE
Electric Canadian
The Canadian Horticulturist
Volume 25 (1902) can be read at:
https://www.electriccanadian.com/tra...culturirst.htm
John Brown in Canada
A Monograph by James Cleland Hamilton, LL.D. (pdf). This is about the anti slavery movement.
You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/his...wnincanada.pdf
A Short History of Court Pride of Ontario No. 5640 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, 1871 to 1896,
Ancient Order of Foresters, Compiled and Written by John B. Buckingham, Secretary of the Court With Introduction by J. Watson Stead, Editor of The Ancient Forester.(1896) (pdf)
You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/his...courtpride.pdf
Record of the Founding of the Royal Canadian Academy
By His Excellency The Marquis of Lorne and Her Royal Highness The Princess Louise and the Constitution (1891) (pdf). You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/lif...ianAcademy.pdf
Hutterites in Canada
Found a good new video about them which you can view at;
https://www.electriccanadian.com/history/Mennonites.htm
Russians in Canada
Added a new page for Russians in Canada to add to our ethnic histories which you can read at;
https://www.electriccanadian.com/history/russia.htm
Conrad Black
The case for a wealth tax in Canada
http://www.conradmblack.com/1475/the...-tax-in-canada
Trump Looks Solid for 2020
http://www.conradmblack.com/1476/tru...solid-for-2020
Electric Scotland
The Scottish Review
Added Volume 36 - July October 1900 for you to read at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/review/index.htm
Folk Lore Society
Added volume 1 which you can get to towards the end of the page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/waifs/
Sketch of John Lee, D.D., M.D., Etc., Etc.
The Very Reverend The Principal of the University of Edinburgh born 1779; died 1859 by Sir John Rose Cormack, F.R.S.E., (1875) (pdf) who you can read about at; https://electricscotland.com/history.../lee_john2.htm
The Prince Of Monaco's Kitchen
I was watching a video on the work of the chef to Queen Elizabeth and when that finished it went on to this one which I really enjoyed so thought I'd share it with you and you can view this at;
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...naco-s-Kitchen
At home in Fiji
By Gordon Cumming (1886) (pdf).
In the autumn of 1874 it was announced that Fiji had been formally annexed by Great Britain. In January 1875 the Hon. Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon, K.C.M.G. (son of George, fourth Earl of Aberdeen), was appointed first Governor of Fiji.
I thought you might be interested in reading this as of course Fiji is part of the Commonwealth and can be read at;https://electricscotland.com/indepen...homeinfiji.pdf
The Navigators: pathfinders of the Pacific
A public broadcast film in two parts which can be viewed at:
https://archive.org/details/thenavigators
A Story of Active Service in foreign Lands
Compiled from Letters sent home from South Africa, India, and China, 1856 - 1882 by Surgeon-General A. Graham Young (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...reignlands.pdf
The 1746 Dress Act and its the effect on the culture of the Gaidhealtachd
A contribution from Beth of the Newfangled Family Tree which you can read at;
https://electricscotland.com/tartans/tartanbanessay.pdf
Hylton Newsletter
Christmas 2018 and into 2019 and this can be read at; https://electricscotland.com/familyt...tter2019-1.pdf
Henry Drummond
Added this Evangelist, biologist, writer and lecturer to our Significant Scots section.
You can read about him at: https://www.electricscotland.com/his...mond_henry.htm
Address of John Marshall, F.R.S.
President of the Royal Medical and Chirurgical Society of London at the Annual Meeting, March 1st, 1883 in which he gives some mini bios of deceased Fellows of the Society. You can read his address at;
https://electricscotland.com/history...hnMarshall.pdf
Memoir of the Honourqble George Keith Elphinstone. K.B.
Viscount Keith, Admiral of the Red by Alexander Allardyce (pdf)
A really excellent read which I read in its entirety and hope you'll be as fascinated as I was and it can be red at:https://www.electricscotland.com/his...lphinstone.pdf
Junior Tour Guides
Junior Tour Guides and Junior Rangers deliver performances and support projects at 10 of Historic Environment Scotland's sites across the country - from Orkney to Melrose.
You can view this video in our Community at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...es-Documentary
The Story
We have every reason to be optimistic and confident about Brexit Britain
Liam Fox has been a Conservative MP since 1992 and has held a variety of Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet posts. He has been Secretary of State for International Trade since July 2016.
When Winston Churchill won the Nobel Prize in 1953, he was unable to attend ceremony in person and his speech was read in Stockholm, in December of that year by Lady Churchill. It spoke of his fears for the future and the anxiety that events were spiralling beyond his grasp. He wrote:
“The power of man has grown in every sphere except over himself. Never in the field of action have events seemed so harshly to dwarf personalities. Rarely in history have brutal facts so dominated thought or has such a widespread, individual virtue found so dim a collective focus. The fearful question confronts us; have our problems got beyond our control? Undoubtedly we are passing through a phase where this may be so.”
In an era where the most bloody war in history had torn the world apart and been replaced by a Cold War with the new threat of nuclear war, such sentiments and the note of pessimism were understandable. We are fortunate to live in a very different era. Our living standards exceed anything that could have been imagined even in the 1950s. We saw off the political threat of communism from the East. We have lived in peace in Europe and North America for over 70 years and we have seen a billion people lifted out of abject poverty in the last 25 years alone as a result of global free trade and a capitalist economic system.
Churchill would have seen his most optimistic expectations realised. So why is it that so many people seem to be inconsolably pessimistic about this country’s future? Undoubtedly for some, Britain’s exit from the European Union is of great concern, especially those who have been unable to reconcile themselves to the democratic will expressed in the 2016 referendum.
They seem to believe that Britain cannot have an optimistic, prosperous and secure future without being subsumed into the supranational entity that the EU represents. Others believe that the era of globalisation may not work for us or that the challenge of rapidly changing technology is a threat to the social stability and economic predictability that we have taken for granted for many years.
What is this Britain that the pessimists describe or fear? Are we retreating from the world stage, abdicating our international influence or embracing protectionist concepts of economic nationalism? No we are not. We are not surrendering our permanent seat on the UN Security Council or leaving the G7 or G20. We are at the very heart of NATO. We remain in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the OECD, the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
We are not abandoning the Commonwealth where we hold a pivotal influence. Our special relationship with the United States holds firm. And not only do we support the WTO but we will soon take up our independent seat for the first time in over four decades. Yet still the voices of pessimism take on an almost “end of days” tone. Some may think it is irrelevant but I believe it matters because it damages us at home and abroad. As David Grinspoon, the American astrobiologist put it, in a different context, in his book Earth in human hands,
“Pessimism if it becomes a habit can reinforce a narrative of unstoppable decline. If there is nothing we can do, that releases us from our obligations”.
Not only do I believe such pessimism is unfounded and both defeatist and self-defeating, but I believe that there is every reason for the UK to be confident and optimistic about the future. Change is coming a-plenty but it is something we should embrace, not fear. Let’s start with a reality check about the state of our economy and our comparative international performance.
UK unemployment is at a 45-year low. Our rate of 3.9% compares with 7.9% for the Eurozone, 8.8% for France and 14.5% for Spain. The Bank of England has recently upgraded the forecast for UK growth this year from 1.2% to 1.5%. The European Union has downgraded growth for the Eurozone to 1.2% and Germany to 0.5%. Last year UK exports of goods and services rose to a new record of £634.1 billion. We have, in fact, added £1.7 trillion to our export performance since the EU referendum. And what did we sell? In 2018, we sold over £50 billion worth of mechanical machinery, £33 billion worth of cars, £29 billion worth of electrical machinery and £25 billion worth of medicinal and pharmaceutical products. And then we sold £286.7 billion in services, including financial services. So much for those who say Britain doesn’t make anything anymore.
But if you want to see where Britain’s real global performance has been stellar, look to the foreign direct investment profile. Last year the UK attracted more venture capital investment than anywhere else in Europe, with £6.3 billion. And it is not just tech where inward investment has been booming. According to UNCTAD, while global Foreign Direct Investment flows decreased by 19% globally in 2018 and by 73% in continental Europe, FDI to the UK increased by 20%. All this, as some of the media repeatedly say, despite Brexit.
So why is it that overseas investors ignore the defeatism of so much of the metropolitan liberal commentariat?
Last year Britain was the third top global destination and the top European destination for foreign direct investment. Repeated surveys from Deloitte, EY and others paint an interesting and, more importantly, consistent picture about why investment comes to Britain. The list bears examination because it points to why there is every reason to be optimistic about our economic future. The first reason that is given is our legal system. English law – impartial, respected and well understood , not least due to its replication in so many other parts of the world. It is one of our most precious assets as a nation yet not always connected with the success of our investment. Next comes the flexibility and skill of our workforce, combined with the attractiveness of UK labour law.
As an international businessman put it to me recently – and I quote: “If I want to employ someone in the UK at £15,000 per year it will cost me £18,000 and if it doesn’t work we can part company. In Germany it will cost me £20,000 and if we decide to part ways I will have to pay a year’s salary. In France it will cost me £24,000 and I will have to keep them however poor their performance. That is why investment comes to Britain. That is why your unemployment rate is half that of the Eurozone”.
The next factors are the stability of the regulatory environment and the attractiveness of the taxation system in the UK. Investment is an increasingly competitive environment in the era of globalisation and those who seek arbitrary intervention in our regulatory framework and who would raise tax to punitive levels will only succeed in lowering investment and raising unemployment. Remember that every single period of Labour government has ended with more people out of work than it started.
Next comes access to innovation and, in particular, collaboration with the UK’s universities. It is a remarkable feat that this country, with under 13% of the European population and under 1% of the global population are able to provide 7 out the top 10 European universities and four out of the global top 10. It is striking that the UK is the second destination in the world for inbound students, with more than 500,000, according to the latest figures.
Then come two attributes that we may seldom think about. The first is language and the second is time. It is one of our great natural advantages to speak English, the accepted language of business. While it is true that only 379 million speak English as a first language compared to 460 million for Spanish, what is more instructive is to look at the number who are learning English as a second language. In Europe, in upper secondary education, 94% were studying English, compared to around 22% Spanish, 17% German and 16% French. This is a gift to British businesses as they operate around the world yet perhaps not fully understood or exploited.
What is clear is the contribution that education makes to our export performance. The latest figures valued education exports at £19.9 billion. How does that compare? Well, the total export of insurance and pension services from the UK was £18.8 billion. And Whisky exports were just £5 billion.
Likewise is the time zone in which we live, allowing us to trade with Asia in the morning and the US in the afternoon, one of the many factors why London is such an attractive place for investment and why, along with the depth of professional infrastructure, regulatory framework and worldwide reputation for innovation, the City remains the globally pre-eminent financial centre.
The penultimate factor I want to mention is the protection the UK affords to Intellectual Property. Our IP protection is regularly cited to me around the world as the global gold standard and is a major factor in the number of start-ups occurring in this country. What is the common thread that runs through all these different factors? It is that none of them are dependent on our membership of the European Union. That is not to downplay the size of the EU as an export market. It is, and will remain hugely important to UK business which is why a good deal with the EU is so valuable.
Nor is it to understate the importance of European supply chains in our manufacturing process although it is worth noting that we incorporate more, and an increasing proportion of, non-EU than EU content into our exports.
Which brings me to the final reason that may make the UK an attractive destination for investment. Many investors tell me that while they understand the UK environment well they do not yet know how the EU27 will develop politically and economically without the UK’s free market influence. As long as we maintain an open, liberal, market economy with relatively benign tax and regulatory environments our economic fundamentals will remain strong and our country an attractive one.
That is why issues such as Brexit are not nearly so worrying to investors as the potential election of a hard Left, anti-wealth, high-borrowing and irresponsibly-spending Labour government. I don’t intend to dwell on the issue of globalisation which I have done extensively in the past, especially in my book Rising Tides which deals with the challenges and opportunities of the globalised economic environment, except to say what I wrote at the time:
“It is important for us to remember that we are not simply passengers on a globalization conveyor belt but are able to influence its direction and destination. Some will say that the forces we are dealing with are too great – an easy way to abdicate our responsibilities at home and abroad… But the challenge is to ensure that our value systems survive… The intellectual debate surrounding liberty and freedom has been the dynamic which has propelled much of our social, political and economic progress and, through our relationship with the rest of the world, shaped much of the direction of global thinking… enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke, Benjamin Franklin and David Hume shaped the political and philosophical discourse of the day, and are shaping it still. Adam Smith’s ‘invisible hand’ still provides the foundation and assumptions on which our economic system is based and operates…” Our ability to shape the world around us extends far beyond economics or trade or institutions and into the treasure of values, philosophies and beliefs that we all too often forget yet which have been one of our greatest global contributions.
I want briefly to deal with the third of the reasons given for pessimism about our future. That is, the pace and extent of technological change and its potential economic and societal impacts. I would like to give you two practical examples which I believe indicate the potential for this country to influence what has been described as the fourth Industrial Revolution.
I want to look at the future for the automobile industry and how it might affect the UK and, secondly, the great leap in tech that 5G may represent. The UK is the fourth largest car producer in Europe. It is a highly productive sector, employing 186,000 people directly in vehicle manufacturing and a further 238,000 in the supply chain, supporting highly skilled, well-paid jobs across the country. Half of all UK automotive exports go to the European Union and I am pleased that the Department for International trade has strong track record of success in this segment. The automotive industry is changing in ways that are transforming our understanding of mobility. These changes are facilitated by new technology and driven by consumer demands for a mobility experience that is connected, automated and sustainable. At the same time, the rapid emergence of technology as a market driver has left many of Europe’s established players scrambling to match the agility of Silicon Valley the newcomers and China’s dominance in the key enabler – battery technology. European players are responding by investing in technologies that map the priorities of the UK industrial strategy.
The fact that these are also emerging strengths of the UK automotive industry means that Britain has a new opportunity to influence and profit from the next generation mobility ecosystem. Nowhere is this clearer than in Eastern Europe and Germany. British companies have developed new technical capabilities in the UK automotive supply chain management and many are looking to continental supply chains for growth. The Department for International trade is working to encourage this shift. With a turnover of €423 billion, Germany is Europe’s leading automotive manufacturer and accounts for a third of global automotive R&D spending. The importance of the sector to German manufacturing means that disruption in the industry represents nothing less than a national challenge. It is a commonplace that the industry will change more in the next 10 years that it has in the last hundred. The technology that will drive the transformation – connected, autonomous, shared and electric – lies mainly with suppliers and therefore presages a shift of power within the industry from manufacturers to supply chain. This global phenomenon is accentuated here in Europe. This is where the golden opportunity lies for UK business.
The ties between the German and UK automotive industry run deep. Leading global players are headquartered in Germany and have significant existing manufacturing ties to the UK. Volkswagen in Crewe, BMW in Goodwood and Oxford, and Ford in Dagenham. Daimler EMG F1, Opel, Bosch, Continental, Brose and Webasto also have significant UK presence. Germany’s interest in UK companies and the UK as a location is growing. Young UK automotive tech companies such as AGM batteries, Trustonic, the Floow, Street drone, and Zircotec are already working with German manufacturer supported by the Department for International trade. This is translating into new investment from the like of Porsche, BMW and Hoffer powertrain. The CEO of Volkswagen Herbert Diess recently said that the German automotive industry had a 50% chance of survival. And, the centre of gravity is not only moving from production to suppliers but geographically eastwards in Europe. As vehicle manufacturing in Europe moves eastward, the value of production in countries like Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Poland and Serbia increases in line with the sophistication of the models manufactured. Audi and Porsche produce premium models in the region while Audi and BMW are opening EV plants that will produce 150,000 cars a year. The presence in Central Europe of so many OEMs creates a strong market in the supply chain or aftermarket.
DITs work to support Overseas Direct Investment (ODI) has been increasing to take advantage of this in Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia. For some UK companies export is the route to the future, for others it is investment overseas. What is clear, however, is that there will be considerable demand for the innovation, skills and investment that the UK has to offer in the future.
A similar pattern can be found in the opportunities around the shift in technological capability that will be associated with the 5G revolution. As technologies connect, value will lie in innovation that crosses traditional boundaries. This may be particularly important for our trade with Europe. Our tech-based export and investment has proven most resilient to the dampening effects of Brexit and the UK tech ecosystem equips us to play a leading role in the 5G world. 5G will lead to a boom in data use and data use intensity correlates directly with per capita GDP growth. It will hasten the trend away from wire, fibre and Wi-Fi to mobile data. Where 4G supports around 4,000 devices per square kilometre, can support up to 1 million devices. In Europe, the UK is leading the way with substantial investment in 5G testbeds an extensive network of catapult centres bringing industry and academia together to address problems at scale, investing in longer-term challenges through funding research in areas such as quantum communications.
As a consequence, the UK hosted more tech start-ups and greater investment in new tech business in 2018 than Germany and France combined. In general, we can expect to see 5G shift innovation South and East in Europe where faster systems will combine with lower labour costs to produce more efficient products and services. So central Europe is likely to become a focus for British Process Outsourcing (BPO), a process that has already begun. Additionally, early 5G commercial wins are likely to be in the technologies that transform cities. In Italy and Benelux, our focus on smart cities has opened new opportunities for small, specialist UK companies to take part in national and regional projects. We are engaging with the early adopters in central Europe through Smart City project in Warsaw, Budapest and Prague utilising role models such as Leeds in telemedicine and Bristol in urban mobility.
We have identified opportunities working with major German companies such as Siemens in business to business matchmaking, hosting and promoting similar events with Airbus, Audi and others in AI, computer vision and machine learning. Our DIT France team has focused on technology FDI, working with seven IT clusters and 20 tech hubs within “France Tech” and with centres of excellence in Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux and Lille to foster start-up collaboration. All of these things matter because they are an antidote to the corrosive pessimism that masquerades for some as a narrative of contemporary Britain. The examples that I have given represent empirical data rather than downbeat propaganda. There is a world beyond Europe and there will be a time beyond Brexit and we must be ready to face the challenges, grasp the opportunities and reap the rewards that the coming year will bring. Change is not optional – it is inevitable. The lesson from the natural world is that adaptation is necessary for survival.
We have the talent, the ingenuity and the experience as an outward -looking nation to navigate the fourth Industrial Revolution as well as, if not better than, many of our competitor nations. Our own history, if we understand and interpret it properly, can help act as a route map in our future. When confronted with the dreary rhetoric of the prophets of doom, I console myself with the words of Tennyson in in memoriam: “So many worlds, so much to do so little done, such things to be”. The above is taken from a speech delivered to Politeia.
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair
https://electricscotland.com/scotnews.htm
Electric Scotland News
The really big news this week is how well the new Brexit party is doing so thought I'd make this the main news item this week...
90,000 Britons build Brexit Party coffers to £2m ahead of European elections
NIGEL FARAGE has sent shockwaves through Westminster following his return to frontline politics after support for his newly-formed Brexit Party surpassed 90,000 registered members.
The former Ukip leader has enjoyed a resurgence to the political cauldron and has galvanised frustrated Brexiteers after the Government failed to deliver Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. Mr Farage has called for the grassroots eurosceptic party to overthrow the establishment and has vowed to fight the upcoming European elections, the Peterborough by-election and any future general elections. The leading Brexiteer has revealed the Brexit Party has raised an astonishing £2million from its members in the past month.
During a fiery encounter on ITV’s Peston show, Mr Farage hit back at Robert Peston who questioned where Mr Farage had received a huge £100,000 donation from.
The Brexit Party leader said the ITV political editor’s line of questioning was “quite extraordinary” and stated the finances would be revealed after the European Parliament elections on May 23.
Mr Farage said: “I find your question quite extraordinary. I’ve answered it once already, let’s try it again.
"Ninety-thousand individuals living in this country in the last four weeks have paid us £25 to become registered supporters of the Brexit Party. That’s over £2 million.
“I said we’ve received one big donation of £100,000, I can now tell you today, we’ve received several more. All of them have been reported to the Electoral Commission, and they will tell you who they are.”
Mr Farage, who was instrumental in campaigning to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum, insisted his return was not just “gesture politics” but the start of a “more ambitious project”.
The frustrated Brexiteer claimed the only way to deliver on the will of the 17.4 million people who voted to leave the bloc is to replace the Remainer MPs in the House of Commons.
Mr Farage added: “Please believe me, this is far from that. This is the first step in a much much bigger, much more ambitious project. We’re never going to get the Brexit we voted for with this current Parliament.
“So we need to change the kinds of people that are sitting in the House of Commons, and we will go on from the European elections, we’ll fight by-elections and general elections.”
The first true test of the Brexit Party will come when Britons head to the polls in 14 days time.
An exclusive Express.co.uk survey revealed overwhelming support for the Brexit Party.
A huge 86 percent of online respondents signalled their intention to vote for Mr Farage’s Party.
Participants highlighted the backlash against the mainstream parties with just one percent voting for Labour and zero percent for the Tories.
Elsewhere the Liberal Democrats received five percent, Change UK and Ukip were on three percent, whilst the Green Party and ‘other’ received just one percent.
A total of 48,465 people took part in the poll, which was conducted online at Express.co.uk between 3pm on Tuesday May 7 and 5pm on Wednesday May 8.
You can watch a coupe of speeches given by Nigel Farage at;
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...e-Brexit-Party
-------
You can view a video introduction to this newsletter at:
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines. I might also add that in newspapers such as the Guardian, Scotsman, Courier, etc. you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish.
Who’s afraid of Chlorinated Chicken?
Discussion of Brexit and food has been grossly distorted by ill-informed scare stories, of which concerning America ‘chlorinated chicken’ is the most notorious.
Read more at;
https://briefingsforbrexit.com/whos-...nated-chicken/
Tories call for unity after election drubbing
The Conservatives lost 1,334 councillors in Thursday's votes.
Read more at;
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48157991
Out, out, out
For the third time running, our survey finds a record proportion of party members wanting May gone now.
Read more at;
https://www.conservativehome.com/the...-gone-now.html
Fed up Canada tells U.S. to help with China crisis or forget about favours
Canada is leaning on the United States to help settle a dispute with China, which has started to block imports of vital Canadian commodities amid a dispute over a detained Huawei executive.
Read more at;
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-ca...-idUKKCN1SB0MX
The true test of Brexit opinion will come on May 23
The Brexit party is an impressively slick operation
Read more at:
https://capx.co/the-true-test-of-bre...come-on-may-23
Pamela Steer named Canada’s CFO of the Year
The organization was dealing with a crushing $14-billion deficit. Now, only a few years later, the WSIB boasts a surplus of several billion dollars.
Read more at:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/busi...o-of-the-year/
The Edinburgh entrepreneurs churning out butter that’s taking the capital’s food scene by storm
A recently launched Edinburgh-based butter company has become so popular it now supplies some of the capital's top hotels, restaurants and delis.
Read more at;
https://foodanddrink.scotsman.com/ge...ng-out-butter/
Peterborough by-election
Brexit Party unveil Secret Millionaire Mike Greene as candidate
Read more at;
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...e-nigel-farage
Billionaire Jeff Bezos to unveil plans for moon presence
Billionaire entrepreneur Jeff Bezos will unveil plans on Thursday for missions to the moon tailored to the U.S. government’s renewed push to establish a lunar outpost in just five years
Read more at;
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-sp...-idUKKCN1SF1WE
Electric Canadian
The Canadian Horticulturist
Volume 25 (1902) can be read at:
https://www.electriccanadian.com/tra...culturirst.htm
John Brown in Canada
A Monograph by James Cleland Hamilton, LL.D. (pdf). This is about the anti slavery movement.
You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/his...wnincanada.pdf
A Short History of Court Pride of Ontario No. 5640 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, 1871 to 1896,
Ancient Order of Foresters, Compiled and Written by John B. Buckingham, Secretary of the Court With Introduction by J. Watson Stead, Editor of The Ancient Forester.(1896) (pdf)
You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/his...courtpride.pdf
Record of the Founding of the Royal Canadian Academy
By His Excellency The Marquis of Lorne and Her Royal Highness The Princess Louise and the Constitution (1891) (pdf). You can read this at; https://www.electriccanadian.com/lif...ianAcademy.pdf
Hutterites in Canada
Found a good new video about them which you can view at;
https://www.electriccanadian.com/history/Mennonites.htm
Russians in Canada
Added a new page for Russians in Canada to add to our ethnic histories which you can read at;
https://www.electriccanadian.com/history/russia.htm
Conrad Black
The case for a wealth tax in Canada
http://www.conradmblack.com/1475/the...-tax-in-canada
Trump Looks Solid for 2020
http://www.conradmblack.com/1476/tru...solid-for-2020
Electric Scotland
The Scottish Review
Added Volume 36 - July October 1900 for you to read at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/review/index.htm
Folk Lore Society
Added volume 1 which you can get to towards the end of the page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/waifs/
Sketch of John Lee, D.D., M.D., Etc., Etc.
The Very Reverend The Principal of the University of Edinburgh born 1779; died 1859 by Sir John Rose Cormack, F.R.S.E., (1875) (pdf) who you can read about at; https://electricscotland.com/history.../lee_john2.htm
The Prince Of Monaco's Kitchen
I was watching a video on the work of the chef to Queen Elizabeth and when that finished it went on to this one which I really enjoyed so thought I'd share it with you and you can view this at;
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...naco-s-Kitchen
At home in Fiji
By Gordon Cumming (1886) (pdf).
In the autumn of 1874 it was announced that Fiji had been formally annexed by Great Britain. In January 1875 the Hon. Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon, K.C.M.G. (son of George, fourth Earl of Aberdeen), was appointed first Governor of Fiji.
I thought you might be interested in reading this as of course Fiji is part of the Commonwealth and can be read at;https://electricscotland.com/indepen...homeinfiji.pdf
The Navigators: pathfinders of the Pacific
A public broadcast film in two parts which can be viewed at:
https://archive.org/details/thenavigators
A Story of Active Service in foreign Lands
Compiled from Letters sent home from South Africa, India, and China, 1856 - 1882 by Surgeon-General A. Graham Young (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...reignlands.pdf
The 1746 Dress Act and its the effect on the culture of the Gaidhealtachd
A contribution from Beth of the Newfangled Family Tree which you can read at;
https://electricscotland.com/tartans/tartanbanessay.pdf
Hylton Newsletter
Christmas 2018 and into 2019 and this can be read at; https://electricscotland.com/familyt...tter2019-1.pdf
Henry Drummond
Added this Evangelist, biologist, writer and lecturer to our Significant Scots section.
You can read about him at: https://www.electricscotland.com/his...mond_henry.htm
Address of John Marshall, F.R.S.
President of the Royal Medical and Chirurgical Society of London at the Annual Meeting, March 1st, 1883 in which he gives some mini bios of deceased Fellows of the Society. You can read his address at;
https://electricscotland.com/history...hnMarshall.pdf
Memoir of the Honourqble George Keith Elphinstone. K.B.
Viscount Keith, Admiral of the Red by Alexander Allardyce (pdf)
A really excellent read which I read in its entirety and hope you'll be as fascinated as I was and it can be red at:https://www.electricscotland.com/his...lphinstone.pdf
Junior Tour Guides
Junior Tour Guides and Junior Rangers deliver performances and support projects at 10 of Historic Environment Scotland's sites across the country - from Orkney to Melrose.
You can view this video in our Community at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/show...es-Documentary
The Story
We have every reason to be optimistic and confident about Brexit Britain
Liam Fox has been a Conservative MP since 1992 and has held a variety of Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet posts. He has been Secretary of State for International Trade since July 2016.
When Winston Churchill won the Nobel Prize in 1953, he was unable to attend ceremony in person and his speech was read in Stockholm, in December of that year by Lady Churchill. It spoke of his fears for the future and the anxiety that events were spiralling beyond his grasp. He wrote:
“The power of man has grown in every sphere except over himself. Never in the field of action have events seemed so harshly to dwarf personalities. Rarely in history have brutal facts so dominated thought or has such a widespread, individual virtue found so dim a collective focus. The fearful question confronts us; have our problems got beyond our control? Undoubtedly we are passing through a phase where this may be so.”
In an era where the most bloody war in history had torn the world apart and been replaced by a Cold War with the new threat of nuclear war, such sentiments and the note of pessimism were understandable. We are fortunate to live in a very different era. Our living standards exceed anything that could have been imagined even in the 1950s. We saw off the political threat of communism from the East. We have lived in peace in Europe and North America for over 70 years and we have seen a billion people lifted out of abject poverty in the last 25 years alone as a result of global free trade and a capitalist economic system.
Churchill would have seen his most optimistic expectations realised. So why is it that so many people seem to be inconsolably pessimistic about this country’s future? Undoubtedly for some, Britain’s exit from the European Union is of great concern, especially those who have been unable to reconcile themselves to the democratic will expressed in the 2016 referendum.
They seem to believe that Britain cannot have an optimistic, prosperous and secure future without being subsumed into the supranational entity that the EU represents. Others believe that the era of globalisation may not work for us or that the challenge of rapidly changing technology is a threat to the social stability and economic predictability that we have taken for granted for many years.
What is this Britain that the pessimists describe or fear? Are we retreating from the world stage, abdicating our international influence or embracing protectionist concepts of economic nationalism? No we are not. We are not surrendering our permanent seat on the UN Security Council or leaving the G7 or G20. We are at the very heart of NATO. We remain in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the OECD, the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
We are not abandoning the Commonwealth where we hold a pivotal influence. Our special relationship with the United States holds firm. And not only do we support the WTO but we will soon take up our independent seat for the first time in over four decades. Yet still the voices of pessimism take on an almost “end of days” tone. Some may think it is irrelevant but I believe it matters because it damages us at home and abroad. As David Grinspoon, the American astrobiologist put it, in a different context, in his book Earth in human hands,
“Pessimism if it becomes a habit can reinforce a narrative of unstoppable decline. If there is nothing we can do, that releases us from our obligations”.
Not only do I believe such pessimism is unfounded and both defeatist and self-defeating, but I believe that there is every reason for the UK to be confident and optimistic about the future. Change is coming a-plenty but it is something we should embrace, not fear. Let’s start with a reality check about the state of our economy and our comparative international performance.
UK unemployment is at a 45-year low. Our rate of 3.9% compares with 7.9% for the Eurozone, 8.8% for France and 14.5% for Spain. The Bank of England has recently upgraded the forecast for UK growth this year from 1.2% to 1.5%. The European Union has downgraded growth for the Eurozone to 1.2% and Germany to 0.5%. Last year UK exports of goods and services rose to a new record of £634.1 billion. We have, in fact, added £1.7 trillion to our export performance since the EU referendum. And what did we sell? In 2018, we sold over £50 billion worth of mechanical machinery, £33 billion worth of cars, £29 billion worth of electrical machinery and £25 billion worth of medicinal and pharmaceutical products. And then we sold £286.7 billion in services, including financial services. So much for those who say Britain doesn’t make anything anymore.
But if you want to see where Britain’s real global performance has been stellar, look to the foreign direct investment profile. Last year the UK attracted more venture capital investment than anywhere else in Europe, with £6.3 billion. And it is not just tech where inward investment has been booming. According to UNCTAD, while global Foreign Direct Investment flows decreased by 19% globally in 2018 and by 73% in continental Europe, FDI to the UK increased by 20%. All this, as some of the media repeatedly say, despite Brexit.
So why is it that overseas investors ignore the defeatism of so much of the metropolitan liberal commentariat?
Last year Britain was the third top global destination and the top European destination for foreign direct investment. Repeated surveys from Deloitte, EY and others paint an interesting and, more importantly, consistent picture about why investment comes to Britain. The list bears examination because it points to why there is every reason to be optimistic about our economic future. The first reason that is given is our legal system. English law – impartial, respected and well understood , not least due to its replication in so many other parts of the world. It is one of our most precious assets as a nation yet not always connected with the success of our investment. Next comes the flexibility and skill of our workforce, combined with the attractiveness of UK labour law.
As an international businessman put it to me recently – and I quote: “If I want to employ someone in the UK at £15,000 per year it will cost me £18,000 and if it doesn’t work we can part company. In Germany it will cost me £20,000 and if we decide to part ways I will have to pay a year’s salary. In France it will cost me £24,000 and I will have to keep them however poor their performance. That is why investment comes to Britain. That is why your unemployment rate is half that of the Eurozone”.
The next factors are the stability of the regulatory environment and the attractiveness of the taxation system in the UK. Investment is an increasingly competitive environment in the era of globalisation and those who seek arbitrary intervention in our regulatory framework and who would raise tax to punitive levels will only succeed in lowering investment and raising unemployment. Remember that every single period of Labour government has ended with more people out of work than it started.
Next comes access to innovation and, in particular, collaboration with the UK’s universities. It is a remarkable feat that this country, with under 13% of the European population and under 1% of the global population are able to provide 7 out the top 10 European universities and four out of the global top 10. It is striking that the UK is the second destination in the world for inbound students, with more than 500,000, according to the latest figures.
Then come two attributes that we may seldom think about. The first is language and the second is time. It is one of our great natural advantages to speak English, the accepted language of business. While it is true that only 379 million speak English as a first language compared to 460 million for Spanish, what is more instructive is to look at the number who are learning English as a second language. In Europe, in upper secondary education, 94% were studying English, compared to around 22% Spanish, 17% German and 16% French. This is a gift to British businesses as they operate around the world yet perhaps not fully understood or exploited.
What is clear is the contribution that education makes to our export performance. The latest figures valued education exports at £19.9 billion. How does that compare? Well, the total export of insurance and pension services from the UK was £18.8 billion. And Whisky exports were just £5 billion.
Likewise is the time zone in which we live, allowing us to trade with Asia in the morning and the US in the afternoon, one of the many factors why London is such an attractive place for investment and why, along with the depth of professional infrastructure, regulatory framework and worldwide reputation for innovation, the City remains the globally pre-eminent financial centre.
The penultimate factor I want to mention is the protection the UK affords to Intellectual Property. Our IP protection is regularly cited to me around the world as the global gold standard and is a major factor in the number of start-ups occurring in this country. What is the common thread that runs through all these different factors? It is that none of them are dependent on our membership of the European Union. That is not to downplay the size of the EU as an export market. It is, and will remain hugely important to UK business which is why a good deal with the EU is so valuable.
Nor is it to understate the importance of European supply chains in our manufacturing process although it is worth noting that we incorporate more, and an increasing proportion of, non-EU than EU content into our exports.
Which brings me to the final reason that may make the UK an attractive destination for investment. Many investors tell me that while they understand the UK environment well they do not yet know how the EU27 will develop politically and economically without the UK’s free market influence. As long as we maintain an open, liberal, market economy with relatively benign tax and regulatory environments our economic fundamentals will remain strong and our country an attractive one.
That is why issues such as Brexit are not nearly so worrying to investors as the potential election of a hard Left, anti-wealth, high-borrowing and irresponsibly-spending Labour government. I don’t intend to dwell on the issue of globalisation which I have done extensively in the past, especially in my book Rising Tides which deals with the challenges and opportunities of the globalised economic environment, except to say what I wrote at the time:
“It is important for us to remember that we are not simply passengers on a globalization conveyor belt but are able to influence its direction and destination. Some will say that the forces we are dealing with are too great – an easy way to abdicate our responsibilities at home and abroad… But the challenge is to ensure that our value systems survive… The intellectual debate surrounding liberty and freedom has been the dynamic which has propelled much of our social, political and economic progress and, through our relationship with the rest of the world, shaped much of the direction of global thinking… enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke, Benjamin Franklin and David Hume shaped the political and philosophical discourse of the day, and are shaping it still. Adam Smith’s ‘invisible hand’ still provides the foundation and assumptions on which our economic system is based and operates…” Our ability to shape the world around us extends far beyond economics or trade or institutions and into the treasure of values, philosophies and beliefs that we all too often forget yet which have been one of our greatest global contributions.
I want briefly to deal with the third of the reasons given for pessimism about our future. That is, the pace and extent of technological change and its potential economic and societal impacts. I would like to give you two practical examples which I believe indicate the potential for this country to influence what has been described as the fourth Industrial Revolution.
I want to look at the future for the automobile industry and how it might affect the UK and, secondly, the great leap in tech that 5G may represent. The UK is the fourth largest car producer in Europe. It is a highly productive sector, employing 186,000 people directly in vehicle manufacturing and a further 238,000 in the supply chain, supporting highly skilled, well-paid jobs across the country. Half of all UK automotive exports go to the European Union and I am pleased that the Department for International trade has strong track record of success in this segment. The automotive industry is changing in ways that are transforming our understanding of mobility. These changes are facilitated by new technology and driven by consumer demands for a mobility experience that is connected, automated and sustainable. At the same time, the rapid emergence of technology as a market driver has left many of Europe’s established players scrambling to match the agility of Silicon Valley the newcomers and China’s dominance in the key enabler – battery technology. European players are responding by investing in technologies that map the priorities of the UK industrial strategy.
The fact that these are also emerging strengths of the UK automotive industry means that Britain has a new opportunity to influence and profit from the next generation mobility ecosystem. Nowhere is this clearer than in Eastern Europe and Germany. British companies have developed new technical capabilities in the UK automotive supply chain management and many are looking to continental supply chains for growth. The Department for International trade is working to encourage this shift. With a turnover of €423 billion, Germany is Europe’s leading automotive manufacturer and accounts for a third of global automotive R&D spending. The importance of the sector to German manufacturing means that disruption in the industry represents nothing less than a national challenge. It is a commonplace that the industry will change more in the next 10 years that it has in the last hundred. The technology that will drive the transformation – connected, autonomous, shared and electric – lies mainly with suppliers and therefore presages a shift of power within the industry from manufacturers to supply chain. This global phenomenon is accentuated here in Europe. This is where the golden opportunity lies for UK business.
The ties between the German and UK automotive industry run deep. Leading global players are headquartered in Germany and have significant existing manufacturing ties to the UK. Volkswagen in Crewe, BMW in Goodwood and Oxford, and Ford in Dagenham. Daimler EMG F1, Opel, Bosch, Continental, Brose and Webasto also have significant UK presence. Germany’s interest in UK companies and the UK as a location is growing. Young UK automotive tech companies such as AGM batteries, Trustonic, the Floow, Street drone, and Zircotec are already working with German manufacturer supported by the Department for International trade. This is translating into new investment from the like of Porsche, BMW and Hoffer powertrain. The CEO of Volkswagen Herbert Diess recently said that the German automotive industry had a 50% chance of survival. And, the centre of gravity is not only moving from production to suppliers but geographically eastwards in Europe. As vehicle manufacturing in Europe moves eastward, the value of production in countries like Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Poland and Serbia increases in line with the sophistication of the models manufactured. Audi and Porsche produce premium models in the region while Audi and BMW are opening EV plants that will produce 150,000 cars a year. The presence in Central Europe of so many OEMs creates a strong market in the supply chain or aftermarket.
DITs work to support Overseas Direct Investment (ODI) has been increasing to take advantage of this in Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia. For some UK companies export is the route to the future, for others it is investment overseas. What is clear, however, is that there will be considerable demand for the innovation, skills and investment that the UK has to offer in the future.
A similar pattern can be found in the opportunities around the shift in technological capability that will be associated with the 5G revolution. As technologies connect, value will lie in innovation that crosses traditional boundaries. This may be particularly important for our trade with Europe. Our tech-based export and investment has proven most resilient to the dampening effects of Brexit and the UK tech ecosystem equips us to play a leading role in the 5G world. 5G will lead to a boom in data use and data use intensity correlates directly with per capita GDP growth. It will hasten the trend away from wire, fibre and Wi-Fi to mobile data. Where 4G supports around 4,000 devices per square kilometre, can support up to 1 million devices. In Europe, the UK is leading the way with substantial investment in 5G testbeds an extensive network of catapult centres bringing industry and academia together to address problems at scale, investing in longer-term challenges through funding research in areas such as quantum communications.
As a consequence, the UK hosted more tech start-ups and greater investment in new tech business in 2018 than Germany and France combined. In general, we can expect to see 5G shift innovation South and East in Europe where faster systems will combine with lower labour costs to produce more efficient products and services. So central Europe is likely to become a focus for British Process Outsourcing (BPO), a process that has already begun. Additionally, early 5G commercial wins are likely to be in the technologies that transform cities. In Italy and Benelux, our focus on smart cities has opened new opportunities for small, specialist UK companies to take part in national and regional projects. We are engaging with the early adopters in central Europe through Smart City project in Warsaw, Budapest and Prague utilising role models such as Leeds in telemedicine and Bristol in urban mobility.
We have identified opportunities working with major German companies such as Siemens in business to business matchmaking, hosting and promoting similar events with Airbus, Audi and others in AI, computer vision and machine learning. Our DIT France team has focused on technology FDI, working with seven IT clusters and 20 tech hubs within “France Tech” and with centres of excellence in Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux and Lille to foster start-up collaboration. All of these things matter because they are an antidote to the corrosive pessimism that masquerades for some as a narrative of contemporary Britain. The examples that I have given represent empirical data rather than downbeat propaganda. There is a world beyond Europe and there will be a time beyond Brexit and we must be ready to face the challenges, grasp the opportunities and reap the rewards that the coming year will bring. Change is not optional – it is inevitable. The lesson from the natural world is that adaptation is necessary for survival.
We have the talent, the ingenuity and the experience as an outward -looking nation to navigate the fourth Industrial Revolution as well as, if not better than, many of our competitor nations. Our own history, if we understand and interpret it properly, can help act as a route map in our future. When confronted with the dreary rhetoric of the prophets of doom, I console myself with the words of Tennyson in in memoriam: “So many worlds, so much to do so little done, such things to be”. The above is taken from a speech delivered to Politeia.
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair
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