TORY LEADERSHIP ELECTION

Theresa May has emerged as the favourite to win the Tory leadership contest. She has managed this by steering clear of controversy during the referendum campaign (she declared for Remain, but then stayed out of the debate), and by attracting support from both sides subsequently. The Remainers, despite losing the referendum, are rallying around Theresa May in the hope of keeping one of their own in charge.

Theresa May sounds good on a superficial level: 'First, Brexit means Brexit … the public gave their verdict. There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door, and no second referendum. The country voted to leave the European Union, and it is the duty of the Government and of Parliament to make sure we do just that.' She further rules out a general election, advocates business as normal, but says that Article 50 will not be invoked 'until the British negotiating strategy is agreed and clear', and that this is unlikely to be 'before the end of this year'. Meanwhile, there is no change. She is advocating that nothing is done and is stalling.

As with most of the Remainers, Theresa May believes that 'nobody should fool themselves that this process will be brief or straightforward'. It could take 'several years to disentangle our laws, rules and processes from the Brussels machinery'. She proposes to create a new government department, led by 'a senior Secretary of State' who she proposes should be someone 'who campaigned for Britain to leave the EU'.

Theresa May says that 'there is clearly no mandate for a deal that involves accepting the free movement of people as it has worked hitherto … But I want to be clear that as we conduct our negotiations, it must be a priority to allow British companies to trade with the single market in goods and services – but also to regain more control of the numbers of people who come here from Europe. Any attempt to wriggle out of that – especially from leadership candidates who campaigned to leave the EU by focusing on immigration – will be unacceptable to the public'. The key terms are 'as it has worked hitherto' and 'regain more control'. Despite her superficially tough rhetoric, she is equivocating. Her opening negotiating stance betrays a fudge and a willingness to give the EU a say in who lives in Britain. That is her opening stance. The EU has already made it clear that they will insist on free movement in return for free access to the Single Market. This rigid condition is to be met, under Theresa May, with a fudge and a willingness to give concessions from the outset. She makes no mention of the balance of trade deficit.


Theresa May sets out her stall: 'The process of withdrawal will be complex, and it will require hard work, serious work, and detailed work. And it means we need a Prime Minister who is a tough negotiator, and ready to do the job from day one'. Yet she is not a tough negotiator. Her opening stance signals a willingness to give in. The EU will take her to the cleaners. Theresa May tries to emphasize her toughness in her speech. For example she boasts 'I was told I couldn’t deport Abu Qatada, but I flew to Jordan and negotiated the treaty that got him out of Britain for good'. This might sound very fine, but what about all the rest of the extremists and criminal immigrants? Many of them have been getting British passports, courtesy of Theresa May.


On immigration Theresa May has been ineffective. She has highlighted the consequences when immigration is too high, but has done nothing about it. She talks and drops hints, but does nothing. Net immigration is at an all-time high and still soaring. Then there is illegal immigration. Immigrants come tumbling out of the back of lorries, have stormed the Channel Tunnel and are now even getting in to Britain by boats. This is her responsibility. She has not stood up to people smugglers, she has allowed them to take over control of Britain's borders.


As if that is not bad enough, we have the spectacle of jihadists sneaking off to join ISIS, so that they can live under extreme Islamist theories; where they can murder, rape, indulge in paedophilia, crucify, behead, enslave captured women, and glory in their barbarity. And if they grow bored with all this, then they can slip back into Britain to resume their previous life as a victim of a racist society. Then there are those jihadists who intend to commit terrorist and barbaric acts.

We need someone far tougher than Theresa May. She is a Remainer. She spent the referendum campaign in hiding. She does not understand what is required or how angry the public are with the fudging, spin and lies that are being presented to them by the ruling class. She is too politically correct and too enamoured with the EU to govern properly.