Escaping Brexit Britain

Parler  de la merde

On the final evening of our two weeks in France, we visited a favourite restaurant that we had found five or six years ago. Nestled in vineyards about a kilometre from the sleepy village of Issirac, it is owned and run by a young couple who have built an upstairs and outdoor eating shelter since our last visit pre-Brexit. Le Mouton Noir encapsulates many of the characteristics of the area. The beautiful stonework in the local limestone, and simple but elegant timber finishes created by local joiners. The menu is dominated by local food products including cheeses, fruits, lamb and wines. Above our table was a picture that probably sums up what the young French restauranters think of their politicians. I only wish we had such a relatively harmless view of the candidates seeking to be our future prime minister as they excoriate each other in the honour of completing Boris Johnson's world-beating trashing of the UK.

There was no surprise that the restaurant with its friendly customer care is fully booked despite its isolated location off a paved road and 20 kilometres from the nearest town. We always return to this tranquil oasis as do many others who visit this secluded haven in rural Provence.  Even the food prices seemed about the same as on our last visit pre-Covid, although the pound has collapsed by 21% against the Euro since Brexit. 

The restaurant is an example of how localism prevails in this part of France. The roads and schools are maintained with local pride by the municipalities that are vested with powers that give them some autonomy from the distant centralised control. It is this that has allowed local ideas, projects and businesses to flourish and services to be held to account. What a contrast to top-down Britain where Westminster and Holyrood hold all the cards and are reluctant to allow priorities to be decided locally. Accountability in Britain is to government quangos and inspectorates that guarantee a plodding reluctant subservience to central diktaks with little encouragement to innovate.  

 

We spent a lot of time talking to another couple staying at the chambres d'hotes, a French wife and German husband, who lived in Switzerland where inflation was still below 3%. Like most other people we spoke to, they regarded the UK as a broken state, incapable of making rational decisions or behaving with the decorum that might be expected from a mature democratic country. They were intrigued by the Tory Party shenanigans in finding a new leader to replace the disgraced Boris Johnson. They likened it to a game show and could not understand why there was no political debate on climate change or any attempt to rebuild trust with the EU. They explained how decision-making by the EU had been hijacked by the never-ending Brexit negotiations. They explained how decisions on Horizon funding for scientific research that were crucial for the company he worked for had been held up because of the UK not following the Northern Ireland protocol. This had serious consequences for Switzerland and other non-EU countries who considered Horizon to be vital to ensure the cross-fertilisation of research. It was another reason to distrust the UK government which seemed unable to understand the basics of diplomacy.

Inflation is running at just over 5% in France compared to 10% in the UK. This is predicted to rise to 15% for the poorest households in the UK as a consequence of a threefold increase in energy prices over the year. The contrast is mainly because the French government has frozen gas prices and limited the increase in the annual cost of electricity to 4%. EDF, the state-owned power company, has to sell electricity at a price cap, The French government has also restricted energy use and reduced fuel taxes. The consequence has been a steadily growing economy with citizens and businesses able to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The anxiety and fears that are gathering momentum in the UK are absent. The paradox is that the French government has intervened to reduce the increases in the market cost of energy whilst a member of the EU. The UK government, despite taking back control after Brexit, has shown no such concern and let the markets rip. It was a reminder of what it is like to be in a civilised country that is more concerned about its citizens and businesses than safeguarding the wealthy and their tax havens.

France has a constitution that enshrines powers to the regions and municipalities that have used the period of the pandemic to reflect, plan and invest in upgrading the infrastructure. There was visible evidence that this had been significant. Our nearest village with a population of about 1000 had seen a dozen or so new houses built in the vernacular style, an upgrading of the primary school, a new business hub, a new boulangerie and landscaping work in the village centre. Many roads had been resurfaced so cycling was a pleasure. The local hotel had had a makeover and a new restaurant had opened. 

All this positive development convinced me that localism and the need to have a constitution that embeds power in councils is essential. It is patently obvious that the Westminster government is failing in so many ways. Not least is its perilous attempts to control and dictate services from London. I would prefer Westminster to shed the vast majority of its assumed powers to the devolved nations of the UK, England's regions, the councils and local communities. Some powers would be better transferred back to the EU, which despite often torturous negotiations in setting standards and regulations, provides a more sustainable and ethical framework and prevents the flimflammery of Westminster politics. With this exemption, the principle should be to devolve to the most local level possible. Westminster should focus on truly national issues like monetary policy and regulation, foreign policy and defence, international aid, trade, and climate change.

As we left France, there were no delays in the airport other than the plane from Edinburgh arriving three hours late. Despite Liz Truss attempting to blame the French for delays at customs being the cause, there was no such problem. It was just that there was insufficient baggage handling staff at Edinburgh Airport.

It made me despair at all the comments that Brexit is done, let's get on with it. Brexit has been an utter disaster and I would certainly vote for any party that promised we would apply to rejoin the EU. The only way we are going to stop our Luddite politicians from allowing sewage to enter the rivers and sea is to follow EU regulations, I trust the EU far more than the UK government to be responsible for environmental regulations and taxing global companies. They are less likely to succomb to the intensive lobbying and deals that have become the underlying curse of Westminster ministerial manipulation by the city, oligarchs and their acolytes. 

France is not perfect but it does recognise and support its communities as vital cogs in determining and delivering services. President Macron, when interviewed at the end of a stage of the Tour de France, showed how to speak with humility and respect for all nations. Whilst he displayed a deep empathy for French culture and its environment, there was no attempt to politicise or castigate others. He was statesmanlike and a genuine fan of international cycling. There was none of the gratuitous triumphalism that is the curse of the UK's clueless government politicians.