The annual Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival took place over last weekend, Dorset for Europe were there too and happy to report that our stand was very well attended both Saturday and Sunday.

The photo’s show the venue on arrival, then our stand made ready to meet our visitors. (OpinionOmeters for Sat and Sun inc.)
As in the previous year people often just asked how close we were to becoming members of the EU.

This year that discussion had intensified with folk coming forward, simply to say that they were lied to and felt conned.

Particularly some who explained that they had cast their vote in good faith, but on false promises and incorrect information. They wanted back in the EU with a return of their sadly missed rights and privileges, and for their children.

It was a very busy couple of days, particularly Sunday. The other stand holders included numerous campaign platforms including the Green Party on climate and the Labour Party group, supporting a change to the U.K. electoral system to ‘PR’. Plus many of the well known TUC representatives, members and Unions.

Lots of our conversations revolved around the time it would take to become an EU member state, many visitors keen to see how the nine steps through the EU accession agreement have to be completed and also the time it could take to achieve.

We would hope that the U.K. might achieve the requirements and meet with agreement of the European Commission and Parliament by 2036, but hopefully and provided the U.K. government continues its plans on ‘dynamic alignment’ and avoid excessive deviation from the U.K. ‘Retained EU Regulation’ – agreements could be achieved sooner.

Of course, the Euro came up in conversation and whilst desirable for any new member state, it’s down to negotiation.

The U.K. is seen as a possible part of the Enlargement Policy and a big plus being that the EU sees itself stronger with the U.K. included and preferably at the top table, so there is a potential deferment of our joining the single currency, if it would delay membership.

In the opinion of some economists, once the U.K. makes the commitment to seek membership and it’s direction of travel is clear, that in itself will become a boost to the economy.

There is now a development of pressure on government to scrap some of the redlines in this parliament and clearly state an intention for accession in the manifesto for the next election.

Development of forthright public agreement must also be demonstrated within the accession agreement – so much work still to be done, and we must all just ‘keep on keeping on’, as the patriotic thing to be done.

The Erasmus+ Programme promoted

We took the opportunity to promote the Erasmus+ Programme to young people and parents who seemed keen to find out more and carryout further research.