Well Done Nigel Farage And Ukip - The Plebs Have Spoken

[Mr Mosquito]

You are funny, the upper middle class tory toff Eton, oxbridge educated political elite has shrunk down to 'oxford educated political class', so as your 'latest' idol can exempt himself, you couldn't make it up.

It's the common denominator between Nick Clegg, David Cameron and Ed Miliband - they're all Oxford University educated. It would be interesting to know which Oxford University lecturer/ professor has brainwashed/ programmed their minds into their total obedience to the European Union project. Tony Blair was also Oxford University educated. A whole political leadership class educated at the same University !!!!

[Esmond Million's Bung]

It's the common denominator between Nick Clegg, David Cameron and Ed Miliband - they're all Oxford University educated. It would be interesting to know which Oxford University lecturer/ professor has brainwashed/ programmed their minds into their total obedience to the European Union project. Tony Blair was also Oxford University educated. A whole political leadership class educated at the same University !!!!

Even on this thread you originally railed against upper middle class political classes, but that is now ok, because it describes your latest idol, in fact the only actual difference to his background you can find is Oxford university.

[marshy]

Be fair, I didn't mention intelligence I mentioned education and I'm far from being a well-read scholar..

I'm largely apathetic but did see the bloke in a Channel 4 News documentary (not BBC) in Romania where the locals surprisingly told him they'd rather live in poverty than move here. They made him look a bit silly and totally undermined his whole purpose of going out there.

It is obviously an ideal moment for a new party to have success given the political climate and global economy and I'm not at all surprised UKIP have done well.

Other than the line about not just being against open door immigration and definatly not being racist I can not tell you any other proposed policy I've heard from UKIP so am just saying what I'm seeing.

Perhaps he should open his own line of media and relate with the clarity he claims to because at the moment he seems to simply be filling a temporary but blatant neish in the market, time will tell............

Probably because up to now they've not been given the same coverage as the other main parties. Their policies are clearly set out on their website.http://www.ukip.org/content/ukip-policies

[marshy]

of course EU countries will sell to us, but who will buy from us and what will they buy?, I am yet to see one coherent policy about the day after leaving the EU.

I see, you are suggesting that we will continue to buy from them but they will refuse to buy from us....mmmm?

What will they buy? Well you could do some research yourself if you are desparately concerned. Look at the websites of the top 350 companies and note the amount of exports that go to Europe. Remember we do have a larger manufacturing sector than France who are heavily weighted in favour of agriculture being propped up by the Common Agricultural Policy. As for coherent policy well I'm pretty much in the camp that business should be allowed to get on with the job of doing what it does best without the government muddying the waters with policies. My guess is that things will go on much as before but we will be saved the £53 million a day we send to Brussels for an unwanted and unnecessary exta layer of bureaucracy. Maybe we could spend it on filling up some of the potholes I'm forever dodging rather than send it to Poland and Hungary to upgrade their infrastuctures.

[Esmond Million's Bung]

I see, you are suggesting that we will continue to buy from them but they will refuse to buy from us....mmmm?

What will they buy? Well you could do some research yourself if you are desparately concerned. Look at the websites of the top 350 companies and note the amount of exports that go to Europe. Remember we do have a larger manufacturing sector than France who are heavily weighted in favour of agriculture being propped up by the Common Agricultural Policy. As for coherent policy well I'm pretty much in the camp that business should be allowed to get on with the job of doing what it does best without the government muddying the waters with policies. My guess is that things will go on much as before but we will be saved the £53 million a day we send to Brussels for an unwanted and unnecessary exta layer of bureaucracy. Maybe we could spend it on filling up some of the potholes I'm forever dodging rather than send it to Poland and Hungary to upgrade their infrastuctures.

No Marshy you suggested that the EU would sell to us and I agreed, do you honestly believe the rest of the EU will let the UK off scot free?, with the money being pumped into eastern europe, the remaining EU countries will not need to trade with the UK because eastern europe will fulfill that particular need.

i'm not worried just contributing to lively debate and having a good laugh at the more looney diatribe, I look forward to the glorious day when UKIP take us out of the EU and then have to suddenly invent policies to keep the UK afloat, anyway look out Poland.

[Mr Mosquito]

Even on this thread you originally railed against upper middle class political classes, but that is now ok, because it describes your latest idol, in fact the only actual difference to his background you can find is Oxford university.

Nigel Farage didn't go to University and hasn't, thus, been exposed to brainwashing/ programming from Cultural Marxist type and European Union loving University lecturers/ professors. I went to University and I still remember various business lecturers and their love for the hopelessly corrupt EEC/ European Union project, as a student I challenged them and was often lambasted for it.

[Mr Mosquito]

I see, you are suggesting that we will continue to buy from them but they will refuse to buy from us....mmmm?

What will they buy? Well you could do some research yourself if you are desparately concerned. Look at the websites of the top 350 companies and note the amount of exports that go to Europe. Remember we do have a larger manufacturing sector than France who are heavily weighted in favour of agriculture being propped up by the Common Agricultural Policy. As for coherent policy well I'm pretty much in the camp that business should be allowed to get on with the job of doing what it does best without the government muddying the waters with policies. My guess is that things will go on much as before but we will be saved the £53 million a day we send to Brussels for an unwanted and unnecessary exta layer of bureaucracy. Maybe we could spend it on filling up some of the potholes I'm forever dodging rather than send it to Poland and Hungary to upgrade their infrastuctures.

I get the idea that Esmond Million's Bung is a committed European Unionist and like our Lib-Lab-Con EU loving elite is shit scared of us leaving the EU project - hence that posters extremely prejudiced anti UKIP posts. Indeed, the last thing that the likes of Germany will want is a trade war with us from boycotting our products when we come out of the EU. We buy enormous amounts of their lorries and cars. The amount of Audis, BMWs and Mercedes cars and vans on our roads is testament to that. I know of a great many Germans that want rid of the €Euro and a return to the D-mark currency and restoration of their border controls by leaving the EU.

[Esmond Million's Bung]

I get the idea that Esmond Million's Bung is a committed European Unionist and like our Lib-Lab-Con EU loving elite is shit scared of us leaving the EU project - hence that posters extremely prejudiced anti UKIP posts. Indeed, the last thing that the likes of Germany will want is a trade war with us from boycotting our products when we come out of the EU. We buy enormous amounts of their lorries and cars. The amount of Audis, BMWs and Mercedes cars and vans on our roads is testament to that. I know of a great many Germans that want rid of the €Euro and a return to the D-mark currency and restoration of their border controls by leaving the EU.

RG, please don't make things up about me, just keep posting your non sensical diatribe and throw in the odd Oliver Cromwell offering and we'll all be entertained.

My point is from the start of this thread you have managed to change the point of your attack to just to Oxford university because your 'latest' idol fits into all of the other categories you originally mentioned and detest.

[bucksred]

No mention from you of all the disgruntled Labour and Tory voters that now vote UKIP and are also hoping to stand as UKIP candidates. UKIP got 26% of the vote at the recent council elections - mostly ex Tory voters apparently, the momentum is now there for UKIP to trounce the remaining EU loving Lib-Lab-Con at the upcoming European elections. If we can get a UKIP government at Westminster after that then they'll be no need for a referendum on EU membership as UKIP will have the democratic mandate to take us out of the EU.

Gobbers, like you I am not a fan of t'EU, but UKIP are currently the favorite party of protest votes, from voters of every persuasion. In Bucks where I live they voted in 5 UKIP & 1 Independant & 1 Liebour new. The UKIP & Independants got in as a protest against the ill thought HS2 project will will wreck the Chilterns and many other areas. My own village voted UKIP, Independant, Tory, Green & Lib Dumb in that order. I strongly suspect the vote will return to the Tories and Lib Dumbs when election time comes around in 2015 is it?

What Cameron now has is a mandate to seek change in the EU, and has the backing of Germany, Holland and other Northern European states, who along with the UK bankroll th whole inept corrupt French run mess. No longer to Germans want to be good Europeans and do what they Frogs want them to do. I dislike the previous chancellor Schroeder intenseley but he and his red buddies bit the bullet and made Germany competitive again, from a position like Spain, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, France, Belgium are still in.

I still think its now too late to leave the EU now, The world has changed and we have no remaining natural allies. The USA will be a Hispanic dominated country in 20 or so years, and will therefore not regard the UK as a special ally, neither will the farce which is the Commonwealth. And like Norway & Switzerlnd which aint in the EU, but comply with the majority of rules n regulations the Europrats come out with. In all honesty the only thing we will get back under our control is immigration, and thanks to Liebour, thats now too late to control.

Had we bailed in 2000 we might have had a chance, but its too damn late sadly. Like it or hate it, We are a European state, and we must now seize the moment and create summat we can live with. There is a chance..specially if Germany wants change..

[Mr Mosquito]

Are we not having a vote on the EU when the conservatives win the next election. As for ukip they are just riding the current wave of feeling and make up the rest of there policies as they go along. They will be swallowed up be another party after the next election, maybe even the conservatives just like the libs did to SDP a few years back. Sorry Gobs but they seem very gobby and not much else.

Indeed, Tories cannot be trusted to give us a referendum on our EU membership. John Major's Tories took us into the EU in 1992 via signing the Maastricht Treaty. Edward Heath's Tories took us into the EU's predecessor - the EEC - in 1973. David Camoron promised us an EU referendum for this Parliament in 2009 if elected - he's reneged on that and 'may' give us a referendum in the next Parliament if elected. For these reasons UKIP will not go away and will continue gaining in strength until we're out of the EU and by that time there may not be a Tory Party of relevance because the Tories are already ripping themselves apart over the EU membership question. I remember voting for the 'Referendum Party' in the early 90s, so that's 20 years of anti EU voter sentiment.

[Mr Mosquito]

Gobbers, like you I am not a fan of t'EU, but UKIP are currently the favorite party of protest votes, from voters of every persuasion. In Bucks where I live they voted in 5 UKIP & 1 Independant & 1 Liebour new. The UKIP & Independants got in as a protest against the ill thought HS2 project will will wreck the Chilterns and many other areas. My own village voted UKIP, Independant, Tory, Green & Lib Dumb in that order. I strongly suspect the vote will return to the Tories and Lib Dumbs when election time comes around in 2015 is it?

What Cameron now has is a mandate to seek change in the EU, and has the backing of Germany, Holland and other Northern European states, who along with the UK bankroll th whole inept corrupt French run mess. No longer to Germans want to be good Europeans and do what they Frogs want them to do. I dislike the previous chancellor Schroeder intenseley but he and his red buddies bit the bullet and made Germany competitive again, from a position like Spain, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, France, Belgium are still in.

I still think its now too late to leave the EU now, The world has changed and we have no remaining natural allies. The USA will be a Hispanic dominated country in 20 or so years, and will therefore not regard the UK as a special ally, neither will the farce which is the Commonwealth. And like Norway & Switzerlnd which aint in the EU, but comply with the majority of rules n regulations the Europrats come out with. In all honesty the only thing we will get back under our control is immigration, and thanks to Liebour, thats now too late to control.

Had we bailed in 2000 we might have had a chance, but its too damn late sadly. Like it or hate it, We are a European state, and we must now seize the moment and create summat we can live with. There is a chance..specially if Germany wants change..

Germans are a very industrious and disciplined people - and like Japan - are one of the few developed countries known to have and are capable of recovering from chaos in far less than one generation. I get the idea that Germans would like their own currency restored and proper border control - but have the USA, Russia and Britain still got control over the German government on this? A German was telling me that the USA still hold a big part of the German gold reserve as surity against any future German extremism. Maybe that was one of the conditions of a re-united Germany, anyway I don't know for sure. It seems to me that many Germans would like to leave the EU project if they could and then the whole rotten EU structure would surely collapse?

[Esmond Million's Bung]

Germans are a very industrious and disciplined people - and like Japan - are one of the few developed countries known to have and are capable of recovering from chaos in far less than one generation. I get the idea that Germans would like their own currency restored and proper border control - but have the USA, Russia and Britain still got control over the German government on this? A German was telling me that the USA still hold a big part of the German gold reserve as surity against any future German extremism. Maybe that was one of the conditions of a re-united Germany, anyway I don't know for sure. It seems to me that many Germans would like to leave the EU project if they could and then the whole rotten EU structure would surely collapse?

See now you have for the first time on this thread cobbled together a cogent argument, if the whole EU was to be dismantled I can see that that would be workable, however Germany is in far too deep to lose that control and French farmers would have to work for a living.

[Burnnnn!!!]

The tories knew UKIP was going to cause them problems on Thursday hence the propaganda from the tory press propaganda machine at the start of last week. Whether UKIP is capable of leading this country is debatable, but they are the only party that stand for what most British people want (silent majority in my eyes)- that Britain decides what happens in Britain, is that too much to ask for???

[Monkeh]

I don;t know why everyone is getting worked up, its a protest vote nothing more they may get 1 maybe 2 mp's out of it but nothing else,

[screech]

I don;t know why everyone is getting worked up, its a protest vote nothing more they may get 1 maybe 2 mp's out of it but nothing else,

That's because people are like sheep, and vote for the colour of the rosette regardless of how much they have shit on the people of the country.

In my life time I have seen a shit Conservative party and a shit Labour party, quite why anybody would vote for them again I don't know. What is it that drives people to vote for more of the same crap?

It astounds me why anybody would vote Labour ever again after nearly spending their way to bankrupt the country, and the same for the Tories who continue to rob from the poor.

That's why I am happy for people to continue to suggest UKIP is just a protest vote, 140 seats on the council from nowhere is a bit more than a protest vote, the people have had a gut full of the same old crap and want something different.

[Cambridge Batch Red]

Looking at UKIPs policies they may well be nuts. The climate change denying section is pure saloon bar top gear madness. Europe has probably on the whole improved the UK in economic and environmental terms - maybe not socially though. Having said that, I like a politician who likes a pint, Farage is more fun than the major party political nerd clones that run for westminster and your local council, mostly solicitors who are all grey and speak the same PC language.

We are also hopelessly overun by Johnny Foreigners and multinational corporations. Britain needs a change in its political system. The big three do not represent me. So I welcome UKIP.

[Eco]

It is slightly depressing when the only difference between Labour & the Tories appears to come down to how much public spending they'll cut.

Hopefully Camoron will move rightward to appease the old duffers who overwhelmingly support UKIP, leaving the centre & left ground to be picked up by Liberals/Labour/Greens.

[Barrs Court Red]

Labour suffer from the same problem as the tories, but from the left rather than the right. Despite the government supposedly being so hated, labour hardly shone in the recent local elections nationally.

The liberals and greens arent electable, although we do seem to be walking into the reality of coalition government for a long time ahead.

[Mr Mosquito]

Looking at UKIPs policies they may well be nuts. The climate change denying section is pure saloon bar top gear madness. Europe has probably on the whole improved the UK in economic and environmental terms - maybe not socially though. Having said that, I like a politician who likes a pint, Farage is more fun than the major party political nerd clones that run for westminster and your local council, mostly solicitors who are all grey and speak the same PC language.

We are also hopelessly overun by Johnny Foreigners and multinational corporations. Britain needs a change in its political system. The big three do not represent me. So I welcome UKIP.

To me, Nigel Farage is the quintessential Englishman - quirky, hardworking, jovial, clever, fiercely opposed to Continental tyranny........and most importantly he likes his pint of beer. The only Tories I warm to at the moment are Nigel Lawson and Zac Goldsmith who is an enthusiastic advocate of direct democracy, such as Switzerland's model of using referendums. Plus, Zac Goldsmith also believes it would help combat feelings of disenfranchisement among people and increase accountability - I suppose the Tories will soon boot him out for advocating that. Also, former top Tory Nigel Lawson has had the balls to state publicly that we'll be better off out of the EU. Coming from a grandee of a political party so committed to the EU that was brave of him.

[Esmond Million's Bung]

To me, Nigel Farage is the quintessential Englishman - quirky, hardworking, jovial, clever, fiercely opposed to Continental tyranny........and most importantly he likes his pint of beer. The only Tories I warm to at the moment are Nigel Lawson and Zac Goldsmith who is an enthusiastic advocate of direct democracy, such as Switzerland's model of using referendums. Plus, Zac Goldsmith also believes it would help combat feelings of disenfranchisement among people and increase accountability - I suppose the Tories will soon boot him out for advocating that. Also, former top Tory Nigel Lawson has had the balls to state publicly that we'll be better off out of the EU. Coming from a grandee of a political party so committed to the EU that was brave of him.

Nigel Lawson an old tory fart, makes ONE remark you like and you elevate him to rank of top tory, when last night he was just a tory toff, with a daughter with a nice set of bangers.

By the way he was educated at Oxford university don't you know, so there is the last part of your original upper middle class eton/oxford educated political ruling class diatribe gone for a burton and he's jewish so UKIP's out for him.

if Assad of Syria said the UK should quit the EU you would tell us he was wonderful peace loving humanitarian.

[Mr Mosquito]

It is slightly depressing when the only difference between Labour & the Tories appears to come down to how much public spending they'll cut.

Hopefully Camoron will move rightward to appease the old duffers who overwhelmingly support UKIP, leaving the centre & left ground to be picked up by Liberals/Labour/Greens.

Well, the Labour Party cannot turn this country around, we've been there and they spent all our money on such projects as building fancy new courthouses for Tony Blair's lawyer mates to subjugate working people for the most minor misdemeanours. Conservatives want to take everything away and be under the EU's big boot doing whatever the EU says......no fight in them with regard resisting EU tyranny. Tories also don't care about the people's wishes with regard to leaving the EU. The EU and the HS2 project is more important to the Tories than the people. Liberal Democrats are too soft to get anywhere. Greens would buy more German built windmills and would put a tax on burping and farting out greenhouse gases if they could. UKIP is the only sensible, democratic and progressive party for Government the way things stand.

[Eco]

To me, Nigel Farage is the quintessential Englishman - quirky, hardworking, jovial, clever, fiercely opposed to Continental tyranny........and most importantly he likes his pint of beer. The only Tories I warm to at the moment are Nigel Lawson and Zac Goldsmith who is an enthusiastic advocate of direct democracy, such as Switzerland's model of using referendums. Plus, Zac Goldsmith also believes it would help combat feelings of disenfranchisement among people and increase accountability - I suppose the Tories will soon boot him out for advocating that. Also, former top Tory Nigel Lawson has had the balls to state publicly that we'll be better off out of the EU. Coming from a grandee of a political party so committed to the EU that was brave of him.

I see Nigel Farceage is married to a German national, is she an immigrant ?

[Mr Mosquito]

I see Nigel Farceage is married to a German national, is she an immigrant ?

....perhaps she's very good in bed? German women have a great reputation for that.

[marshy]

It is slightly depressing when the only difference between Labour & the Tories appears to come down to how much public spending they'll cut.

Hopefully Camoron will move rightward to appease the old duffers who overwhelmingly support UKIP, leaving the centre & left ground to be picked up by Liberals/Labour/Greens.

Eco, you seem to be using the term 'old duffers' in a derogatory sense. Despite claims to the contrary the 'I' in UKIP stands for 'Independence' and not 'Immigration' and I sincerely hope that it's not just us old guys who care about the sovereignty of the nation. As for your comment about public spending cuts surely the amount of state interference/control/support the State should give is the quintessential political question. This is what it all boils down to. The EU, and particularly the EZ, is sinking in a morass of bureaucracy and regulation (it's taken him some time but nice to see Lawson coming round to my point of view at last) which without some drastic surgery will see Europe in recession for some time. This may happen when the German electorate wakes up to the cost to them of propping up the whole rotten edifice or when the cost in social disruption becomes too much for even club Med politicians to bear.

[Mr Mosquito]

Eco, you seem to be using the term 'old duffers' in a derogatory sense. Despite claims to the contrary the 'I' in UKIP stands for 'Independence' and not 'Immigration' and I sincerely hope that it's not just us old guys who care about the sovereignty of the nation. As for your comment about public spending cuts surely the amount of state interference/control/support the State should give is the quintessential political question. This is what it all boils down to. The EU, and particularly the EZ, is sinking in a morass of bureaucracy and regulation (it's taken him some time but nice to see Lawson coming round to my point of view at last) which without some drastic surgery will see Europe in recession for some time. This may happen when the German electorate wakes up to the cost to them of propping up the whole rotten edifice or when the cost in social disruption becomes too much for even club Med politicians to bear.

One of the so called 'old duffers' that's always been opposed to our membership of the EEC/ EU is former Labour Bristol East MP Tony Benn. Probably Bristol's greatest living former MP. Tony Benn eloquently sums up why people vote UKIP. A brilliant analysis from him but you've got to listen very carefully as his voice falters due to his age........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBbfbU4DIik

[Eco]

Eco, you seem to be using the term 'old duffers' in a derogatory sense. Despite claims to the contrary the 'I' in UKIP stands for 'Independence' and not 'Immigration' and I sincerely hope that it's not just us old guys who care about the sovereignty of the nation. As for your comment about public spending cuts surely the amount of state interference/control/support the State should give is the quintessential political question. This is what it all boils down to. The EU, and particularly the EZ, is sinking in a morass of bureaucracy and regulation (it's taken him some time but nice to see Lawson coming round to my point of view at last) which without some drastic surgery will see Europe in recession for some time. This may happen when the German electorate wakes up to the cost to them of propping up the whole rotten edifice or when the cost in social disruption becomes too much for even club Med politicians to bear.

Thought you might bite at that, but au contraire, calling someone an 'old duffer' is almost a term of endearment. Anyway, the typical make up of UKIP voters is older men, 60% of supporters are over 55, 63% are men.

Re. the state, I don't want to live in a country where public services are run by private companies who are only in it for their shareholders, the way it's going at the moment due to cuts on each department plus Tory links to big business. Privatisation of public services is unpopular but for whatever reason the Labour party does not appear to be up for a debate on the matter.

As for independance, I thought the EU was dreamt up as a way to bring the continent together following two world wars, I'd rather be part of that than being a little englander. Presumably the Germans do to.

[marshy]

Thought you might bite at that, but au contraire, calling someone an 'old duffer' is almost a term of endearment. Anyway, the typical make up of UKIP voters is older men, 60% of supporters are over 55, 63% are men.

Re. the state, I don't want to live in a country where public services are run by private companies who are only in it for their shareholders, the way it's going at the moment due to cuts on each department plus Tory links to big business. Privatisation of public services is unpopular but for whatever reason the Labour party does not appear to be up for a debate on the matter.

As for independance, I thought the EU was dreamt up as a way to bring the continent together following two world wars, I'd rather be part of that than being a little englander. Presumably the Germans do to.

Ah yes, 'the best laid plans of mice and men, aft times go awry.' Besides most 'little Englanders' would prefer to trade and connect with the whole world rather than belong to what was once temed a 'rich man's club'. With regard to the Germans I wouldn't presume too much as I think many of them are at last waking up to the liabilities they could face as they are frogmarched into full fiscal and political union. It will be interesting to see how things are looking in a year from now.

Anyway thanks for almost 'endearing' me. A ten mile run, a couple of pints of Fullers 1845, and now I've been almost endeared. A warm glow inside and off for an early night.

[marshy]

One of the so called 'old duffers' that's always been opposed to our membership of the EEC/ EU is former Labour Bristol East MP Tony Benn. Probably Bristol's greatest living former MP. Tony Benn eloquently sums up why people vote UKIP. A brilliant analysis from him but you've got to listen very carefully as his voice falters due to his age........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBbfbU4DIik

Thanks for that RG. Interesting. Nice to hear that it's not just some 'old duffers' allegedly on the right that see sovereignty and democracy as the essential issues.

[Esmond Million's Bung]

One of the so called 'old duffers' that's always been opposed to our membership of the EEC/ EU is former Labour Bristol East MP Tony Benn. Probably Bristol's greatest living former MP. Tony Benn eloquently sums up why people vote UKIP. A brilliant analysis from him but you've got to listen very carefully as his voice falters due to his age........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBbfbU4DIik

Tony Benn yet another graduate of Oxford, my god your Oxford university conspiracy theory is unravelling before your very eyes.

PS:- your ok with Andrew Mitchell though he was only educated at Cambridge, ******* commoner.

[Mr Mosquito]

Tony Benn yet another graduate of Oxford, my god your Oxford university conspiracy theory is unravelling before your very eyes.

PS:- your ok with Andrew Mitchell though he was only educated at Cambridge, ******* commoner.

Tony Benn was honed from the right stuff. Like my own maternal Grandad, Tony Benn served in the RAF during World War 2. Tony Benn is an extremely clever man in my opinion. I never shared his opinion on nuclear disarmament but this wikipedia excerpt from the 'Benn Diaries' is superb and says it all ......

In the Labour Government of 1974 Benn was Secretary of State for Industry, increased nationalised industry pay, provided better terms and conditions for workers such as the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and set up worker cooperatives to motivate and reform struggling industries, the best known being at Meriden, outside Birmingham which kept Triumph Motorcycles in production until 1983. In 1975 he was appointed Secretary of State for Energy, immediately following his unsuccessful campaign for a "No" vote in the referendum on the UK's continued membership of the European Community (Common Market). Later in his diary (25 October 1977) Benn wrote that he "loathed" the EEC; he claimed it was "bureaucratic and centralised" and "of course it is really dominated by Germany. All the Common Market countries except the UK have been occupied by Germany, and they have this mixed feeling of hatred and subservience towards the Germans".