{"id":215991,"date":"2025-06-26T13:38:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T13:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/215991\/"},"modified":"2025-06-26T13:38:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T13:38:12","slug":"brexit-benefits-elusive-as-lord-lucan-as-john-major-issues-blistering-attack-politics-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/215991\/","title":{"rendered":"Brexit benefits ‘elusive as Lord Lucan’ as John Major issues blistering attack | Politics | News"},"content":{"rendered":"

The benefits of Brexit are as \u201celusive as Lord Lucan\u201d, former Prime Minister Sir John Major<\/a> has declared in a speech in which he called for Britain to rejoin<\/a> the Customs Union and the Single Market. Sir John also delivered a blazing attack on President Trump<\/a> and condemned cuts to foreign aid.<\/p>\n

The ex-Tory leader \u2013 who fought fierce battles<\/a> with eurosceptics in his party when in power \u2013 turned his guns on Brexiteers as he delivered a self-styled “reality check”.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cThe only Brexit<\/a> \u2018freedom\u2019 I\u2019ve yet seen is the freedom to be poorer.\u201d Sir John claimed leaving the EU was a \u201cgift to countries that wish us ill, and a shock to those that wish us well\u201d.<\/p>\n

Warning that his own party is in danger, he said: \u201cIt has scarred the body politic, and may yet be written on the tomb of the Conservative Party<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI continue to search for the \u2018benefits of Brexit<\/a>\u2019 but they are as elusive as Lord Lucan. Some politicians talk of them \u2013 but are unable to tell us what they are, or where they may be found.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sir John praised Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer<\/a> for \u201cslowly and painfully beginning to work his way back into a better trading relationship with the EU\u201d.<\/p>\n

But he said new trade deals are \u201cnowhere close to compensating for the loss of European trade\u201d and claimed Brexit<\/a> is \u201cthe first ever trade deal to erect new trade barriers rather than eliminate them\u201d.<\/p>\n

Arguing Britain faces a choice between changing and accepting a lower standard of living, he said the country can \u201crecover lost trade by moving towards re-entering the Customs Union and the Single Market\u201d.<\/p>\n

On rejoining the EU, he said: \u201cThis is politically unrealistic at present, and will be a decision for a later generation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sir John delivered the Sir Edward Heath Annual Lecture at Salisbury Cathedral.<\/p>\n

‘This is not America as I have known her. This is not democracy as I understand it.’<\/p>\n

He used the occasion to blast President Trump for his leadership during the Ukraine<\/a> crisis.<\/p>\n

Sir John said: \u201cHe demanded concessions from Ukraine<\/a> \u2013 the attacked, and then proposed a settlement to aid Russia<\/a> \u2013 the attacker.<\/p>\n

\u201cUkraine<\/a> has been threatened, bullied, and had military and intelligence withdrawn as if she were the aggressor. It was as though America had her arms around Putin\u2019s shoulders, and her hands at Zelensky\u2019s throat.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis turns reason on its head. Such a posture may well encourage would-be aggressors everywhere, and bring fear to potential victims.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sir John warned that \u201cgovernment by threat\u201d will \u201ccreate resentment and chaos\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cThis is not America as I have known her. This is not democracy as I understand it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Warning of the consequences of the President\u2019s actions, he said: \u201c[If] President Trump threatens to seize Canada, why should not Putin seize Ukraine<\/a>? Or Xi take over Taiwan?\u201d<\/p>\n

In what will be seen as a jab at the rise of Reform UK, he said: \u201cModerate Parties of Left and Right are in crisis in France, where the extreme Right may win the next parliamentary and presidential elections. The UK and Germany, too, face an insurgency from the intolerant Right.\u201d<\/p>\n

And he attacked the \u201ccallous\u201d UK Government for cutting the foreign aid budget to spend more on defence.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cWe \u2013 among others \u2013 are now to spend more on defence, and to finance that by cutting aid to the world\u2019s most wretched and helpless. Many people, with voices that will never be heard, will suffer and die because countries have made this change in budgetary priorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is short-sighted and \u2013 to my mind \u2013 callous. And the fallout, over time, will be greater migrant demand to live in the richer countries.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sir John also raised concerns about Israel<\/a>\u2019s approach to tackling Hamas in Gaza.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cHow will the dispossessed, the injured, the bereaved see Israel<\/a> when the present fighting is done? Will not today\u2019s death and destruction boost recruitment for tomorrow\u2019s terror?<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not believe it is possible to totally eliminate Hamas: it is an \u2018idea\u2019 \u2013 a \u2018doctrine\u2019 \u2013 as well as a terror group. But every Palestinian \u2013 man, woman and child \u2013 is not a Hamas terrorist.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The benefits of Brexit are as \u201celusive as Lord Lucan\u201d, former Prime Minister Sir John Major has declared…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":215992,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5226],"tags":[802,5322,748,32,2000,299,5187,1699,85783,4884,47527,85782,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-215991","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-brexit","8":"tag-brexit","9":"tag-brexit-news","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-donald-trump","12":"tag-eu","13":"tag-europe","14":"tag-european","15":"tag-european-union","16":"tag-foreign-aid-cuts","17":"tag-great-britain","18":"tag-international-development","19":"tag-sir-john-major","20":"tag-uk","21":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114749945055414465","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=215991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215991\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/215992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=215991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=215991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=215991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}