nigel-farage-belgium-is-not-a-nation
3. Debate with the Prime Minister of Belgium, Charles Michel, on the Future of Europe (debate)
Nigel Farage has reignited his row with Guy Verhofstadt by claiming that "Belgium is not a nation." The former UKIP leader then claimed that the days of the European Union were over adding: "You're losing. Brexit is the first brick out of the wall." Belgian politician Guy Verhofstadt and MEP was quick to fire .
Nigel Farage, on behalf of the EFDD Group . – Mr President, it is quite extraordinary that we can have in this room the head honchos of Brussels – Mr Juncker, the Belgian Prime Minister, the leaders of the big groups, to discuss the future of the European project, and there has barely been a mention of the biggest most dramatic event that has ever happened since the foundation of the European Treaties 60 years ago, namely Brexit.
You do not want to talk about Brexit. And I wonder whether it actually ever occurred to you, Mr Juncker, that when David Cameron came here to negotiate with you, had you given him just a few modest concessions, had you given him the ability to control our borders a little bit more, Brexit would not have happened. But no, we don’t discuss that. No, what we do, is we say to ourselves that our citizens want more Europe. I have heard it again and again this morning. We have a problem with unemployment among the youth of the Mediterranean. I know the answer: more Europe. We have a problem with growing terrorism in our countries, something that we have caused ourselves but we decide, no, the answer is, or in the case of the Belgian Prime Minister Michel, to have a European CIA. We decided that on taxation, on regulation, no Member State can make their own decisions, it has all got to be decided here in Brussels, because we need more Europe. In fact, many of you have decided that migrant quotas are a good idea, so that individual Member States cannot make their own decisions, so is it any wonder that there are countries now, voters everywhere, waking up to the idea that you cannot be an independent democratic nation state – and a member of this Union.
Brexit, I think, is going to prove to be just the first brick that is knocked out of the wall. Just look at the results in Italy a few weeks ago. Look at the stunning results in Hungary the other week. That magnificent victory of Viktor Orbán and about 70% of voters in Hungary voting for parties that want the nation state to be the key to everything. If you really think about whether this European project can survive, or not, it all comes down to ‘what is a nation’? What is the unit towards which we give our allegiance, to which we pay our taxes, to which we would, in extremis, be prepared to defend them? There are some like Mr Verhofstadt here who seem to think that this flag represents a European identity – and he clearly identifies as a European, many of you in this room identify as Europeans – but you are missing something. The peoples of Europe do not identify with that flag. They do not identify with these institutions. There is no, oh well if you’re on the payroll it’s easy to say it works, isn’t it? But actually, out there in the real world, there is not a European demos, there is not a European identity,
But there may be one exception, and that could be Belgium. Because nobody ever dares tell the truth about Belgium. Belgium is not a nation. It is an artificial creation. I know the Brits did it, maybe once again we can be blamed, but the truth is there are two parts of Belgium, they speak different languages, they dislike each other intensely, there is no national TV station, there is no national newspaper. Belgium is not a nation. And maybe that is why you are happy to sign up to a higher European level. Well, if Belgium wants it, that is fine, but I can assure you, and you can scream and shout all you like, just look at the election result. You are losing votes. You are losing. Brexit is the first brick out of the wall. You’ve learned none of the lessons. The days of this project are over. We want to live in nation states, not false artificial creations.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6WZrAJNPkE
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