Vice-Regal Saint: EU seeks to remove Queen from British passports
According to today's Daily Mail, all reference to the Queen could be removed from British passports to be replaced by text offering EU citizens all use of British embassies abroad.
'Every citizen of the Union shall, in the territory of a third country in which the members of state of which he is a national is not represented, be entitled to protection by the diplomatic or consular authorities of any member state, on the same conditions as the nationals of that state.'
I certainly will never forgive the government when it appeased Brussels in 1988 to do away with the 'Old Blue' hardback documents in favour of cheap, pathetic versions now being used. I just came back from Germany and their passports happen to be like ours twenty years ago! What is really galling is the fact that the text, which is almost verbatim in my other Canadian passport, is a 300 year old legacy back when the monarch stopped having to sign each passport personally.
Although I've always taken comfort in the declaration at the back inner page of the Canadian passport that if no Canadian embassy or consulate was available, "application may be made in an emergency to the nearest British or diplomatic office," I wonder now that British embassies and consulates aren't swamped enough as it is that they have to help all comers. If anything, what more reason can there be for a referendum to be held to once and for all give the people a say to this so-called EU 'Treaty' of which this intrusion is but one of a series of moves to implement?
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11 comments:
I can't think of a more directly administrative attack on the sovereignty of the United Kingdom. I also can't see how politicians could get away with it, given that people would have nothing to do with getting rid of the Queen's money. Getting rid of Her Majesty's passport is obviously much worse - it would basically spell the end.
Such a non-story... from the article itself:
"A Foreign Office spokesman said the change was 'still under consideration', and it had not yet been decided whether the new text would be an addition, or whether it would replace the message from the Sovereign.
The Home Office insisted there were 'currently no plans' to revamp the documents."
The mere hint of what bureaucrats and politicians might be planning is cause enough for concern. I hope it is a non-story, but you never know.
While I think this particular story is gilded with a certain amount of conjecture, it may, unfortunately, divert attention from the real issue; that the new EU constitution—nay, Reform Treaty—will establish a European Union diplomatic service, and by inference, EU Embassies. It would therefore be meaningless to pretend that British Sovereignty remains by virtue of the text on our passports, when we no longer have our own border controls, nor our own government.
While replacing the Royal Arms with the emblems of the EUSSR might finally force the people of Britain to wake up, I suspect that it will not happen until everything else has been secured, such is the modus operandi of the EU: maintain the façade of self-government, while hollowing it out from the inside. Like the longhorn beetle, these Eurocrats leave little trace of their existence until it is too late to do anything about it. A national fumigation is long overdue.
It is from the Mail, it has to be said, but as Dundonald says, the fact it's out there with Brown's people saying he has no problem with the issue itself as it would simplify things on an administrative level is news enough.
It's awful, all of it. Bit by bit, all the small poetry of traditional British life - imperial crowns on pints, the Queen's speech, government departments being in the name of HM, our money, our numberplates, our passports - all the little tropes and symbols and outward signs of Britain, that distinguish it from all the countries about us, are deleted.
There will be little left but the weather, my friends.
I don't think that's a non-story at all: bureaucrats cogitate, float trial balloons and circulate papers forever before they actually do anything. They just want to see if anybody will notice at this point. The British need to stand up while they can, and show the door to the EU.
It's all part of the 'Euro-Disease'.
Utterly mad.
Even the passing thought of this symbol of loss of sovereignty makes one sick.
Sigh.
I don't think that such a statement would replace the reference to the Queen. That space in a passport is traditionally reserved for a request for free passage to the holder, which the EU statement isn't.
I hold British and Canadian Passports as well and cherish the similarities, in fact I believe they are the two most similar passports in the world if I'm not mistaken. But over my dead body will this ever happen! I've already been warned over the "Amending" of my current British Passport at the High Commission in Ottawa. I used Brasso to rub the words "European Union" off the front and I stuck it in a cover that made it look like the old blue. I was told that it was against the law to change or damage Her Majesty's property. I told the person I was speaking to that I didn't damage anything I simply fixed something that Her Majesty's Government should never have allowed to happen! Luckily he agreed with me. IF I have to I'll do the same here and amend the front cover letter. Although I doubt this will happen, but Britain does need a wake up call. Hopefully it will come soon, but I don't know how much more we have to give before they've taken it all.
A very sad day if this "passport" comes into being.
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