Rare enough maybe to mention, a British Conservative politician, Richard Ashworth, received a standing ovation this morning at the European Parliament after warning the EU not to take peace and prosperity for granted.
During this morningβs European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg, the emotional speech from Conservative MEP Richard Ashworth, MEP for South East England, received a standing ovation from his fellow MEPs (except Nigel Farageβs Brexit MEP team).
After thanking President Donald Tusk on behalf of the 6 million people who signed the Revoke Article 50 petition and 1 million people at the Peopleβs Vote march on Saturday, Mr Ashworth said:
βFor over 25 years, no British prime minister ever explained to the British people what Europe did, what are the benefits and why it matters. They never defended against the untruths which was spoken and they never took ownership of the decision that they took in (European) Council.
Because of that the British press ran a 20-year campaign based on populist mistruth, lies and deceit.
The consequence of that, we see today, Britain is a sad nation divided like never before. And a House of Commons in crisis.
So let Brexit stand as a cautionary tale to the people of Europe.
To the people of Europe, I say this: You are the generation who have lived through the longest period of peace and the greatest level of prosperity ever.
Never take it for granted β value it, fight for it, defend it every day.β
Watch the speech now:
European Parliament
(This is an original piece, first published by the author in PoliticsMeansPolitics.com. | The author writes in a personal capacity.)