Wanted - Slaves!

Sark from Herm.

Now I am on the train from Portsmouth to London, having arrived there from Guernsey on the overnight ferry. The weather has been very pleasant, especially so for the day we went to Herm on a RIB. From there we had a grand view across the Great Russell to Sark, France and Jersey, noting the odd fact that the strong tidal current was circulating anti-clockwise right around Herm at the time. (I am finishing this post overlooking the Thames at Battersea.)

With Cristiona in Battersea.

My friend who owned the RIB was very knowledgeable about Sark, so I was able to update myself on the intriguing saga** of how the  Barclay brothers, the so patriotic owners of the Daily Telegraph, have been trying to turn the island into a personal fiefdom cum tax haven, with direct access to London by turbo-charged helicopter (which do 200mph, so could reach London in about one hour). They built their own vast mansion on the even smaller neighbouring island of Brecqhou, then set about buying out or bullying the residents of Sark into submission, complete with involvement from the highly dodgy Abramovitch family. It seems however that their scheme has rather foundered on their inability to establish a viable customs set-up, so they could have direct access to London. It’s not good enough apparently to have to go via Guernsey. Such a yarn has the makings of a good novel, but being true we shall have to wait a while yet to see how it will end!

The off-shore finance industry in Guernsey seems to have been winding down, with some of the prominent banks pulling out altogether. The grossly inflated property market has stagnated, with very little being sold on the open market. I heard of one poor man who had to sell his house for 8million quid, though he had valued it at 14million. I also met a lady whose husband has absconded to Mexico.

There seems to be a backbone of resourceful islanders who are finding ways of taking up the slack, though they face a very serious problem in the shortage of labour. Madeirans and Latvians have particularly big contingents in the service industries, whose jobs the locals tend to disdain even when they themselves are not highly stoked with education and the internet. However ‘the States’, which is the local term for the Guernsey Government, have been making life more and more difficult for immigrant workers, besides which accommodation is indeed very scarce. In theory EU citizens are entitled to go there, but they have to get permission to occupy property on the local (affordable) market, which may well be limited to a period of 9 months.*

It puts one in mind of the state to which Britain is heading and the USA has maybe already arrived, with a huge underclass who have no security and precious few rights; probably to be chucked out pretty quickly before they acquire pension rights or access to the Health Service. No doubt that is the kind of society favoured by Mr Farage and his South African backer Mr Banks, for it is the clear implication of much of the substance of the Brexit movement, pace Mrs May’s ‘mission to make Britain a country that works for everyone’ etc.

I watch the Daily Telegraph’s propaganda on behalf of Brexit day by day with grim amusement. They may well be right that there are short-term economic advantages to Brexit, for all I know; and of course, in such an uncertain world, ‘short-termism’ is the order of the day. But those on both sides of the debate make the mistake of talking simply in economic terms. ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto ye’ does not come into it. The question is, what kind of a society do we really want? Something along the lines the Barclay brothers might favour perhaps?

One thing is for sure, unless Britain succeeds in stopping the world and getting off, immigrants will be needed. I consider it a privilege to have people into one’s country to work, willing to come and give the best years of their lives, with all the cost of rearing and educating them expended by their native country - a particular advantage frankly when they are fellow Europeans.

Also, this country will be hugely dependent on all kinds of imports, and if a society is to be in any way holistic and just, trade will simply be the economic dimension of a much broader and deeper cultural interchange. To imagine that it can truly thrive on some mythical ‘global’ relationships, without firstly getting on with the neighbours, makes no sense.

Esme on an old German gun.

By all means, let’s go on for the global cooperation; if only as much effort was being put into addressing the big challenges out there as is being put into Brexit! But trying to steal a march on our neighbours, hoping to take advantage of certain dubious historical advantages, is not the way to do it; a much better approach involves burying the British Empire for good.

How do you react to that statement? I expect that your answer will tell which side of the Brexit debate you are on; there’s no call to go on arguing about dodgy economic projections!

*a friend of mine on Guernsey writes on this: 'the average service worker is not allowed to live in the local market unless they get a license; these are only granted to finance, medical, education and other deemed essential jobs. Retail or service industry jobs do not qualify as a general rule. Most foreign service workers have to find accommodation on the open market, usually a room (rent approx £1200 -£1400 per month) Housing dept has to approve where they live before a 'right to work' document is issued. Decent open market rooms at an affordable price are even more difficult to find since the complexity of the rules has changed, to the extent that some of the staff in Housing misinterpret them. It depends who you see on the day!'

**see http://gannetswaysailing.blogspot.co.uk/2015_12_01_archive.html)

Leaving St Peter Port.