This is a Rotten Parliament which will do anything to avoid the electorate

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FREE MARKET CONSERVATIVES

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BY TOM HARWOOD

One by one yesterday evening, Remain backing Parliamentarians stood up to attempt to block a general election for the third time in two months. Labour are shamelessly hedging their bets, talking about somehow taking No Deal off the table, despite having voted against a deal and forced the UK to seek an extension. But the Labour frontbench are nothing compared to the Greens’ Caroline Lucas who, apparently entirely sincerely and unironically, called the idea of going back to the people a “dangerous and cynical manoeuvre.”

It beggars belief that the same people who have spent the last three years asking “what’s wrong with more democracy?” are now running scared of the people they are elected to serve. But it is easy to see why.

This is a rotten Parliament. Opposition members have sought to hold all the power of governance with none of the scrutiny. Through directing the executive without removing it they have attempted to use the Government of this country as a puppet. Aided and abetted by a biased referee, they have proceeded to tear the constitution of this country to shreds.

Dozens upon dozens of members have left, switched, and flipped between parties without so much as a by your leave to their electors. Constituents are seen merely as an irritant that have no business in the far-too-complicated affairs of governing. In their view governance should be left only to enlightened people such as themselves.

There is no better evidence for a Parliament comically out of touch than one that obstinately refuses to face the people. For years opposition members have been hiding behind the 2017 election, pretending that every vote cast for anyone other than the Conservatives was somehow an anti-Brexit protest. They conveniently forget the pro-Brexit platform that elected 85% of the House.

The hung parliament this country has suffered for the last two and a half years was delivered not out of a country that did not want the referendum result respected, but one that believed it had been. Brexit being seen as sorted with the overwhelming triggering of Article 50, the election strayed to issues other than Brexit, and crucially personality. Ever since, Remainers have latched onto the personal failings of Theresa May and her statist 2017 agenda as somehow validation for their feeling that they are in line with the people on Brexit.

They are wrong. Polling today shows voters want to see the Prime Minister’s new deal passed by a margin of two to one. The referendum was won by a margin of more than a million votes. No individual or idea has ever been electorally endorsed by as many people in the history of our island.

This cowardly parliament knows the best way to frustrate Brexit is for its current composition to limp on, dragging out the process with more expensive, pointless delay, hoping people become so irritated that they end up blaming the concept of Brexit rather than the MPs frustrating it.

They can’t hold off the inevitable forever. The more they flit from policy to policy and party to party, denying the people a say at every corner, the more frustrated the people will become. All the more likely the politicians will face a rude awakening when the inevitable election comes.

Tom Harwood is an award-winning journalist and commentator. Follow him on twitter: @tomhfh