Friday, 29 March 2024

Moving On Up!

THE National Liberal Party’s new recruitment drive is due to start towards the end of this month! Uniquely, it’s anticipated that it will be launched at a political satire comedy night, scheduled for 20 August and to be held at a venue in Central London.

The event will also see the launch of a new national leaflet – which describes the party as “Progressive, Patriotic and Liberal” – and a petition to support using Referendums to decide the major issues of the day.

Known as the Consult the People Petition, it states:

“Everyday important decisions are made by Government which directly affects the people. However the people are not given a say. The war in Afghanistan is just one example of this.

The National Liberal Party petitions for the introduction into law the use of Referendums based on the successful system used in Switzerland, allowing people to vote on major issues such as Europe (inc. renegotiating the Lisbon Treaty), Nuclear power, immigration, the creation of an English Parliament and going to war.”

The Referendum is already up and running. You can sign it here: http://www.petitiononline.com/nlp1/petition.html

A recruitment video and posters are also planned. The first issue of the NLP’s ideological magazine – New Horizon – is also scheduled to appear in September.

Graham Williamson, a leading figure in the National Liberal Party, also has had an article published in the latest issue of Liveable Nation. Due to be published towards the middle of this month (see our article New Horizon – coming soon! of 5 August 2011) it has appeared well ahead of schedule!

His article ties in nicely with the proposed NLP’s recruitment campaign. For as Graham has already noted:

“It also calls upon people to get involved in building a modern day progressive patriotic movement – one which will carve out a niche in British politics – by joining the National Liberal Party.”

Click on this link: http://thirdway.eu/2011/08/05/new-issue-of-liveable-nation-out-now to read about the publication of Liveable Nation.

Graham’s article is reproduced in full below:

NATIONAL LIBERAL PARTY – Progressive Nationalism/Patriotic Liberalism

THE NATIONAL LIBERAL PARTY (along with other groups) can be viewed as a natural outcome of the Progressive Nationalist project. The project, ‘launched’ by the booklet A Declaration and Philosophy of Progressive Nationalism, did not itself provide a ‘blueprint’ as such for how it should be developed.

We can see however the ‘green shoots’ of a progressive, modern and inclusive nationalism in such groups as English Green – a non-socialist ecology pressure group or the St. George’s Committees – a cultural body promoting awareness and practising localism in (English) communities. Although both are rooted within England they can be replicated throughout the United Kingdom or even globally.

Likewise in the National Liberals (a political party), we can identify PN traits such as cultural nationalism, federalism, non-interventionism, ecological concern, decentralist, community orientation, distributism and consensual politics.

19th Century National Liberalism

The party however also draws upon a much older tradition, namely a patriotic liberalism once predominant in 19th century Europe with a long lineage in Britain from Chamberlain to Roseberry to Hoare-Belisha. This National Liberalism (sometimes called Liberal Nationalism) gave equal weight to ‘national questions’ as it did to Liberal ones. It did so since in the 19th century, the integrity or even the fragile existence of the nation-state e.g. Italy and Germany was firmly on the political agenda. Equally the calls for the greater enfranchisement of the people or Parliaments within Monarchical or Authoritarian regimes attracted some of the finest political minds. The dovetailing of these two great goals meant that ‘National Liberalism’ was the leading agent of radical change.

As Nation-State’s became established and stabilised, as universal franchises were won and Parliaments began to take control of national ‘executives’, other national goals became more important e.g. labour relations and economic development.

National & Liberty questions back to the fore

Today however ‘national’ and ‘liberty’ questions have come back to the fore. On the former, the relationship within the United Kingdom e.g. between the ‘nations’, between the UK and the EU and on immigration, integration vs. multi-culturalism. On the latter, the growth of a surveillance society and ‘Wars on Terror’ threatening individual civil liberties.

To defend the integrity of the nation-state and help find the right balance between conflicting needs e.g. liberty and security the time is right, again for a ‘National-Liberal’ party to grasp the nettle and influence the outcome of such questions.

Not everyone of course will want the cut and thrust of party politics, the ups and downs of electoral contests or the hard slog of campaigning. Progressive/Liberal Nationalists can involve themselves in other PN pressure groups or cultural movements as well as or instead of dependent upon their available time or temperament.

If you would however like to help build a progressive patriotic movement and carve out a niche in British politics then join the National Liberal Party. The membership fee for the National Liberal Party is £25 (£20 for ‘unwaged’ e.g. Senior Citizens, students, unemployed and under 18’s). You may join via the website http://www.nationaliberal.org using your debit or credit card or by a cheque payable to the ‘National Liberal Party’ and sent to the NLP, PO Box 4217, Hornchurch RM12 4PX. Help us build a fresh alternative to what’s on offer!

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