Skip to main content

The real reason Boris Johnson pushes for a no-deal Brexit

globinfo freexchange

The UK political landscape looks increasingly chaotic, especially after Boris Johnson's ultimatum for a no-deal Brexit on 31 October. It looks like the whole country suffers from a general nervous breakdown through a "bellum omnium contra omnes" situation. But if you "follow the money", you will, eventually, see the whole picture quite clearly. And you will realize that this whole Brexit issue, is primarily the product of a merciless war among rival factions of the British capital.

In the mid-July, Reuters "exposed" some key supporters of Boris Johnson who have poured hundreds of thousands of pounds into his campaign. As Reuters reported:

          More than half the donations came from financiers and businessmen who funded the campaign to leave the European Union. The two biggest backers are Anthony Bamford, the billionaire chairman of the construction equipment maker JCB, and Jonathan Moynihan, chairman of venture capital fund Ipex Capital, both vocal backers of Brexit. Robin Birley, a private members’ club owner, has previously donated to Nigel Farage’s former anti-EU group, UKIP. 

Of the three, Jon Moynihan is a case of particular interest. He most clearly represents the faction of the British capital that seeks to survive from the underground war between capitalists that has become much harder after the eruption of the 2007-08 global meltdown.

It appears that Moynihan is a key contributor to the brexitcentral.com website, which gathers the most pro-Brexit business community and intelligentsia. Through an article, which clearly reflects the positions of the pro-Brexit British capital, two years ago, he wrote:

What was also apparent was how on the economy, the (now increasingly discredited) arguments to Remain were mostly put forth by the Corporate Welfare mob – the rent seekers; those who believe that the best way to move their organisation forward is to cosy up to the government and extract favourable terms and conditions which will allow their organisation to do better than their (often smaller, usually more innovative and forward-looking) competitors.

One almost felt sorry for David Cameron, George Osborne and their civil servants and Treasury officials: they were in a vast echo chamber where large companies forecast woe and American and other investment banks, at the same time as donating 7-figure sums to the Remain campaign, assailed them with forecasts of immediate job losses and threats to move their operations to the Continent (note: employment in the City up 17% in the year since the referendum result); and where the CBI poured further tales of imminent woe into the government’s ear (Brussels was, it became known, most likely the CBI’s largest donor over recent years).

[...]

A large corporation usually grows exogenously, by merging with another company, or buying a smaller company. The company’s total number of people employed has as a result grown, but in fact there are almost always redundancies as a result of the merger or the acquisition, so that the economy as a whole has lost jobs. Numerous academic studies have demonstrated this. It’s not a controversial thing to point out. New endogenous employment comes from the entrepreneurs: the SMEs, the individuals who have staked all on starting up a business, the scientists who drop out of university to pursue their dream of a new technology. Overwhelmingly, these entrepreneurial classes were in the Brexit camp. [...] The majority of new companies fail; no entrepreneur wants to be in that losing group.

[...]

Talks of ‘transition’ disguise a hunger to put the moment of truth off as long as possible, perhaps (listening to HMV James Chapman’s shrill jeremiads on the Today programme, and his former master George Osborne’s equally batty disaster predictions in the Standard), hoping to avoid for as long as possible the moment when their complete discredit arrives when their forecasts of doom are conclusively shown to be wrong. What they are hoping for, were they to accomplish the (actually impossible) fantasy of some kind of halt to Brexit, is yet another aspect of their incoherence. If they expect a Jeremy Corbyn government in 2022 to save them, they must be sadly deluded – as well as stupendously foolish in hoping for such a catastrophically dangerous political outcome.

[...]

You, as you read this, may not be the CEO of some large FTSE 100 company, climbing the corporate career ladder all your working life, with complacent shareholders and a large PR department to push your special pleading. You are actually more likely to be someone who is growing jobs and growing the economy. It’s essential your voice be heard.

Moynihan couldn't make it more clear. These paragraphs essentially unfold the key aspects of the civil war that is taking place between the factions of the capitalist class. We can identify at least three of these aspects in Moynihan's words:

1) The pro-Brexit faction of the British capital senses an existential threat from the globalist faction, which is represented mostly from the City financial capital and the CBI (Confederation of British Industry).

2) The pro-Brexit faction attempts to take on its side the small-medium business sector, in order to form a stronger coalition against the globalist faction.

3) The pro-Brexit faction sees a potential Labour government under Jeremy Corbyn, also as a major threat. This is one of the few common views it has with the globalist faction.

As a consequence, we may consider Boris Johnson as the personification of the pro-Brexit capitalist faction that senses an existential threat.

In the previous major financial crisis of 1929, the big capital eliminated competitors and redesigned the new global power structure through a world war. This time, it cannot do the same. A world war would probably mean the end of civilization, therefore, the process is much longer and slower. It extends in time through a peculiar, ongoing semi-recession until the next big financial meltdown.

This gives time to the anti-globalist capitalist forces to reorganize and fight back against the onslaught of the globalized capital. So, the UK is probably now the most crucial field of this war and the anti-globalist capitalists marked a first big victory through the outcome of the Brexit referendum.

Despite the capitalist civil war, both major factions of the British capital remain deeply neoliberal in their ideological core. However, it seems that the pro-Brexit faction has adopted a Thatcherian form of neoliberalization, in which the nationalist factor is quite evident. This is necessary in order to attract conservative voters who feel abandoned, or even threatened by the globalist elite.

On the other hand, the faction of the globalized capital has adopted an international form of neoliberalization. It has bought the politicians of the political center which includes representatives of all types of minorities. In this way, the globalized capital attempts to attract the younger and most progressive voters. Of course, there is nothing progressive behind its deeper goal, which is the unlimited global expansion and elimination of all competitors by all means.

It appears that, for now, the globalized capital has lost all the battles. As the - once powerful - neoliberal center has essentially collapsed in the political field, the international capitalists attempted to create their own political vehicle, using the remaining centrist material from both major UK parties. The result of the latest euroelections showed that this attempt too has failed miserably.

Then, Boris Johnson came to make things worse. He purged all the Remainers from the conservative party and now, the pro-Brexit capital is ready for a merciless counterattack against the globalist faction of the City/CBI capitalists who seem to be running out of time and options.

So, the big question now is, why Boris Johnson is pushing so hard for a no-deal Brexit? Why not compromise with the globalist faction of his class through, for example, a smooth Brexit, in order to fight together the common enemy called Jeremy Corbyn?

A probable answer would be that the 31st October is a deadline given by the pro-Brexit capital faction through Johnson. If the globalist faction wants a smooth Brexit through a deal with the EU, it will have to proceed in a permanent truce with the pro-Brexit faction. If it wants to postpone and even reverse Brexit, it will have to give much more. That is, give a privileged position to the pro-Brexit capitalists, in order for them not only to survive, but even gain significantly from one more transformation of the global capitalist system. The transformation that will occur after the next global financial meltdown.

Yet, this is a unique opportunity for the real Left. It must take advantage of this capitalist civil war and exploit the popularity of Jeremy Corbyn. A Labour government under the Corbyn leadership after Brexit, could bring real change and prospect for the majority of the British people, who, otherwise, will suffer again from another ruthless capitalist game.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Oct. 7 Reports Implode: Beheaded Babies, NY Times Scandal, & More

Glenn Greenwald    

Πώς ο Γκρίνμπεργκ μπορεί να θάψει το καθεστώς Μητσοτάκη

του system failure    Είναι ξεκάθαρο ότι η αναμφίβολη πρωτοκαθεδρία του καθεστώτος Μητσοτάκη οφείλεται σχεδόν αποκλειστικά σε μια άκρως επιθετική επικοινωνιακή εκστρατεία που είχε καταφέρει μέχρι στιγμής να κρύβει κάτω από το χαλί (τουλάχιστον ως ένα βαθμό) τον αυταρχισμό και τη διαφθορά του καθεστώτος, καθώς και τις καταστροφικές πολιτικές που εφαρμόζει.  Και δεν είναι πλέον μυστικό, ότι ο άνθρωπος-κλειδί πίσω από αυτή την εκστρατεία είναι ο Αμερικανός δημοσιοσχετίστας, Σταν Γκρίνμπεργκ .    Όμως καθώς το καθεστώς επαναπαύθηκε στις δάφνες της νίκης των τελευταίων βουλευτικών εκλογών, τα μεγάλα προβλήματα συνέχισαν να συσσωρεύονται και φάνηκε ότι το καθεστώς είτε δεν ήθελε, είτε δεν μπόρεσε να τα αντιμετωπίσει. Έτσι, είδαμε σε σύντομο χρονικό διάστημα να έρχονται τα πρώτα σημαντικά πλήγματα στην πρωτοκαθεδρία του, μέσα από τα αποτελέσματα των δημοτικών και περιφερειακών εκλογών. Παρόλα αυτά, η αλαζονεία των καθεστωτικών στελεχών παρέμεινε αμετάβλητη, καθώς θεώρησαν ότι η τραγωδία των Τ

Zionist and US imperialist criminals are about to grab the natural gas off shore Gaza

globinfo freexchange   As the genocide against Palestinians of Gaza is about to be completed with an act of unprecedented brutality by the Zionists and butcher Netanyahu through the bombardment of about 1.4 million civilians in Rafah, it seems that they have already set their next primary goal. Which, in short, is to grab the natural gas resources off shore Gaza, together with their US imperialist buddies whose contribution to the genocide has been undoubtedly critical.     As already reported , in 2007, Hamas came to power and Israel launched an offensive on Gaza Strip, leaving behind 1,400 dead Palestinians, but taking with it the gas fields. Within a year, Israel announced the discovery of the Leviathan natural gas field, which did include Gaza's riches, valued at 453 billion dollars. But Gazans have been denied around 47 billion dollars in revenue. As for Tel Aviv, it's gunning to become a new hub. At that moment in time, that is 2022, Russian oil and gas were sanctioned.

Israel’s Descent Into Madness & the Holocaust Comparison

BreakThrough News   Rania Khalek was joined by Tarik Cyril Amar, a historian from Germany and associate professor at Koc University in Istanbul, to discuss Israel’s descent into genocidal fascism. Prof. Amar addresses whether it’s useful to make Holocaust and Nazi comparisons and the real reason behind the West’s unshakeable loyalty attitude when it comes to Israel’s barbarism.   

Neocon Queen Victoria Nuland Ends Her Reign: Exposing a Catastrophic Career

Glenn Greenwald    

The Shadowy, Intelligence-Linked Group Driving the US Towards War With Iran

"United Against Nuclear Iran does not miss an opportunity to try to bring the United States closer to a military conflict with Iran. And on the other side of the equation, they also have worked very hard to oppose efforts to de-escalate the U.S.-Iran relationship."   by Alan Macleod   Part 7 - A Lesson From History   The history of Iran has been intimately intertwined with the United States since at least 1953 when Washington orchestrated a successful coup against Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh. Mosaddegh had refused U.S. demands to stamp out Communist influences in his country and had nationalized the nation’s oil. The U.S. installed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as a puppet ruler. An unpopular and authoritarian ruler, the Shah was overthrown in the Revolution of 1979. Since then, it has become a target for regime change, and its nuclear program is something of an obsession in the West. Often orchestrated by UANI officials while they were in government, the U.S. has carried

Το σκάσιμο της φούσκας Μητσοτάκη με νέα επίσημη χρεοκοπία και οριστικό τέλος της μεταπολίτευσης

του system failure   Τα αποτελέσματα των εκλογών της 25ης Ιουνίου ήταν λίγο-πολύ αναμενόμενα όσον αφορά τις πρώτες θέσεις με βάση και τα αποτελέσματα της πρώτης κάλπης του Μαίου. Αν συμπεριλάβουμε και το ποσοστό της αναμενόμενης αποχής, δεν μας έδωσαν κάποια ιδιαίτερη έκπληξη. Αυτό όμως που φαίνεται να αιφνιδίασε ακόμα και το συστημικό κατεστημένο, είναι η είσοδος των δύο υπερσυντηρητικών, ακροδεξιών κομμάτων Νίκη και Σπαρτιάτες, με το τελευταίο να έχει ξεκάθαρες διασυνδέσεις με τον πρώην Χρυσαυγίτη, Ηλία Κασιδιάρη. Παρά τη μεγάλη νίκη Μητσοτάκη, οι μιντιακοί ινστρούχτορες της καθεστωτικής προπαγάνδας εμφανίστηκαν σε γενικές γραμμές "μουδιασμένοι" και αυτό οφείλεται στο γεγονός ότι το συστημικό κατεστημένο (δηλαδή τα μεγάλα οικονομικά συμφέροντα που ελέγχουν και το σύνολο των μεγάλων ΜΜΕ πανελλαδικής εμβέλειας), πέτυχε μόνο έναν από τους τέσσερις μεγάλους στόχους που είχε θέσει εξ'αρχής. Μιλώντας με ποδοσφαιρικούς όρους, ουσιαστικά έχασε με σκορ 3-1.   Ο μεγάλος στόχος πο

Study Finds Media Giants New York Times, CNN, and Fox News Pushing for US War in Yemen

by Alan Macleod  Part 2 - Biased Reporting MintPress conducted a study of four leading American outlets: The New York Times , CNN, Fox News and NBC News. Together, these outlets often set the agenda for the rest of the media system and could be said to be a reasonable representation of the corporate media spectrum as a whole. Using the search term “Yemen” in the Dow Jones Factiva global news database, the fifteen most recent relevant articles from each outlet were read and studied, giving a total sample of 60 articles. All articles were published in January 2024 or December 2023. The study found the media wildly distorted reality, presenting a skewed picture that aided U.S. imperial ambitions. For one, every article in the study (60 out of 60) used the word “Houthis” rather than “Ansar Allah” to describe the movement which took part in the Yemeni Revolution of 2011 and rose up against the government in 2014, taking control of the capital Sanaa, becoming the new de facto government. Ma

The truth about Alexei Navalny

Glenn Greenwald / Dangerous Ideas with Lee Camp / The Hill /  

Top German military commanders plan direct attacks on Russia

by Johannes Stern  Top German generals and the German government are discussing in concrete terms how “Taurus” cruise missiles can be delivered to Ukraine and used against Russian targets. This emerged from an approximately 30-minute conversation on February 19, which was reportedly intercepted by Russian intelligence and published over the weekend by the Russian news channel RT. The conversation involved Air Force Inspector Ingo Gerhartz, Head of Operations and Exercises in the Luftwaffe Command Frank Gräfe and two lieutenant colonels of the Bundeswehr (armed forces) Space Command named Fenske and Florstedt. According to their own statements, the military commanders met to prepare a meeting with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (Social Democrats, SPD) and to discuss with him whether and how the Taurus can be delivered to Kiev and used against the nuclear-armed power Russia. Pistorius wanted to “ get really deep into Taurus, ” Gerhartz began the conversation. He leaves no doubt that he