The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Tag: 2019

  • Sir John Major’s Message to Vote for Final Say Rally – 6 December 2019

    Below is the text of Sir John Major’s message to the ‘Vote for Final Say’ rally held in London on 6 December 2019.

    I’m sorry not to be with you in person this evening, but grateful to have this opportunity to speak to you.

    In a few days’ time, we will be choosing our next Government and our next Parliament. The choice of Members of Parliament that we all make will make a big difference.

    At elections, political tribes join together to promote their own policies, and criticise those of their opponents. That’s the nature of elections.

    But there are always individuals who enhance Parliament.

    And there are always policies upon which every Party can agree.

    One is democracy, and the right of every adult to vote.

    At every election the future of our country is at stake.

    But on this occasion even more than usual.

    When the nation voted on Brexit they did so on a diet of fiction and undeliverable promises.

    As the facts become known, it’s extraordinary that a new vote is denied: extraordinary, and frankly undemocratic.

    People have strong views on Brexit. Mine are very clear.

    I believe that leaving the European Union is the worst foreign policy decision in my lifetime.

    It will affect nearly every aspect of our lives for many decades to come and it will make our country poorer and weaker, and the individuals within it.

    It will hurt most those who have least.

    Never have the stakes been higher, especially for the young.

    Brexit may even break up our historic United Kingdom.

    Within a few years, Scotland may leave the Union. Northern Ireland may unite with the South.

    Both may do so in order to remain within the European Union.

    Your young generation has already recognised this – by registering to vote in record numbers.

    And your vote is absolutely crucial – for you have the longest lease on our country’s future, and our place in the wider world.

    So my message to you this evening is very clear: don’t allow your future to be shaped by others, with no input from yourselves.

    You – every single one of you – can make a difference to the election result.

    So don’t hang back. Don’t wait until Friday, 13 December and then regret that you didn’t make a choice.

    To vote means to choose.

    So choose the future that you believe in – for your own generation and the next….

    Vote for the candidate who you believe will best represent your own views and your own aspirations in the next Parliament.

    I was in politics for many years, and – believe me – no single Party has a monopoly on wisdom.

    I am a Conservative, but there have always been policies of other Parties with which I agreed.

    That is politics as it truly is – not politics as tribal politicians pretend it to be.

    Tribal loyalty has its place. It can be good and honourable.

    But sometimes you need to vote with your head as well as your heart.

    To vote for your country and your future.

    This is such a time.

    But, whatever you do, don’t let your vote be wasted. Never has it been as important as it is now.

    * * * * *

    Now, I am simply the warm-up act this evening ….. but I’d like to say a few words about those who will be joining you shortly:

    First, Michael Heseltine.

    Michael is a giant of the Conservative Party, a giant of successive Conservative Governments – including my own when he was Deputy Prime Minister.

    He has always been fearless in protecting the best long-term interests of the United Kingdom.

    Michael is, truly, one of a kind – and a very wise one of a kind.

    Secondly, you will hear from David Gauke.

    He, Dominic Grieve, and Anne Milton – all of them principled, decent, talented human beings – were forced out of the Conservative Party, and are now fighting this election as Independent candidates.

    But let me make one thing crystal clear: none of them left the Conservative Party, the Conservative Party left them.

    Without such talent on its benches, Parliament will be the poorer, which is why – were I resident in any of their constituencies – they would have my vote in this election.

    And now to my third guest….

    Politics throws up some strange alliances – and never more so than in this debate over Brexit….

    The third guest may once have been my political opponent – but even as I say that let me add we were never personal enemies.

    And on the perils of Brexit – and our joint fervent hope that the younger generation will engage in politics, and exercise its vote next week – upon that we are absolutely at one.

    It seems ironic to me that, due to scheduling difficulties, I am forced to speak to you on screen – since he was always so much better at doing that than I was.

    I daresay he still is.

    So, with four words that – once upon a time – would never easily have passed my lips, tonight I can say with great pleasure: “Tony, over to you……”

  • Sir John Major’s Speech at the Consortium for Street Children Event – 14 November 2019

    Below is the text of the speech made by Sir John Major at the Consortium for Street Children dinner held in London on 14 November 2019.

    The Consortium for Street Children is not a big Charity, but it has a heart as big as the planet. And it needs it, because Street Children can be found on every Continent.

    We don’t know how many there are, but around 150 million – nearly three times the population of the UK – seems a reasonable estimate.

    Many of them have been stripped of every natural need that we – around this table – take for granted.

    They are homeless; barely clothed; often unfed and scrambling for food; often cold, unloved, alone – and treated as criminals …. or worse. If you think I exaggerate, I can assure you I do not.

    In Uganda, one very young girl was sold to child traffickers for the equivalent of £11. 11 pounds. As a Member of the Ugandan Parliament put it: “Even a goat would fetch more than that”.

    I first learned about Street Children when I attended the Earth Summit in Brazil in 1992. In Rio, the sight of these children – in large numbers – was truly heart-breaking.

    The Consortium was founded the following year, and I have been a supporter from its early days.

    I hosted its official launch in Downing Street to bring a number of charities together to call for help and action.

    It is now 30 years since the UN adopted the “Committee on the Rights of a Child” – the most ratified Treaty in history, but not the one most honoured by its signatories.

    For Street Children still exist in large numbers, living in a dark and forbidding world, with no light or laughter.

    As I get older, I often remember small vignettes from long ago ….

    When I was five years old, my parents were elderly and frail. I used to walk to school on my own and once, bravely trying a new route, got lost. I retraced my steps, but became even more lost.

    No-one passed by. No-one noticed. No-one helped. I sat down alone and waited, and waited ….

    I still remember how terrified I was. Would I ever get home? Would I ever see my parents again? Would I ever be safe again?

    All silly fears – to an adult. But I was five. So I sat there with tears streaming down my cheeks – until a lady with a kind face came along, took me by the hand, and took me home. My nightmare was over.

    But what if I’d been a Street Child in Rio, or Johannesburg or Borneo – or anywhere? Then, it would not be a nightmare – it would be real.

    And, instead of taking me safely home, the lady with a kind face could be taking me to a much darker place.

    That is why I care so passionately about the Consortium and its work, and the children that need help.

    The lottery of life is unkind in many ways, and those of us who are the winners in that lottery – well fed, well clothed, and with a conscience – have a duty, a responsibility, to help wherever we can.

    I know there are many good causes – too many, sadly – but surely vulnerable children must be at, or near, the top of that list.

    We can move the hearts of the authorities – and we are making progress – but it is frustratingly slow.

    In 2011, the Consortium launched the International Day for Street Children. That same year, the UN Human Rights Council agreed that Street Children were a global phenomenon that should not be ignored.

    On Street Children’s Day we asked the children what they wanted to say. One replied a while ago in words that should hang in the forefront of the conscience of governments around the world:

    “We should not have to beg. All children are human beings and have the right to be happy. Working on the streets is not good as there are many bad people that can hurt you. They can force you to do things you know are wrong.”

    She added: “Please, please listen to me. Please make this world more liveable. Don’t treat me like this – I only do this to survive.”

    “I only do this to survive.” We need not go into what “this” is: but no child should ever be in such a situation. We are a richer world than ever in history – it is time to act to end the obscenity of children living in this fashion.

    So what can we do? What do we wish to achieve? The list is long.

    Children need to be protected. To be safe. To go to school to learn and play – to prepare for adult life. They need healthcare – as we all do – and access to treatment.

    They need legal documents ensuring access to their basic rights. And they need affection – to be cared about, to be nurtured, and to be loved.

    And, as they grow, they need to be assimilated into society – not treated as outcasts, without papers, without schooling, without a future.

    This litany of concerns raises questions:

    – Why do we not know how many Street Children there are?

    – Why – in developed countries – do they slip through society’s safety nets?

    – Why do they seem invisible to so many policy makers?

    – Why are they not treated with the humanity, dignity and respect that every human being deserves?

    And how and when can we put all this right?

    There is good news. We are making progress. And – with your help – we will go on doing so until these children are protected.

    Two years ago, the UN confirmed authoritative legal guidance that the rights in the UN Convention applied to all children, and directed governments specifically on how to help Street Children.

    Some are now taking action, but many more need to do so. The Consortium needs to be “an advocate for the children” and “a conscience for their governments”. And I promise we will continue to be so. But, with your help, we could achieve so much more.

    I speak to you tonight, but the real work is, of course, done by volunteers – not by me. I am full of admiration for their commitment, their consistency, and their sheer refusal to give up until progress is made.

    As I grow older, there is much in the world that makes one despair at the folly of man, but the selfless work of these men and women who donate much of their lives to helping others encourages me to believe that our better instincts will prevail.

    Since that inaugural reception at No 10 over a quarter of a century ago, the Consortium has brought together many other organisations around the world. This network now extends to 135 countries – itself indicating the scale of the problem.

    The value our own charity brings is experience, expertise, evidence to support our case, and the clout to change and shape minds.

    It would be wonderful if you felt able to help us in our endeavour.

    You may never know the children you help, and they may never know you, their benefactor. But every child’s life transformed by your kindness will be a life that has been saved.

    Let me close by letting the children speak for themselves:

    From a child in Mexico: “There are street children who die, while others survive, because they don’t have the money to pay for a hospital”.

    And, finally, from a child in Brazil: “I would like for people who have never lived on the streets to see us as human beings.”

    So, I believe, would we all.

    And, with your help and generosity of spirit, we can show them that we do.

  • Sir John Major’s Statement on the Death of Lord Mawhinney – 10 November 2019

    Below is the text of the statement issued by Sir John Major following the death of the Rt. Hon. the Lord Mawhinney on 10 November 2019.

    Brian Mawhinney, my Parliamentary neighbour, was brave, principled, and the very best of colleagues – whatever the political weather.
    He could be combative, but he was always caring – and never once failed to observe the decencies of politics.

    Brian had been unwell for some time, but Betty and their family were a constant source of strength to him, and remained devotedly so until the very end. All my thoughts are with them now.

  • Sir John Major’s Comments to Alastair Campbell – 26 October 2019

    Below are the comments made by Sir John Major in an interview with Alastair Campbell in preparation for a video shown at the People’s Vote rally. The comments were published by the New European on 26 October 2019.

    When I became prime minister, the people of Northern Ireland found themselves living with bombings, shootings, murders, beatings, kneecappings, month after month. It was a way of life that would have been utterly intolerable in any other part of the United Kingdom. Murder was so routine that it was no longer headline news.

    Violence also came to the British mainland. In London, the City, Oxford Street, Knightsbridge were bombed. So was the House of Commons, and 10 Downing Street. Bombings in Manchester, Birmingham, Guildford and Warrington, where two little boys were murdered while buying cards for Mothering Sunday. For those who never lived through those times, it must be almost impossible to imagine. For those of us who did, it’s still difficult to comprehend.

    Irish Taoiseach Albert Reynolds and I both shared a view that it was intolerable, that the 30 years of violence that killed 3,000 people simply could not be permitted to continue. We decided to look for common ground. We were working against a backdrop of tremendous support against the men and women of violence from whichever community they came. There was a genuine sense of people power and it grew.

    Bit by bit, culminating in the Good Friday Agreement, the peace process transformed the lives of all those on the island of Ireland, north and south. Violence ended, friendships were nurture, old hatreds faded. The relationship between London, Belfast and Dublin became better than at any time in history. A key part of this transformation was our mutual membership of the European Union. It broke down borders across Ireland. It increased and simplified trade. It brought north and south closer together. And London and Dublin became close allies, not least around the European table. Brexit will significantly weaken those links and damage the economies of both our countries.

    But the Good Friday agreement was about far more than trade or jobs or profits. It replaced violence with peace. That peace is still fragile. It cannot and must not be a mere afterthought. My fear and that of many others is that Brexit may put that peace at risk. Having been so hard won, and it is to Tony Blair’s eternal credit that it was, it must surely never be allowed to be lost. It is worth remembering that no one under the age of 20 would have any memory of the violence and deaths that once engulfed their neighbourhoods. I hope and pray they never do. It would be the most recklessly irresponsible act to risk losing what took so long to achieve. And a gamble that no British government should ever take, whatever political policy they wish to pursue.

    I totally supported Tony Blair in what he did and for the referendum we liaised. A fool could have seen the difficulties there was going to be with a border between the European Union and the United Kingdom, which would be on the southern end of Northern Ireland. We remembered that when the violence began. It began with the murder of customs officers at a customs border. We went to Ireland together to warn of the difficulties there would be. And I’m sad to say that many of the people in Northern Ireland just shrugged their shoulders and said, what did they know of Ireland? And that, I’m afraid, was also true of the of the then British cabinet. I was disappointed that people could not see the dangers that would be likely to arise.

    I am unsurprised at the end that the Democratic Unionists appear not to be able to support the agreement that has been reached. It was rejected by precisely the people who are now promoting this particular agreement. But I do think there is going to be a real difficulty in Northern Ireland being treated differently. I think there are many reasons for a confirmatory referendum and making sure that you have the support of the people in Northern Ireland is certainly one of them.

    A border down the Irish Sea splits Northern Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom. And that, of course, always plays on the inherent fears of Northern Ireland, that they’re being ignored, that they’re being maltreated. And those fears are very real. There is now not a shred of doubt in my mind that the integrity of the United Kingdom, both in terms of Scotland and in terms of Northern Ireland, is at greater threat. Leaving Europe, carrying Brexit through, will raise strains we know of and strains we haven’t yet thought of. That may well end up with dividing a United Kingdom that has been together for a very long time. It is a thoroughly bad idea.

  • Sir John Major’s Written Submission to High Court – 2 September 2019

    Below is the text of the written submission made by Sir John Major to the High Court on 2 September 2019.

    Written Submission (in .pdf format)

  • Sir John Major’s Witness Statement to High Court – 2 September 2019

    Below is the text of Sir John Major’s witness statement to the High Court, issued on 2 September 2019.

    Text of witness statement (in .pdf format)

  • Sir John Major’s Speech on 25th Anniversary of Camelot – 4 July 2019

    Below is the text of the speech made by Sir John Major on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Camelot. The speech was made at Somerset House in London on Thursday 4 July 2019.

    It’s a real pleasure to be here at Somerset House to celebrate this Anniversary.

    Twenty five years ago the Lottery had a difficult birth, with many critics. But we can now see that it has changed the face of our country.

    Wherever you travel, the Lottery has left its mark.

    An Arts Centre, here – a new sports complex there. Churches restored. Village halls built or repaired. New playgrounds for children.

    Restored parks and open spaces. New cycle ways. New instruments for local bands and orchestras. Theatre groups. Community groups providing care and support for those most in need ….. I could easily go on ……

    It has also revolutionised sport: athletics, rowing, gymnastics, hockey, cricket, football – indeed all sports – and brought the four nations of the UK success on a scale we could not otherwise have achieved.

    All in all, hundreds and thousands of projects – in every corner of our land – some very big, but most quite small, and covering every sort of good cause, have all enriched the lives of the “little platoons” that are the bedrock of our society.

    So thank you, Lottery – and thank you, Camelot for your stewardship of it.

    The Lottery began – as all good stories do – a long time ago. At the time, I was Chief Secretary to the Treasury and responsible for deciding who got public money – and how much.

    Sport and the Arts have always been passions for me. I treasured our heritage, and admired the work of charities. But, as Chief Secretary, I saw that – however important all these things are to our quality of life – they only ever got peanuts from every Government. Quite simply, they could never compete with the demands of health, education or defence.

    But they were still important – especially so to those who could not pay for their entertainment – and so I looked for a pot of gold, “free” of Government interference, that came voluntarily from the taxpayer.

    The pot of gold I found was the Lottery.

    And, since the money came from the public, I believed it should only be for the public – and not for any Government to spend.

    I remember the launch day very well: the press turned out en masse to witness my buying £5-worth of tickets from Victoria Station. I then lived a nightmare knowing that if I won the jackpot, I would have to give the money back.

    I, myself, was fully reconciled to this, but as – at the time – I had a mortgage and no savings, I wasn’t quite sure how that would have gone down with my family.

    Fortunately, fate was kind: I won nothing – and a frosty reaction from my family was averted.

    I always will care very much about the Lottery. I am enormously proud of what it has achieved so far and – as Hugh Robinson noted a few moments ago – the fact that it has now distributed £40 billion to good causes is truly phenomenal. As I look ahead, I wish it to continue to do so.

    But there is a growing problem that I hope Government will address. The National Lottery was designed to be a monopoly for the people, hence the “National” in its title – but is now in danger of being undermined by the changing nature of umbrella society lotteries.

    The success of small local society lotteries and the National Lottery has been based on a clear distinction that allowed both to co-exist. And that is fine.

    However – having seen the success of the National Lottery – a small number of these are now emerging on an industrial scale, and have positioned themselves as national competitors to the National Lottery.

    It was precisely to avoid this sort of problem that, when the Lottery was first introduced, Parliament legislated that it would be a monopoly.

    The continued growth of umbrella society lotteries will draw money away from the National Lottery, and thus away from good causes. If that continues, and grows, the loss to local communities and civic amenities will be immense.

    However, tonight we are here to applaud and celebrate the outstanding achievements of the National Lottery.

    At 25, it is in its prime, and I wish it every possible good fortune for the next 25 years – and beyond – as it matures into a venerable and much respected old age: a true national treasure.