CEP: This Oliver Cromwell moment

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Monday, 18, May 2009 12:00

The UK constitution should now be purged. England should be like Scotland now have its opportunity to govern itself cleanly and honestly, and purely in the interests of the people

The National Council of the Campaign for an English Parliament, holding its bi-monthly meeting in Birmingham Bull Street meeting rooms on Saturday May 16th, re-asserted its denuntiation of the UK Parliament for its Nuremberg Nazi-like Defence of its behaviour ('we were only obeying the rules') and demanded a root and branch re-think of the Union. 'Scotland has led the way,' stated Scilla Cullen Chairman. 'It seized the opportunity to institute transparency and strict regulation of its Members' behaviour. It could only do it because it had its own Parliament independent of the Union Parliament corrupted by 300 years of embedded greed and secrecy. The time has come for a new vision of what the United Kingdom should be.Beyond any doubt England must now have the same powers of self-government, its own parliament.'

And the Council decided to remind the whole English Nation of one of the greatest moments in its history and issue the text of the great Speech of Oliver Cromwell to the Long Parliament which rings as true today as it did on April 20th 1653:

“It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonored by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of every vice; ye are a factious crew, and enemies to all good government; ye are a pack of mercenary wretches, and would like Esau sell your country for a mess of pottage, and like Judas betray your God for a few pieces of money. Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess? Ye have no more religion than my horse; gold is your God; which of you have not bartered your conscience for bribes? Is there a man amongst you that has the least care for the good of the Commonwealth? Ye sordid prostitutes, have you not defiled this sacred place, and turned the Lord's temple into a den of thieves, by your immoral principles and wicked practices? Ye are grown intolerably odious to the whole nation; you were deputed here by the people to get grievances redressed, are yourselves become the greatest grievance. Your country therefore calls upon me to cleanse this Augean stable, by putting a final period to your iniquitous proceedings in this House; and which by God's help, and the strength he has given me, I am now come to do; I command ye therefore, upon the peril of your lives, to depart immediately out of this place; go, get you out!

Make haste! Ye venal slaves be gone! So! Take away that shining bauble there, and lock up the doors. In the name of God, go!"

Contact: Michael Knowles CEP Media Unit. Tel: 01260 271139 Email: michael-knowles@tiscali.co.uk