Move along if you wanted to see spankings, I just wanted to let off some steam, light heartedly at first about the horsemeat scandal then I got to thinking about my country’s role in Europe as this is part of the E.U. malaise that I am fed up with: Astonishing complacency, arrogance and downright criminal activity by not only the opportunist Eastern European gangs, but our highest “elected” officials in Europe who want the richest nations in Europe to fund the Euro Gravy-train by spending MORE on budgets – and to hell with the tax payers of these nations (Britain, naturally… included).

OK… so no doubt some of you will have noticed that there is a bit of a scandal going around with some fast and prepared foods here in the UK. Fortunately I don’t ever really eat many “beef” ready meal or processed products such as lasagne (I work in the business, at least on the butchery side of things that I know quite well so am aware of the supply chain). Supermarkets are not to blame entirely as they have been forced to accept compliance documentation from these companies supplying the meat and prepared foodstuffs as ready to sell for years. Who is to blame for allowing this into our country? … take a step successive governments (starting with Labour over 10 years ago and continuing with our present administration). There has been dangerous cuts to funding to the FSA (Food Standards Agency) who are so threadbare that they are unable to make the dedicated and necessary checks as they should. Some criminal elements in eastern Europe (where else… sigh) have known this and supplied “filler” meat… I’m personally not fazed by eating horse… after all, I had lived in France for years and the “steack hache” was nearly always horse unless you asked for “bifsteack”.  However,  I am fazed by the fact it could be knackered horse from Romania (which it no doubt is) and possibly containing carcinogens… what I am angry about is the fact that there is a lot of profit being made at the gullible consumers and supermarket operations expense as every part of the chain tries to squeeze each other and keep margins profitable whilst showing that the end user… us, the customers… get a good deal! This affects the hard pressed families and those on tight budgets. Of course, many of those miss going to a butchery counter or even on our high street, the dedicated butchers (if you can find one nowadays)… as all meat sold there is totally traceable, (especially beef in the UK… we actually joke that beef is so much more traceable than illegal immigrants… sad but true!)

This whole scandal has hardly started, I fully expect to see lamb, pork and chicken investigated too, I know it should be, I no longer touch any ready meals when I see that the “chicken content” comes (for example) from Brazil! Brazil FFS! Not only is the carbon footprint of that ridiculous, why can we not find a supplier closer to home? Answer: they have to comply with yet more laws in THIS country as those supplying it here do get more checks… notice all the suppliers so far are not in the UK (Comigel in France and Silvercrest in Ireland – both companies duped by their meat suppliers – from Eastern Europe).

You pay for what you get… of course we are all angry, I expect to at least trust a label that says beef, even if it is just 45% or whatnot… but I certainly don’t expect some filler to be horse if it does not say so… this scandal will “hit the blocks” and “run and run” – sorry (lol) couldn’t resist! & of course there are some nice memes going round now that Findus, a major frozen food producer has had virtually 100% horse meat detected in some of their “Beef lasagnes” – I hope our agencies and those of other countries in Europe track down the criminal elements.

& we have the joy of opening our borders thanks to EU law next year to Romania and Bulgaria? I despair (& don’t get me started on the UNDEMOCRATIC European Parliament) who some members have openly defied the latest budget breakthrough by the countries that FUND this bloated organization) by stating that they want to vote in SECRET (so as to avoid the WRATH of those who voted them in on 25% turn outs.) To overturn what was a landmark decision instigated by Britain and the fed up northern Euro countries including Holland, Scandinavia and (thankfully) Germany (hurrah!) – who have to foot the bill… how typical that the basket case economies such as Spain, Italy and France want the socialist ideal to spend MORE money none of our countries really have spare…

Martin Schulz (see the bearded weirdo above): A thoroughly unpleasant German socialist president of the European Parliament, is looking for a fight on this. And the new powers the Lisbon Treaty gives the parliament over the budget means Schulz can do just that.

He was at the council last night, warning the leaders of the member states not to cut the budget.  More to the point, he says he has done a count of the political groups at the parliament, and they tell him a budget at the lower figure won’t get through the parliament. He says the leaders of the same political groups told him that they have already initiated the procedure required to ensure that the vote on the budget is taken by secret ballot.

Yes, I know, outrageous. But the parliament has the power to do it. And far from being ashamed, the MEPs (members of European Parliament) will hail a secret vote as a “democratic protection against  ‘dangerous’ and ‘nationalist’ pressures on MEPs from their home governments.”

So, as I say, the parliament trying to veto Cameron’s ‘triumph’ is something stronger than a rumour. But if it’s rumour you want, try this: a confrontation with the Council is part of Schulz’s plan to be the next president of the European Commission. He appears to want to present himself as the champion of – typical left-winger – solidarity, which he calls ‘the key value underpinning the European Union’. If he can line himself up as the anti-Cameron (from the much maligned UK), there are enough ‘anti-nationalists’ who would want him to lead the Commission as insurance against any increase of Council powers at the expense of the Commission.

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If they vote this down, I can’t wait for our referendum to leave or stay in the European Union. However, by 2017, it will be far too late as our tiny nation will be awash with yet more economic migrants thinking the streets of our country were paved with Gold and yet more barmy laws we have to embrace at the further eradication of our national identity!

Horsemeat and European Democracy Rant – Over!