As the year draws to a close, we tend to reflect on the year that has passed as well as look forward to the New Year. Every year is eventful and 2016 is thought of by many as having been even more so than usual. I doubt if anyone could have predicted many of the events that have happened this year and I am going to steer clear of making any predictions for 2017.
I expect that 2016 will ultimately be remember for the year that the British people took back control of our democracy by voting to leave the ailing European Union, a political organisation that has become increasingly unaccountable, dictatorial and arrogant in its attitude to the millions of people that it is supposed to serve. This decision will serve us well and it will forever increase the accountability of our own politicians who would often cite EU laws and regulations when dissolving themselves of accountability.
2016 has seen some interesting election results in the western world and sometimes those with more extreme views have been successful. However, this is not new to this year but a continuation of an existing trend. For example, far-left parties came first in elections and ran governments in Spain and Greece in the years prior to 2016 and we shouldn’t forget here in the UK, the election in 2015 (and re-election in 2016) of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour Party - the most extremist leader of one of Britain’s two main parties of government in living memory.
It is hard to say what 2017 will hold but I am an eternal optimist. Political trends come and go but we continue to see improvements in our country and around the world. Notwithstanding all the terrible things we see on our TV screens, each year global living standards continue to rise and the number of people living in abject poverty decreases. There is much to be positive about. I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas holiday and may I wish all readers of the Crawley Observer a very happy and productive 2017.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
28th December 2016