UFO Info Week-End

The size of the British contribution to the European budget was the most important grievance

The size of the British contribution to the European budget was the most important grievance. The Foreign Secretary’s own views on Europe were those he had held for years: Britain’s economic salvation depended on Britain itself and being inside or outside the Community was marginal to the result, but, politically, he believed the Community could bring a strong, collective voice in the world. Callaghan was pressed into telephone diplomacy to stave off a Suez-like crisis.As for Europe, the Labour Party was still deeply divided on the issue. The Sun is campaigning against illegal Gypsy sites and, on the evidence of last week, against spending “taxpayers’ money” on legal ones. The Daily Mail was also on the travellers’ trail with spreads of “mighty oaks chopped down to make way for caravans”, of Michael Howard sharing “the misery of village with camp next door”, and Labour’s “Nazi slurs on Howard” over his plans for illegal traveller camps.So there has been a Gypsy frenzy in predictable sections of the press, and tut-tutting about Gypsy frenzy in predictable other sections of the press. According to The Independent, Tory “pronouncements on asylum and immigration have been shameless attempts to capitalise on xenophobia”. The same “ugly impulse” lay behind their targeting of Gypsies.To the average member of the public who reads one newspaper this sudden emergence of an “issue” must be puzzling.

Pockets of concern about encampments exist where Gypsies are, and are reported in local papers. But national publicity is very occasional, and concerted national publicity does not happen Why now?The previous week it was abortion. A Howard magazine interview; headlines in the usual suspect newspapers, support flushed out from archbishops and then a minor national debate about whether abortion should be turned into an election issue. By which time it had been, to a limited extent.Throughout this period of general election foreplay these populist issues have dripped out, or rather been dripped out There have been newspaper stories of an immoderate nature. There have been press conferences and speeches from the Conservative leader.

And, too often, there have been attempts by the government to identify with the issue in a “me too” kind of way.The defence of the populist issues by the populist press is that they are popular and therefore not to be ignored. The liberal establishment, they will say, uses words like “incitement” to condemn responsible discussion of issues of concern to many people, when in fact they fear discussion because they know it would leave them in the minority.The Fortnight of the Gypsy, then, consisted of a starter week of stories of filthy, illegal camps in the Express/Mail/Sun section of the press. But, when the negotiations were well under way, he had to take time out to deal with the crisis in Cyprus, where a military coup had toppled President Makarios. He was soon involved in Bills on gambling, race relations, immigration and criminal law He made a change in his private life too.