Wera Marches With Bath Residents To "Stop The Coup"

5 September 2019

Wera marched at the head of a massive group of Bath residents who are outraged by the Prime Minister’s attack on our Parliamentary democracy.

Following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision last week to suspend Parliament to force through a No Deal Brexit, there have been widespread protests throughout the country as people have expressed shock and anger, deeming his move to be a ‘coup.’ Reports of between 50,000 to 100,000 gathered in London at the weekend and on Sunday, September 1st, a sizeable rally took place in central Bath.

Organised by local campaign group Bath for Europe, it attracted about a thousand protesters, according to an estimate from former HTV West presenter Richard Wyatt. Bath MP Wera Hobhouse, with the Union Jack draped over her shoulders, addressed the crowd, initially in Abbey Churchyard. She welcomed everyone and said she understood and shared their outrage. "This goes far beyond Brexit. I fight for Parliament to continue its right to be sovereign." She added she would be working hard in Parliament to secure legislation that would stop the government pushing through a No Deal Brexit. "It’s truly scary what the government is doing to fair process and I don’t think the Conservatives will recover from this act of vandalism."

Wera encouraged people to write to their MPs and to post comments and letters in national and local papers to express their opinion about what the government is trying to do. She urged Bath residents to join Bath for Europe’s ongoing protests and street stalls and, above all, "Book a coach ticket to join the People’s Vote march in London on October 19th. People power works. I haven’t given up hope we can stop this mess. So you must not give up hope either."