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South Holland MP champions Britishness as head of Common Sense Group in Parliament




South Holland and the Deepings MP Sir John Hayes is leading a new call for national pride against "a liberal left domination of the media".

Sir John is behind the Common Sense Group, made up of Conservative MPs and Peers in the House of Lords, in a fightback against attacks on Britain's history.

The group made national headlines at the weekend with a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, asking him to take on organisations like the BBC, National Trust and National Maritime Museum questioning the status of "great heroes", such as wartime Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and Lord Horatio Nelson.

Sir John Hayes MP is the founder of the Common Sense Group in Parliament.
Sir John Hayes MP is the founder of the Common Sense Group in Parliament.

Sir John said: "Like the vast majority of my constituents, I'm proud to be British and proud of my heritage.

"Unfortunately, there's a growing group of people in the liberal establishment who seem to be ashamed of what Britain has done in the world.

"You see this in the bizarre criticisms of people like Winston Churchill and Horatio Nelson and all kinds of other people.

"History is full of all kinds of good and bad things but each of us is a product of our history and we can't sanitise or rewrite it.

"This is the stuff of political extremists and I don't think that organisations like the National Trust or National Maritime Museum realise quite how serious the things they are saying are.

"The effects are potentially devastating because if children cease to learn about these great heroes like Churchill and Nelson, how robbed they would be of the prestige that gives people a sense of purpose and pride in their heritage."

Sir John revealed that the Common Sense Group was born out of concerns over the number of migrants crossing the English Channel during the summer, as well as protests about its colonial history and links to slavery.

For example, a protest in July led to the pulling down of a statue of 17th century textiles merchant Edward Colston because of his links to the West Indies slave trade.

Sir John said: "Every country's history is littered with great and good things, as well as less good things.

"But that doesn't mean we shouldn't be very pleased to be British and proud of what we've done.

"It's also about reflecting the views of the silent majority, the hard-working patriots who are pleased when their values are put across as an alternative voice, rather than the liberal left domination of the media and social media."



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