Put simply, the bonds and trust exist between the CANZUK countries to do something far greater than what exists today. suggested readingThe return of every man for himselfBy James Barr. The map was produced by count Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi, who devoted his life to European unity. Yet the flaws of this argument are obvious. Around 15% of the UK population is non-white, with 27% of Canada and 30% of New Zealand. of Canada’s opposition Conservative party, but this is far from the federal superpower of Roberts’ imagining. A more limited argument in favour of enhanced cooperation among the CANZUK nations could reasonably be made — indeed, it is a common approach of the cheerleaders to elide support for their more realistic goals with that for their grander geostrategic fantasies. Certainly, a number of right-wing current and former politicians, in Canada, New Zealand and Australia support a free trade agreement among the CANZUK nations, along with some form of free movement between them. Would Australia send jets to defend the North Sea from Russian incursions? Please click here to submit your pitch. Opening sentence: “Since losing the empire, Britain has notoriously struggled to find a role on the world stage.” Often stated, but … is it true? There is a danger that Johnson, with his fatal weakness for bombastic and absurd ideas, will hear the siren song of Westminster’s new Empire League; but this will be counterbalanced by his just as powerful ambition to remain in power, shoring up his fragile electoral coalition by giving his new working-class voters what they want, and not what neoliberal thinktankers demand they must suffer. CANZUK works because of how history played out. Australia is a great East Asian trading power, and will remain so. Having handed the world on a platter to China in pursuit of globalisation, we are now told to deepen globalisation to fight China. Australia doesn’t collect official statistics on race, but it’s estimated to be around 24% non-white. , the historian and Churchill biographer Andrew Roberts argued that the CANZUK nations — Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK — ought to establish “some form of federation among them” as a “second Anglospheric superpower” combining “free trade, free movement of people, a mutual defense organization and combined military capabilities” , which would “create a new global superpower and ally of the U.S., the great anchor of the Anglosphere”. “Our civilisation needs champions to save it from opponents and challengers abroad, but also nationalists at home,” he asserts (presumably referring to the voters who brought Johnson’s government to power), vowing that “we must defend the gains of globalisation for the whole of the world”. Political news and debate concerning the United Kingdom. As a proposal to amplify Britain’s diplomatic reach, it is worth considering, though in any case it is Australia and Canada who have more to gain from sharing our UN seat than we do. Since losing the empire, Britain has notoriously struggled to find a role on the world stage. Trade with the EU isn't going to end, canzuk isn't a replacement in that regard, although it would bring different opportunities for british people and business. Liberalisation of visa regulations among the CANZUK nations would no doubt be broadly popular; similarly, a more realistic proposal for diplomatic cooperation on the world stage between Britain, Canada and Australia has been put forward by the journalist Ben Judah. As other critics have noted, only a minuscule proportion of the CANZUK nations’ trade is with each other, save New Zealand, an economic satellite of Australia. As always, the simple matter of geography trumps the affective bonds between far-flung kith and kin, whatever their emotional appeal. enhanced cooperation among the CANZUK nations. They do not see the huge benefits professed by CANZUKers.”. Impossible comparison. The same can't be said in the context of CANZUK arrangement. The issue is not even raised, let alone answered. If the argument is that doubling down on the economic theories which have done so much to destroy British manufacturing and boost Chinese power at the expense of the West will somehow restrain China’s growth, then it is self-evidently absurd. They do not see the huge benefits professed by CANZUKers.”. Regarding immigration, the CANZUK countries have comparable GDP per capita and standards of living, thus ruling out one-sided migration. Who in the Red Wall clamours to keep the South China Sea safe for globalisation? "Together, CANZUK would have the economic, diplomatic, and maybe even military power to rival the EU and possibly even China and the U.S." In the 19th century, after the Napoleonic wars, Britain distanced itself from European affairs to focus on its empire, which was the largest empire in the world, comprising roughly 25 per cent of the world. CANZUK evangelists cite the Australian senator Eric Abetz as a supporter, but his explicit insistence that “, this would absolutely not be a political union. Each does have an Anglo identity, but they all have distinctive geopolitical and cultural ones as well: Canada is North American and also francophone; Britain is a European country; Australia is an Asian country, and so on. Do I need to point out the data on this? That these wild dreams are even entertained by MPs of the governing party only highlights the irreconcilable tensions within the Brexit vote, and the fragility of the Conservative Party’s hold on power. Without an overarching political and economic framework, the goal of uniting separate nations into one coherent geopolitical bloc cannot succeed; and even with one, as long as the interests of the component nations diverge, the long-term chances of success are slim. The EU, meanwhile, has showcased its divisions for the world to see. They are useful only to show how far Whiggish fantasies have penetrated into British conservatism; and how bereft the ideologues are, perhaps fortunately for the national good, of meaningful or achievable ideas. Kevin Rudd. This is, after all, precisely the worldview most Brexit voters were casting a defiant vote against. A loose alliance dependent on the vagaries of four different electoral cycles for its very existence is clearly not a stable prospect. As for what a united CANZUK foreign policy of confronting China would mean in practice, Kilcoyne. Given the vast disparity between the economic and foreign policy realities and the grand claims of the CANZUK enthusiasts, what are we to make of this sudden reflorescence of ideas first proposed, and then swiftly abandoned as unrealistic, at the height of Britain’s Edwardian golden age? when Iraq is successfully invaded and hundreds of weapons of mass destruction are unearthed from where they have been hidden by Saddam’s henchmen”. ”, and that “I wouldn’t want a CANZUK Human Rights court which would determine what Australia or New Zealand parliaments can legislate”, again shows the limitations of the idea’s appeal even to its own supporters. Similarly to a CANZUK initiative, it would be unfair to criticise the European Union as a union of “white” countries, as member states are annexed under EU law providing they have positive economic and human rights records. the European Union, based on the same reference periods where possible and using the same measurement units. Aris Roussinos is a former war reporter and a contributing editor at UnHerd. more from this authorCovid has exposed America as a failed stateBy Aris Roussinos. Mr Roberts said the alliance would be the fourth-largest economy in the world, ranking behind the US, China and the EU. But as a useful thought experiment in this mooted superpower’s foreign policy, what would the CANZUK position on invading Iraq have been anyway? How long the residual emotional pull of Britain’s political and cultural inheritance will survive the, changing demographics of the former dominions, Eager to shy away from accusations of racial discrimination in choosing Britian’s former white colonies for political union over the rest of the Commonwealth, CANZUK’s adherents seem to advance the notion that the people of Australia, Canada and New Zealand are, whatever their origin, somehow metaphysically British, like those of Hong Kong, due to their adherence to Westminster-style governance and free trade dogma. , that “in eschewing the type of institutional set-up that characterizes the EU, the success of the Anglosphere appears to rest on the existence of a constellation of like-minded politicians in English-speaking countries”. On the one hand, CANZUK is a globe-spanning superpower ready to be born; on the other, it is merely a loose grouping of separate national governments, which would, like all national governments, act according to their own interests above all. Certainly, a number of right-wing current and former politicians in Canada, New Zealand and Australia support a free trade agreement among the CANZUK nations, along with some form of free movement between them. Kevin Rudd, writing for The Guardian, has described CANZUK as “utter bollocks” and “the nuttiest of the many nutty arguments that have emerged from the Land of Hope and Glory set now masquerading as the authentic standard-bearers of British patriotism”. The historians  Michael Kenny and Nick Pearce note in Shadows of Empire, their recent book on the Anglosphere, that “it is advocates of a free market, neo-liberal future for the UK who remain its most enthusiastic champions”, and that as the UK’s attachment to Europe soured, “the gravitational pull of the Anglosphere on the political imagination of neo-liberal Eurosceptics intensified”. Meet CANZUK. CANZUK is a golden opportunity for Scotland. On the wisdom of invading Iraq, I suspect not even the objects of his adulation would agree with his previous assertions that “. Geography will never change that. Similarly, Australia’s former leader Tony Abbott has. In a recent piece for the Wall Street Journal, the historian and Churchill biographer Andrew Roberts argued that the CANZUK nations — Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK — ought to establish “some form of federation among them” as a “second Anglospheric superpower” combining “free trade, free movement of people, a mutual defense organization and combined military capabilities” , which would “create a new global superpower and ally of the U.S., the great anchor of the Anglosphere”. By totting up the different GDP figures of the various CANZUK nations, Roberts claims that his proposed Empire 2.0 “would have a combined GDP of more than $6 trillion, placing it behind only the U.S., China and the EU,” while “with a combined defense expenditure of over $100 billion, it would also be able to punch above its weight”. It's a nice thing to have less barriers between countries but it isn't a replacement to EU in any sense. In any case, is there any meaningful support for CANZUK in its other mooted constituent nations? This is a vision of Anglo-Saxon civilisation purely reducible to swashbuckling free trade on the high seas previously made only by Napoleon or Oswald Spengler at their most cynical and dismissive, though here represented as a positive trait. Similarly, Australia’s former leader Tony Abbott has expressed support for free trade and free movement among the CANZUK nations, and again, is silent on the wider geopolitical aspects. That said I do find it funny when people on the left try to justify low paid jobs that you cannot possibly hope to live in while living in the UK and have a decent living standard. “A narrative of derring-do and imperial nostalgia derived from Ladybird’s Adventures From History series may make a subset of middle-aged Brexiteers go weak at the knees”. Wrapping neoliberal economic goals within a narrative of derring-do and imperial nostalgia derived from Ladybird’s Adventures From History series may make a subset of middle-aged Brexiteers go weak at the knees, but a zealous adherence to free trade dogma does not make a civilisation, even if, as we are rapidly finding out, it may well break one. The CANZUK blogosphere asserts so, but — as is a recurring pattern here — this very much depends on which shifting definition is used. By continuing to use our site you are agreeing to our cookies policy. The Scottish National Party leader complains vociferously about Scotland being taken out the EU against its will. Thinking of CANZUK as a sort of alternative to the EU is selling it short – it would be something new. “its program for a loose confederal state linking the Westminster democracies would be clearly enunciated right from the start.” Already, we see the harsh hand of reality ready to crush this initially appealing vision. CANZUK isn't an alternative to EU membership. If I had my way we'd have both; they aren't comparable. The CANZUK blogosphere asserts so, but — as is a recurring pattern here — this very much depends on which shifting definition is used. CANZUK is an acronym for a potential alliance comprising of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK, similar to the former European Economic Community – the predecessor of the EU. This scheme is literally the work of an elite, and not a popular one. Neither Canada nor New Zealand took part in the war, which they strongly opposed, judging that the invasion was not in their national interests. Instead, CANZUK will aim at somewhat replicating the Treaty of Rome which created the EU’s predecessor, the EEC. Cooperation could well be considered on. This CANZUK argument deserves our attention. Korean Australians ? Would there be a shared tax mechanism to convert this notional $6 trillion GDP into something meaningful? By totting up the different GDP figures of the various CANZUK nations, Roberts claims that his proposed Empire 2.0 “would have a combined GDP of more than $6 trillion, placing it behind only the U.S., China and the EU,” while “with a combined defense expenditure of over $100 billion, it would also be able to punch above its weight”. Together with developments such as the US retreat into unilateralism and the rise of the nativist right, the UK’s withdrawal from the EU is spawning new political possibilities and reconfiguring our geopolitical imaginaries. As always, the simple matter of geography trumps the affective bonds between far-flung kith and kin, whatever their emotional appeal. The idea is lobbied by the advocacy group CANZUK International and supported by liberal think tanks such as the Adam Smith Institute, the Henry Jackson So…