Last week the island of Sark in the Channel Islands held its first ever election for the Chief Pleas, the parliament of Sark.  Sark is a Crown Dependency and is therefore not part of the UK or the EU but the elections were held to comply with the EU Convention on Human Rights.

Until last week Sark was a feudal state with the unelected Seigneur as head of the Chief Pleas which was itself comprised of the tenants of the original 40 quarantaine.  The Seigneur will continue as the feudal lord of the island but the island’s government will now be elected.

Progress has its price, however.  The Barclay brothers, owners of the Torygraph and the Ritz hotel, are a bit pissed off because their candidates did badly in the election.  They own the island of Brecqhou, one of the quarantaine and are a law unto themselves.  They regularly break Sark law, driving cars and using helicopters and have been accused of tax evasion.  They have even tried to claim independence from Sark.

In retaliation for not voting for their candidates, the Barclay’s have closed their businesses on the island and put 140 people out of a job.  The island only has just under 500 inhabitants, no social security and residents aren’t entitled to claim benefits from the British government.

So that’s another economy devastated and half the working population of Sark out of a job because of Federal Europe.  But hey, at least they get to put an “X” next to a name every few years.

Technorati Tags: Sark, Brecqhou, Federal Europe