Campaign Charter

They Work For Us is a straight‑talking campaign for England – but only because we live here.

We want all four nations to take back control in their own way. We just can’t be everywhere at once, so if anyone in Scotland, Wales or N Ireland wants to join in, do it – and we will work together. 

It’s not a party, not a think‑tank and not a fan club for any politician.
It’s a banner for ordinary people who want to remind the political class of a simple truth: they work for us, not the other way round.

For over forty years I’ve watched Westminster, councils and quangos treat England like their private job scheme – endless promises, very little real accountability.
This campaign exists because that closed shop has gone too far. We are building a space where right‑thinking people, from any party or none, can come together and say: the country belongs to its people, and power answers to us.

They Work For Us is a non‑party, citizen‑driven effort to put England’s interests and ordinary people back at the centre of politics, under a real English constitution and genuine self‑government.
We don’t care what colour rosette you’ve worn or which box you ticked last time. If you believe MPs, councillors and officials should be held to account by the people they supposedly serve, you’re in the right place.

Everything we do is about peaceful, lawful, democratic pressure: using our voices, votes and organisation to demand that those in power remember who they work for.
No more ego trips, no more celebrity politics, no more pretending that England’s future is decided somewhere over our heads – They Work For Us is where we start pushing back and draining the Westminster swamp of closed‑shop politics.

Why England needs this now

England is full of people who feel something is badly wrong but don’t quite know where to aim their anger.
We see rising bills, collapsing services, crime and chaos, while the same faces play musical chairs in Westminster and on our TV screens.

You don’t need another glossy manifesto from a party that will forget it the day after the election.
You need a simple, brutal reminder: this country is supposed to be run for its people, under rules and a constitution that mean something – not for careerists, donors and nudge‑units designing your behaviour.

England has lived for decades under a system that treats political loyalty and party discipline as more important than duty to the public.
MPs are whipped like schoolboys, councils are stitched up by party machines, and ordinary voters are reduced to a focus group to be nudged and managed.

If England had real self‑government, under its own constitution, with clear lines of accountability, the swamp would be a lot harder to maintain.
Instead, we have a stitched‑up union, a hollowed‑out democracy and a class of politicians who think being “progressive” or “stable” matters more than doing the job for the people who live here.

That is why England needs They Work For Us now.
Not in ten years, not “after the next election”, but now – while there are still enough right‑thinking people left who remember what a country is supposed to be.

Right‑thinking people, not rival tribes

There are more parties and groups on what people call “the right” than most can name – some mainstream, some independents, local groups, single‑issue campaigns, unionist outfits, nationalist outfits, and a load of small alliances that barely make the news.

On the surface they look different, they argue, they split, they fall out. But at heart, most of them share the same underlying value: they love this country. 

That’s the madness of where we are.
People who claim to care about England spend half their time shouting at each other on social media while the same old club in Westminster carries on as usual..
Leaders fall out over labels, logos and egos, and meanwhile the basic truth gets lost: if you love your country, you have more in common with other right‑thinking people than you do with the swamp you’re supposed to be fighting.

No more Farage, no more Lowe, no more cults of personality.
You’re all basically shouting the same things while England slides, and the only people who win are the ones sat comfortably in the closed shop.
If your first instinct is to fight other people who love the country, instead of fighting the system that is wrecking it, you are part of the problem.

They Work For Us is a place to park the tribal row and get serious.
We’re not here to tell you which party to join or which banner to march under. We’re here to say: if you genuinely love England, if you want real self‑government and a living English constitution, then stop treating people who share that as enemies.

Instead of everyone shouting past each other, we’re asking for a common goal:

• Put England and its people back at the centre of politics.
• Make MPs, councils and quangos remember they work for us.
• Drain the swamp of closed‑shop politics so ordinary people can actually change things.

If a party or group can’t sign up to that, they’ll carry on screaming into the void.
If they can, then They Work For Us gives them a simple, shared starting point – a banner that says love of country comes before party badge, and unity of purpose beats shouting matches every time.

What we stand for (core principles)

We keep this simple.
They Work For Us stands on a few hard lines that don’t move with the latest spin cycle.

England first, not party first
England is a real country, not just a voting block inside a union spreadsheet. Its people, its towns, its history and its future come before party leaders and donor lists.

Self‑government and a living English constitution
We want England governed by rules that actually bind politicians: an English constitution, clear limits on power, and a system that can’t be quietly bent every time the establishment feels nervous.

Power must answer to ordinary people
MPs, councils, quangos, regulators – they all exist to serve the public. They should report to us, explain themselves to us, and be removed by us when they fail.

Lawful, peaceful, democratic change
We are not interested in street violence or fantasy revolutions. We believe in using votes, campaigns, investigations, writing and organisation to force change, within the law.

No cults of personality
We don’t worship politicians. We don’t build shrines to party leaders. We judge everyone by whether they put the country first and whether they respect that they work for us.

Honest speech, not curated spin
We say what we mean in plain English. We avoid the buzzwords, the focus‑group fluff and the fear of upsetting people. If a system is rotten, we will call it rotten.

If you’re roughly in line with these principles, you’re the kind of person this campaign is for.

What we will and won’t do (lawful, non‑party, no egos)

It matters to be clear about our limits.
The establishment loves to smear and twist any serious campaign – we’re not giving them easy shots.

We will:

• Speak plainly about England, politics and power.
• Call out parties, leaders and institutions when they fail.
• Back ideas that move us towards real self‑government and accountability.
• Push people to vote, organise and campaign with their eyes open.

We will not:

• Support or encourage violence, harassment or law‑breaking.
• Stir up hatred against anyone because of race, religion, sex or other protected characteristics.
• Act as a front for any one party, candidate or personality.
• Tell you how to vote like a party machine.

Everything we do is about peaceful, lawful, democratic change – using our votes, our voices and our organisation to remind those in power that they work for us.
No more Farage vs Lowe soap opera, no more “my leader, right or wrong”, no more egos running the show. If you want celebrity politics, there are plenty of channels for that. If you want England back on the agenda, this is where we start.

What you can actually do

This campaign only matters if it turns into action.
Reading and nodding is a start, but it won’t change England on its own.

Here are the basics of what you can do:

1. Join the community
Sign up to the email list and keep in touch. Social media can bury or distort what you see; email is where we can talk directly and build something that lasts.

2. Share the simple idea
Tell your friends, family and colleagues one basic truth: They Work For Us.
Not for donors, not for parties, not for lobbyists – for us. Once people hear that enough times, it starts to become the standard again.

3. Hold your MP and council to it
Write, meet, question and challenge them using this principle. When they dodge, remind them who pays their wages. When they promise, write it down and keep the receipts.

4. Stop feeding tribal nonsense
Every time you’re dragged into another “which right‑wing group is purest” fight online, remember who benefits: the swamp.
Step out of it. Spend that energy on something that actually pushes for accountability and self‑government.

5. Help build the English case
Share stories, facts and examples from your town, your work, your experience.
The more real evidence we have of how England is being failed and how it could be governed better, the stronger the case for change becomes.

This isn’t about waiting for a hero.
It’s about thousands of ordinary people quietly, steadily insisting on one simple standard: they work for us. If enough of us demand that, and act like it, the closed shop stops feeling quite so secure.

Final word: to parties, groups and campaigns

If you are part of a party, a local group, a union, a campaign, or just a circle of fed‑up friends, this bit is for you.
Look at our basic values. If they line up with what you say you believe – England first, self‑government, accountability, lawful change, no cults of personality – then stop treating us, and each other, like rivals.

We are not asking you to drop your banners.
On days of action, you can stand under your own colours, your own logos, your own names. That’s fine. Identity matters; history matters. But what really matters is coordination – hitting the same target together instead of shouting the same slogans at each other.

They Work For Us is the common thread.
It’s the line that every party and group that claims to love this country should be able to say out loud without choking: MPs, councillors, quangos and officials work for the people, not for themselves.
If you can’t say that, and act like you mean it, then all your talk about loving England is just noise.

So here’s the offer, as blunt as it gets:

• If our core principles match yours, join us.
• Use your existing structures, members and channels – but plug them into a shared calendar of action, a shared set of demands and a shared standard: they work for us.
• Keep your badge, lose the ego. Keep your history, drop the soap opera.

This campaign won’t rescue England on its own.
But it can give every serious party, group and citizen a simple way to pull in the same direction, instead of tearing chunks out of each other while the closed shop laughs. If that sounds like your kind of politics, you know what to do.

If you like what you’ve read and want to have a chat about ideas or working together, drop us a line at:

get-involved@england-then-and-now.co.uk with a contact number and we’ll give you a call.