Summer ‘26 newsletter
Good morning,
After a very busy start to the year, we were pleased to hold our first CANZUK summer reception, summer has proven to have allowed all of us some much-needed respite from busy politics. Nevertheless, the CANZUK campaign continues - we must now move from Conservative party policy to this being a cross-party objective.
On behalf of the CF of CANZUK team, thank you for your continued support. I hope you have had a peaceful summer, and we look forward to re-commencing the campaign in earnest when Parliament returns next week.
Yours sincerely,
Elliott Malik
Director of the Conservative Friends of CANZUK
A changing of the guard
In June, we experienced a change of the guard as our long-standing President, Lord Hannan of Kingsclere, resigned as President due to the non-party political nature of his role as Director General of the Institute for Economic Affairs. We are delighted that our former vice-President, now President, Jack Rankin MP has stepped up to lead the Conservative CANZUK cause.
If any single person can claim to have led the CANZUK campaign over the past decade, it is Lord Hannan. From advocating for CANZUK as our best post-Brexit opportunity during the referendum, to being the first parliamentarian to call for it on the floor of Parliament in British history, we are all carrying the torch first lit by him. Whilst Lord Hannan has stepped back from formal party political advocacy, he continues to be our strongest advocate and role model.
I would like to thank Jack for his continued support for CANZUK, both within the Conservative parliamentary party and as an officer in the newly formed CANZUK APPG. Jack has brought real energy to the campaign, and I have been delighted to see his passion for advancing CANZUK, both within the Conservative party and across the British political spectrum.
CANZUK summer drinks
CANZUK co-Directors, David Moore and I, were pleased to host our inaugural summer drinks in the spectacular Mercato Mayfair. We were joined by dozens of CANZUK supporters from across the four realms, who want to work to deepen our already strong ties of culture, economy and defence. During the event, we were delighted to formally reveal our new President, Jack Rankin MP.
A warning from the Americas
On Saturday, the United States renewed its economic attack on Canada. To be clear, Canada has always been a good, stable and reliable partner to its neighbours and historic allies. Canada is a free and independent country, and it is disgraceful that the United States continues to treat the country with such contempt.
It is of the utmost importance that the British, Australian and New Zealand government stand united in defence of Canadian sovereignty.
But we also know that our increasingly uncertain world, and the lack of a reliable ally in the United States, means we need to go further. We need CANZUK. This is the only path for our four realms to retain their strategic independence. As Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre MP outlined at our reception earlier this year, there are key policies which could begin to secure our countries’ future, and CANZUK, now:
Automatic professional recognition
Regulatory presumption of equivalence
A skilled mobility framework
Defence procurement integration
A critical minerals compact
This is the start, but we should want to do much more: establish a CANZUK secretariat in Vancouver, initiate intra-CANZUK ministerial roundtables, create CANZUK cultural fora to remind ourselves of our shared history and culture.
We stand with Canada, it is time for the British government to do the same.
