BREXIT Blues

Normally my first post of the year is the publication of one of my poems. I am breaking that tradition this year. I am not celebrating the more than six-hundred thousand viewings of my blog either.

[Image description: on a grey background the words “Sad, sad day. #BREXIT.”]

As a blog that proudly has the word European in its name, I am compelled to lament the United Kingdom leaving our friends, allies and main trading-bloc in the European Union.

I very much suspect that this action will be seen as foolhardy in the not too distant future. I fully anticipate that we Bremainers will fight for however long it takes to rejoin the EU in the future (just as the Brexiteers have fought to exit since the day we first joined in 1972, some forty-eight years ago). I suppose we need to let the old guard die off and then the youth and young adults can assert their optimism and hope in the European project.

Please do not give up on Britain, my fellow Europeans. We may be an island, but - in spirit if no longer legally - we are still part of the continent of Europe. I hope that the day will come very soon when we can once again proudly play Ode to Joy.

[Image description: the EU flag, twelve golden stars forming a circle on a Royal blue background]

Ciao! Bis bald! ¡Hasta pronto! Au revoir!

🤓

What now for Spain after State Brutality in Catalonia?

[Image description: Spanish state flag & Catalan regional flag flying side by side]

I read the Spanish newspaper El País because I find out news that never gets reported here in the UK. However, I am well aware that it is very right-wing. In their oped of events of the "illegal referendum" on 1st October, they naturally criticise the politicos in Catalonia for inciting the trouble - despite years of grievances between Catalonia and Madrid. Nonetheless, its prime minister Rajoy, and, thus as its representative, the Spanish State, which are blamed the most. This is quite surprising given the newspaper's usual stances.

Son injustificables en Rajoy su pasividad, su impericia y la delegación de responsabilidades.

One cannot justify Rajoy's passivity, his lack of authority and the delegation of responsibilities.

By failing to condemn the violence & brutality perpetrated by state forces against the Catalans, King Felipe may have condemned Spain & the Spanish monarchy to being inexorably broken up and diminished. El Rey lost an opportunity to really use the monarchy to bring all Spaniards together. By being so partisan he has sided with Rajoy: by not condemning his handling of the political situation nor the use of police brutality. The monarch ought to have tried to heal the rift and act as king of all Spaniards, whatever their political persuasions & allegiances.

King Felipe: Catalonia's authorities have 'scorned' all Spaniards with referendum

By failing to condemn the violence & brutality perpetrated by Spanish state forces in Catalonia, the EU has once again shown itself to be incapable of stepping in to hold up European citizens rights - Article 7 must take precedence over Article 4 - and thus is yet again diminished in the eyes of its citizens who cannot understand its failure to stand up for its so-called democratic values. It looks as if the European Union is not going to be of any use to either Catalans nor Spaniards. (And yes I can say that: cf. English/Irish/Scottish/Welsh & British, one can be two different nationalities at the same time.)

The EU has tied its own hands. It cannot intervene in Catalonia

The International Community was and is appalled at the way the Spanish State has handled the issue and the state brutality it brought to bear. Rajoy and the Spanish police forces brought shame upon Spain's reputation. According to the opinion polls prior to Madrid's actions, the referendum would have been won easily by those who wished to remain in Spain. Rajoy's in/actions have pushed more Catalans into wanting independence and probably others around Spain. They appear to be the actions of a weak & very foolhardy person. To support Rajoy & the police, is to accept that international opprobrium is a price worth paying. If the majority of Spaniards believe they were the right and moral actions, then unfortunately the Spanish will lose their reputation for being some of the most affable folk in Europe. I hope, however, that if tempers are given the chance to cool, then reason will re-assert.

If you have read all that I have posted on Catalonia across social media, then you know that I believe it to be better for her to remain with Spain. But Madrid has to give here: not just to the Catalans, but to the rest of the Spanish nationalities and regions. El País - recall a right-wing newspaper - has been calling for years for Madrid to do the same and to renegotiate the Constitution.

Now it is Spain's only hope of holding itself together. Well, that is without a military coup - but who would want that?

Half-a-Million Blog-Views

I can hardly believe it: my blog has passed half-a-million (500,000) views in a little under five years, averaging out at about one-hundred-thousand (100,000) viewings per year!

 

[Image description: stats list showing views at 12.53 BST were 500,025]

A couple of Chester University chums (thanks Annette, Louise & Jon) persuaded me that I had plenty to say and that folk would want to read it. I half-heartedly said I should give it a go, without actually believing blogging was for me. As it happens, my blog has given me a place where I can vent my spleen about how disabled and chronically-sick folk are treated in the United Kingdom (UK) as well as share my dining experiences at eateries across Europe - so far these have included Austria, England, Germany, Greece, Scotland, Spain & Switzerland. I have discovered new countries with ties to Europe and that European disabled peoples are faring badly across the Continent, alas in some cases worse than here in UK.

I do not know how long I shall be able to continue the blog. My aphasia has deteriorated which means my reasoning, thinking and my ability to express myself are all pejorated. My physical stamina is also much reduced due to the myalgic encephalomyelitis. Much of this may be due to the on-going stresses I am under in relation to my thus far unresolved Personal Independence Payment (PIP; UK disability benefit) and my continuing lack of care from my local council Trafford due to the national social care crisis.

This I hope explains why there have been so few posts this year. However, I do have a blog-post ready-ish for tomorrow's International M.E. Awareness Day. It's on a taboo subject, so may or might be considered #nsfw.

To my seven loyal followers and to all readers (occasional or regular): THANK YOU. <3

BREXIT: no party is innocent

I am very much pro-Europe, but am less than enthusiastic when it comes to the European Union. I have said since joining the Euro was proposed, that the UK should not do so until such time as the EU begins to bring its own house in order.

However, on many levels, the EU is far more democratic than the UK, and we should be learning from it and improving our own democracy. Instead, little Englanders & Welshies stubbornly insist on perceiving what the neo-liberal media feeds them as being reality rather than the propaganda it is. How else to explain the gullibility of accepting the promise that the NHS would receive the £350million.

Human Rights legislation comes from the Council of Europe (not to be confused with the European Council), NOT the EU itself. Those laws were drafted with guidance from Britain. To reject laws we helped create is quite bizarre!

The following article is worth reading: the EU is not innocent of machinations & unreasonable stubbornness. The termination of an affinity is very rarely the fault of just one side.

Britain’s divorce from the EU will be bitter. Yet the failure is Europe’s too

Brexiteers' Pyrrhic Victory*

Well, I suppose we all have to wait to see what the PM decides to do. Treaty withdrawal requires an Act of Parliament, but I imagine if he so chooses, he can consider the ‪‎Brexit‬ referendum a mandate to notify the European Union of our intention to withdraw.

From what I have been reading in related news-articles this morning, it sounds like Gove & Johnson [prominent Leavers] have drawn up a list of EU directives, and ECJ [sorry - European Court of Justice] rulings they are now going to rip up ahead of any formal withdrawal. One more goose-step towards ‪‎totalitarianism‬.
 

Very sad day for the United Kingdom, that now will be broken up. Scotland voted remain in every single one of its authorities. The more liberally minded Scots will want to remain in the EU. Surprisingly - to me at least - Northern Ireland has similarly voted for remain. And as I predicted, moves to re-unite Ireland are already being mooted.

The Pound has dropped to a 31-year low: so that's all imports that are going to go up in price from fuel, heating costs, food, wine, etc. And the ensuing result will be a steep rise in inflation and thus mortgage costs and then rents. So unless one happens to be independently well-off - like most Tory MPs - the cost-of-living is about to become very burdensome.

And don't be counting on your pension: the pension funds have just lost £millions and that will be the continuing trend for the foreseeable future.

The ‪‎NHS‬ will lose many of its highly trained European staff - we do not produce sufficient doctors & nurses to fully staff the NHS. So service at hospitals and even GP surgeries - who often rely on EU docs to cover weekend and night-time call-outs - will deteriorate. Who knows, I bet access-charges are just around the corner. And remember many of our meds have to be imported, so that will probably mean prescription-charges will shoot up.

Pensioners, disabled, sick, poor, unemployed, low-employed, homeless folk will all lose out. The younger generation, already brassed off with the raw deal that baby-boomers have left them, will become ever more jaded and cynical with the scraps they are begrudgingly offered.

And university costs will soar, because there will be very few high-paying foreign students entering here. So expect several unis to collapse in bankruptcy.

And don't forget the navy, army, airforce, etc. have been cut to the bone - they will not be able to take on extra border duties and continue with the prestigious international affairs our oligarchs are always so keen to participate in.

So well done all those of you who thought you were doing Ole Blighty a favour: you have just shot the Nation in the foot!

'Bye-'bye Europe! I don't suppose we shall see the EU flag (below) flying here for very much longer.

Such a sad, sad day………

*

* "A Pyrrhic victory is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Someone who wins a Pyrrhic victory has been victorious in some way. However, the heavy toll negates any sense of achievement or profit. Another term for this would be "hollow victory"."

Per Wikipedia.

Is this the beginning of the end…?

I try to be a reasonable, rational and liberal (note lower-case ell) person. I am and always have been non-partisan when it comes to politics, having never agreed with the party-political system using whips that we have in the United Kingdom. It cannot be viewed by any sensible person as democratic, for it is essentially oligarchic. My parents held opposing political views and my siblings and I were raised to try to see the other's perspective. My personality - and that of very many ordinary Brits - is one that cares about one's neighbours and neighbourhood.

 The slogan reads:

I'm voting

REMAIN

FOR

OUR NHS

For most Brits social justice is, or used to be, at the very core of our values; the quintessence of Britishness. Just look at all the folk who raise money for charities &/or who volunteer, or the folk - not just relatives - who take on caring duties. Most are happy to support our NHS in any way we can - despite the on-going privatisation by successive governments. And just look at the out-pouring of care whenever there is an international disaster! We are not, however much the likes of UKIP and other extremist parties might like to believe, little Englanders. We have always been outward looking (- not always necessarily for the best as huge mistakes were made in relation to empire). Nonetheless, to this very day, millions of Brits reside in countries outside the UK and are spread right around the globe.

With the exception of a rather hateful era when Jews were exiled from England, we have welcomed workers from abroad whether refugees, merchants, traders or artists and artisans. Not only has this contributed to our rich history and culture, but this stand-point has substantially benefitted our economy.

A vote for Brexit will not mean that these folk will be forced to go back to Europe. Many have set up businesses and employ folk - who will certainly fight to retain their jobs. Most have grown networks of friends, neighbours & colleagues within communities - who will certainly fight to retain their valued members. Such folk should surely vote Bremain.

A vote for Brexit may very well mean that many of the few million Brits residing in Europe will be forced to return to the UK. The pressures on housing, other infrastructure and the NHS will remain at least the same or heighten - for many of the folk who will return will be pensioners who will need healthcare and social care due to being removed from their support networks and inclement climate here. So, if one is concerned, even worried, about immigration then one should surely vote Bremain.

A vote for Brexit will permit this and any future government to do pretty much as they please with no international oversight. The previous and current governments have acted as they please, ignoring judicial orders to obey the law of the land. Cameron has even repeatedly stated that he wants to abolish the House of Lords, which, whilst archaic and in many ways undemocratic, nevertheless is often the only check & balance on the power of the Executive (thus paradoxically acting democratically!). There is a democratic deficit within the European Union. The Executive, in this case the European Commission, has usurped too much power (rather as has the United Kingdom Executive). I agree wholeheartedly that the democratic systems within the EU have to be changed and improved so that European citizens believe and know that they are heard and responded to. However, the only way to change a system is from within. If Britain votes out, then we are immediately locked out of any kind of influence. So anyone that wants to change the EU for the better should surely vote Bremain.

Today and tomorrow one of the United Nations' committees is quizzing the UK over its treatment of disabled people, having collected a wealth of data and documentary evidence to demonstrate that we are being abused, mistreated, scapegoated, demonised and starved of funds & access due to social security (welfare) cuts, propaganda and mainstream-media misrepresentation. (See for example this article for a more in-depth analysis.) The EU has and continues to draw up laws and rules for pan-European access to goods, services and support. Here in England & Wales, the government is only now, after a couple of decades, going to try to enforce the law which is supposed to prevent taxi-drivers from refusing to take disabled passengers - yes, this has and continues to occur to hundreds of individuals each and every day. Without European oversight, I very much doubt that a laissez-faire - let alone an overtly disablist - government will pursue expanding disability access rights. If you know someone who is disabled or chronically sick, and you care about them, you should surely vote Bremain.

The slogan reads:

I'm voting

REMAIN

FOR

WORKERS'

RIGHTS

I could write about many, many other areas that the EU improves for each and every one of us - such as environmental laws that ensure clean water or the labelling of clean/dirty beaches; or laws that protect workers rights to pay, conditions, holidays; or laws that ensure our human rights§ (like not to be arrested and detained without trial, and so on). However, I have limited energy and resources. If  the reader is interested, please do your own research. Once you have done, you will surely vote Bremain.

The EU has much that is wrong with it, just like our very own political system here in the UK. Whilst one has the opportunity to vote to leave the former, one cannot exit the latter. Tomorrow I shall be voting Bremain.

*

§ Technically this is due to human rights laws (based on British submissions & jurisprudence) via the European Council; but it is the intention, I understand, of the Conservatives with UKIP support to withdraw from both the EC and the EU if the Brexiters win.

*

The images I have used were sent to me by the Labour Party. Their use here does not imply any kind of support on my part for Labour, other than the stances contained within the slogans.

Farewell to the United Kingdom; Good-bye England

In view of the 2015 general election results for the United Kingdom (although probably not united for very much longer!), it is with great sadness that I am informing all my readers that I shall now have to leave England for good.

As those of you who have been following this blog, my facebook page and/or my twitter account will know, under the ConDems - due to actions by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the mainstream media (MSM) and the government itself - I had to go back on to anti-anxiety medication. I cannot take another five years of persecution and harassment and live in constant fear of the DWP and the country's Government.

[Image description: Inverness airport & environs]

My ex-partner & best friend and I are now making plans to move to Scotland. At least there will be an NHS there to care for me. I have asked friends living and working in Inverness to advise us of some good estate (real estate)/rental agents, so that we can begin making enquiries. We shall also be looking to rent out our current home pro tem. However, if it looks like any EU referendum means an exit from Europe, that too will be put up for sale.

I am aware that several of my real-world and social-media friends are Conservative party voters: thank you for not gloating about your political party's victory; your sensitivity is appreciated.

Finally, those quislings, the Liberal Democrats, got what they thoroughly deserved; duplicity is one trait I cannot abide. I apologise for voting for them for so many years believing the party to be filled with folk of integrity - I was so wrong. To the Green party: you can hold your head up high; thank you for being a voice of reason amidst all the screeching, dominating, Neo-liberal cacophony.

England, I shall miss my incorrect view of you and despise the wicked, uncaring self you have revealed yourself to be. If there is a G_d, I hope s/he helps the meek, because the English certainly will not be your Good Samaritans.

Boycotting Israeli Products: a Moral Imperative?

In response to Greg Manahan’s photo (above; © aforesaid) on facebook yesterday, I posted the following update:

Irish Tesco ONLY as far as I know - but it's a start. Perhaps Waitrose & Abel & Cole you two could also follow suit, please?

I boycott Israeli products in the same way that I have been boycotting Australian goods for the way they treat those who are not "one of them". Waitrose by economically supporting the Isreali state is culpable of supporting potential acts of genocide and at the very least war crimes. But then so is UK which is more than happy to sell arms or products that can be used against people to Israel. It is very difficult too to boycott because some products that say Israel are actually made/produced in occupied land and others in the defined State of Israel. Quakers have produced guidance as we wish to avoid purchasing products from these illegally occupied Palestinian/Syrian territories: http://www.quaker.org.uk/settlement-produce. We support the right of Israel to exist; but not Israeli war crimes and occupation.

I heard nothing from Waitrose about my concerns; so I thought I would peruse what facebookers had been writing on the supermarket's eponymous page. This from 27th July at 16.04:

Waitrose will always grow produce in Britain where possible - we will only source from overseas if we can't get the right quality in this country or if it is out of the British season.

Our sourcing decisions aren't politically motivated. Instead our priority is to make sure our food is fully traceable, and produced with the highest standards of worker and animal welfare and respect for the environment. We clearly label all produce so that customers can act on their own beliefs.

Any Israeli Waitrose produce comes from internationally recognised (pre-1967) borders. We know this because we have absolute traceability for all our food and we only source from known farms.

In response, I submitted the following comment

Good to know you are in line with Quaker guidance: http://www.quaker.org.uk/settlement-produce. However, I buy mainly organic and at times your produce comes from Israel when there is perfectly tasty produce available in Spain. I know because Abel & Cole or Riverford manage to source. There may be alternatives to purchasing from Israel and thus by-passing Israel. You could always try to seek out Jewish farmers elsewhere, so that you cannot be tarnished with the anti-semitic brush. %)

That was some eight hours ago, but again Waitrose have not as yet responded.

*

For years now the Israeli state has badly treated Arabs residing within its boundaries as well as committing heinous acts against Palestinians, this is despite many Jews both in Israel and within the wider diaspora vociferously objecting to this renegade state's behaviours. In the UK, the US, France, and so on, none of our countries can take a stand because they are similarly guilty of dreadful misdeeds, warmongering and profiteering on the backs of misery and death. It is for this reason that we as citizens must take the moral stand and hit states where it hurts - economically. I ask you to now boycott Israeli produce and services. Write to your MP, your MEP (as Europe gives Israel lots of economic benefits) and the main-stream media: let them all know how much you actually care.

Israel will only be at peace when it learns to love its neighbours.

My prayers!

Matt Alber in Blighty Tour 2014

Regular readers of the blog will by now know that I am a big fan of Matt Alber, I love his gingeriness (redheadedness) (see Matt Alber: All My Ginger Fantasies In One Man), I love his music and I love his personality (see Matt Alber In Birmingham not Alabama!). Below is a previously unpublished, rather grainy, image of mine of Matt from his visit to Birmingham LGBT Centre last year with a sample of the wares he was vending - every purchase with a gratis handshake or hug.

The good news is that Matt is once again returning to Europe and specifically the UK.

The England tour dates are as follows:

Thursday 31st July at Latest Music Bar in Brighton;

Friday 1st August at POP in Manchester;

Saturday 9th August at Birdcage in Bristol;

Friday 15th August at Royal Vauxhall Tavern in London.

For more information, check out Matt Alber's official website, mattalber.com.

In the meantime take a look at the following snapshots from the making of Matt's latest video for the song "Handsome Man" - ginger heaven!!!

Isle of Man New Year's Festivities

In the lead up to and over New Year’s Eve 2013/14 I enjoyed a wee break of four days, three nights on the Isle of Man (IOM) with my housemate and best friend. For those who do not know, IOM is part of Great Britain but not part of the United Kingdom. It has its very own Manx parliament, considered to be the oldest political moot in Europe.

[Image description: an IOM map taken in Laxey; Castletown marked thereon]

For many a year my godparents - who were also a maternal aunt and her husband, my uncle - resided on the island. I had several holidays staying with them. I cannot honestly say they were happy times, as my godparents were childless and not the most endearing of folk (though in her last years I grew close to my aunt before she was killed by complications from breast cancer). Nonetheless, I have happy memories of exploring alone or with my brother, Silverburn Glen, often bejewelled with primulas in the sodden earth, or of bidding the færies well when travelling over Fairy Bridge, and other such relatively inconsequential tales.

Less happy occasions were wet days which always seemed to entail my brother and I being dropped off at Castle Rushen and left to explore the mediæval edifice on our own, whilst our aunt & uncle went shopping, a.k.a. going to the pub (bar) for a bevy (alcoholic beverage) or two or three! In my mind, Castletown, the former capital of the Isle of Man (IOM) and enclave around the aforesaid fortress, is forever associated with wet, damp and cold. Well, no longer.

[Image description: our lovely friends]

This time I thoroughly enjoyed my sojourn on the IOM: visited with old friends, Steve & Michelle; renewed local acquaintanceships, with Trinia, John & family; and, where and whence I made new chums to boot; as well as bumping into an acquaintance from my hometown, also on her own hols (holidays, vacation).

On New Year’s Eve Eve we feasted at Curry Club Restaurant & I Love Kebab (Takeaway) and on New Year’s Eve itself we dined at The Garrison. Reviews of both these restaurants and our accommodation, The George, will follow in due course. Additionally, I shall be posting a photographic review of contemporary Castletown itself.

Saint Vincent & the Grenadines

My blog has had its first visit from a reader somewhere on Saint Vincent & the Grenadines. I knew the islands to be located in the Caribbean, but I knew not exactly whereabouts. As ever I referred to Wikipedia. It is situated roughly in the centre of a triangle formed by Saint Lucia to the North, Barbados to the East and Grenada to the South.

[Image description: a map of the globe showing the position of the islands North of Venezuela, courtesy Wikipedia]

And what exactly is the European connection? Well obviously the French and the British had colonial interests there and there is an approximate 4% of the population who are Portuguese. However, more interestingly is the contemporary angle.

"Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state, bearing the title Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines."

Per Wikipedia.

Well, I for one was completely unaware of the United Kingdom's Queen Bess' other title nor this additional rôle out in the Caribbean.

[Image description: the country's flag, courtesy Wikipedia]

Thanks for visiting, whoever you were. And how exciting to continue discovering parts of Europe(an hinterland) one knew nothing about!

Food-Banks: Shaming Our Nation

[Image description: ten bags of groceries]

A couple of weeks back I signed "Parliament: Debate UK hunger and rise in foodbank use" known as Jack's Petition (#jackspetition) after its creator Jack Monroe. The tally as I write stands at 142,688.

An hour ago I received the following email:

Today's the day!After 142,000 people signed our petition (142,000!) -- Parliament will debate why so many people in the UK are hungry and relying on foodbanks to feed their families this Christmas.
This debate is long overdue and it has been our sheer force of numbers that has made it happen, so thank you.
Hundreds of you have contacted your MPs to make sure they show up and stand up for hungry people in their constituencies -- people in work, out of work, living on their own, with children, without children, all struggling to put food on the table. I'll be in Parliament today to report back on which MPs turn up.
This debate is about finding out why so many people are hungry in one of the richest countries in the world. It is just the first step to tackling the issue but it is crucial. We need to understand the causes of hunger before we can address them.
Let's make sure everyone knows this debate is happening. Please send a tweet today using #foodbanks and #jackspetition. Tell people the reason you signed this petition. If you need inspiration of what to tweet, here are 20 facts about foodbanks in the UK. Pick one to tweet (or tweet all 20!):
Thank you for all you have done so far.
Jack Monroe
@MsJackMonroeP.S. If you are not on Twitter share these 20 facts about foodbanks with your friends on email and ask them to sign the petition at www.change.org/foodbanks 

The notification arrived whilst I was out and about in my mobility-scooter. Co-incidently this morning is the only day my local food-bank, St Alban's Parish of Broadheath, Altrincham whose logo appears below, is open for receiving donations, so I was delivering my annual Christmas food package. I could not sit down in all good conscience to a gargantuan feast knowing others were hungry. By feeding others my scruples will not trouble me over Yuletide.

The helpers very kindly made me a cuppa as there is a biting Easterly blowing outside. Whilst sipping my tea and the volunteers awaited clients, we chatted about the current state of affairs in the country. The ladies recalled WWII and said they had known nothing like this back then in our wealthy area. Now there are four food-banks in our locality. Underneath the exterior of Haves are very many Have-Nots. One OAP volunteer spoke of her shock at encountering such poverty, the worst she had seen in her considerable life-span.

Last week it was in the news that more than a million pensioners are in food-poverty. In previous weeks we have heard of millions of children going hungry and many now being fed by teachers out of their own pockets. Today in the news are the details of the human rights breaches of the homeless including access to food. The United Kingdom is a full signatory to the United Nations various conventions. According to today's Guardian the ConDem co-alition has turned down emergency food aid from Europe. The Conservative Party of the last few decades has proven itself to be unconcerned and completely dégagé in its responses towards poverty. The Liberal Democrats used to boast about their social justice credentials. Well that halo has slipped, tarnished and rusted away. Alas for once great Britain, the other two main parties, Labour and UKIP are as doggedly neo-liberal and corporatist. So no change in the future however anyone decides to vote.

To paraphrase the Bard, something is distinctly rotten in the state of England!

Réunion

My blog has notched up its first visit from someone on Réunion. Frankly, I have to admit, whilst I had heard the name, I had no notion as to where the island is to be found. So as ever I had to look it up on Wikipedia. It is situated in the Indian Ocean, East of Madagascar.

[Image description: flag of Réunion; courtesy Wikipedia]

What is particularly interesting, is via colonialism Réunion is classed as an Outermost Region of the European Union and as such the currency is the Euro (€).

[Image description: map of Réunion; courtesy Wikipedia]

Thanks for visiting, whoever you were. And how exciting to continue discovering parts of Europe one knew nothing about!