Well its finally here. The day America changes forever. Good luck planet earth.
Our day of reckoning is beckoning too.
Tuesday is Supreme Court Judgement Day.
At 9.30 Lord Nueberger and the other ten justices will convene and he will read out their judgement.
Contrary to some suggestions this does not mean the decision is necessarily unanimous. It is normal for the Supreme Court to do this.
Nueberger will read any disagreements out as part of the judgment.
Their ruling will be far reaching in its importance however it goes.
A victory for the government will mean a50 can be triggered as and when Theresa May likes. That could be Tuesday afternoon in theory.
If it’s a victory for the claimants then things get much more complicated. It depends on how far the justices go.
It could rule that parliament need to vote on a50.
It could rule that the Great Repeal Act must be passed before a50 can be invoked.
It could rule that the Scottish and NI Assemblies must agree to a50 being invoked.
It could rule that the Good Friday Agreement must be resolved before a50 can be invoked.
It could rule that issues over acquired rights must be resolved before invoking a50.
It could draw other conclusions that we have not thought of.
A strong victory for the claimants could seriously hamper May’s plans for Brexit. Which is exactly why she has laid out her vision and has prepared the battle lines ready for her next round of blame laying.
None of this will be because the government has been short sighted.
If there is a strong victory, remember that May could have avoided the situation by accepting the High Court’s ruling in December that she needed Parliament’s consent to trigger a50. Anything more that makes triggering a50 more difficult is her sole responsibility and she had the power to avoid. Much of the right wing press will tell you differently.
We've heard so much about Hard Brexit and Soft Brexit. We should also talk of Democratic and Undemocratic Brexit. How Brexit is managed and how we conduct ourselves is arguably as important to the future as economics. It is right to oppose Undemocratic Brexit. It is important to make that distinction and all the principles that fall under that concept. What opposition there is need to get their shit together on this principle. Using patriotism to stifle this wholly wrong and unhealthy. Saying Brexit must happen no matter what, regardless of how bad it is and regardless of the cost is wrong.
Make the case for democracy. Keep talking about it. Talk about where it is failing and what we must do to strengthen it, not undermine it.
Here lies Labour's policy on Brexit. "We support Democratic Brexit which is the will of the people. This is how we define this. This is what is needed economic and socially." You can find the necessary slogans from this and start defining it outward from that. So far they have failed to capture this sentiment concisely into a soundbite that people can start to develop and push a left wing liberal agenda on their own terms from. Their PR is shocking and they are incoherent. May owned Corbyn at PMQ earlier this week on these grounds. This is not because they have been misrepresented by the press or been the victim of biased media. Its because they have been shit and have failed to set their own agenda and instead are dancing to everyone else's.
Here’s hoping that democracy will win through the challenges of the next few years. Democracy is about elections and referendums, but it is also so much more. It is about on going debate and the freedom of this debate, freedom of the press, a range of political parties and points of view, the independent judiciary, the right to oppose the state, freedom to exercise your legal rights, freedom of speech, an understanding of equality and an understanding and above all else - respect for of all of the above. It does not bode well that much of the right wing press and right wing politicians are telling us differently.
So much hope about our futures now rests with Angela Merkel one way or another.
Meanwhile Corbyn could face a major rebellion over a50 if he pursues a three line whip rather than a free vote. 60 - 80 Labour MPs are threatening not to tow the party line with shadow cabinet resignations potentially also on the cards.
Brace yourselves the roller coaster is just about to hit a one big drop.
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Brexit
Westministenders. Boris, May and Judgement Day
990 replies
RedToothBrush · 20/01/2017 13:49
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