Westminstenders: And so it begins

[RedToothBrush]

Promises made that can not be kept.

We have already fallen at the first stumbling block: the desire for parallel talks on exit and future relationship that May wanted has been rejected. Not that this is a surprise seeing as we were told this.

This isn't two years of negotiations for a good deal. Forget any suggestions that it is. It's two years of damage limitation and domestic pr.

For both the UK and EU.

I do believe that May's attitude - which seemed to be more friendly in her speech and letter yesterday - has burnt all our bridges.

This talk of the world needing the EU's 'liberal democracy' isn't aimed at the EU though. Her use of the words that produced uproar in the HoC yesterday was deliberate. Why use it? It was always going to produce a reaction.

When May says she will have a consensus at home to achieve this goal one of two things must happen: to prove just how much we need the EU to make a political reversal possible at the expense of her head or to vilify the EU to a point that Remainers suddenly change their mind.

To get a good deal for the UK she can not satisfy her hard line Brexiteers. It is impossible purely because to do otherwise is like breaking the laws of physics. Trade is done mostly with who you are closest too. This is the inescapable truth. We are leaving the EU but not Europe as keeps being pointed out.

If we want to trade we have to accept EU regulations. If we do not, we do not trade. Rules we can now no longer influence by must obey.

We can not reduce immigration. We have had control of non-Eu immigration and that is not going down due to skills shortages. To combat this schools are getting less money.

In terms of sovereignty and British parliament we just gave that away. The 'Great' Repeal Act is a power grab by the executive. It seems to give the powers of the monarch to Mrs May and take them away from parliamentary scrutiny. At the same time we are forced to become beholden to Trump's America. A man who screws people for a living and has not a shred of honour.

Using security as our bargaining chip misses the obvious. If we do not cooperate we endanger Brits abroad and ourselves domestically. Are we really prepared to stop?

The opportunities of Brexit Britain are bleak. This will be normalised.

Good luck folks. We are gonna need it.

Shall we take bets on how long this position lasts before there is a change of heart?

We can work backwards from 7th May 2020. 25 days to allow for the election gives us 12th April ? (Just over 3 years). Unless we are treated to the seismic treat of an early election.

So whatever has to be done has to be in place - and seen to be working - by then. Say December 2019.

In political terms entire civilisations could rise and fall between now and then.

“FUKED”: IRISH PAPER GIVES BREXIT VERDICT WITH WELL-PLACED CARTOON

Hacker (trying to sell England): "What about the land that gave us Sheridan ? Oscar Wilde ? George Bernard Shaw ?"

Sir Humphry: "They were all Irish, minister."

poorboy the Tory backbenchers aided by how far JC has pulled leftwards are doing a far better job of holding the Tory Govt to account than the "moderate" PLPers or the LibDems in coalition. Eg DD who I spent an entertaining lunch with was allying with FF to fight GO's tax credit cuts when HH was ineptly bleating on about which group of the least deserving should be thrown under the bus next to ensure PLP power.

I share your suspicions that JC has sent charisma bypass Starmer in to bat on Brexit because he is a Leaver and it suits his purpose. I have no idea how DD managed to maintain enough concentration during KS's incomprehensible legalise critique to give such a clear, concise and good humoured reply.

Marking place .Thanks Red.

Now A50 is with us, the humour has upped somewhat ...

And here's a hint of the Shape Of Things To Come ...

Donald Trump has suggested that US libel laws could potentially be changed, in a tweet about negative press coverage of his presidency - particularly in The New York Times.

(contd)

No, not a spoof - The Independent ....

Very good, LH. Think it would be good for a summer fair. 'Buy my jam you fuking bstards!

Thanks for thread RTB.

I wonder if we could make that into an advertising slogan: "*Great Brexit Jam - made by swivel-eyed loons, sold to undeserving bastards".

Or: "Great Brexit Jam - the delicious taste of delusion."

howabout I don't know what you exoected Patten to do about HK ?
The 99 year lease was ending and his job was to manage the handover and its countdown.
China knew it didn't have to make concessions to him, because they would be taking over in 1999 anyway.
The Uk did not have the legal right, the military capability or any other means, to stop China taking over.

What was morally wrong, was not allowing HK citizens who wanted, the right to emigrate to the UK.
However, that was politically impossible, because the Tory rightwing, the UK public & the tabloids would have gone berserk faced with another few 100,000 non-white immigrants

So, after 9 months of grunting & farting, the govt finally delivered A50.

Richard North, who has actually spent years reearching & planning Brexit, is scathing about their perfomance, in fact about the stupidity everywhere:

http://www.eureferendum.com/blogview.aspx?blogno=86426

"When we leave we will, automatically, assume the status in our relationships with the EU of a third country.

This is not something the EU will do to us – it is something we do to ourselves by leaving the EU.

There is nothing personal about it.
This is what we become."

"Our great problem – and danger – is that
there are clearly elements at work who do not want to see the conclusion of a sensible agreement between the parties, and would have Mrs May walk away from Brussels without a deal."

"Despite the accusations from various of the ignorati that we have been exaggerating, or being unnecessarily pessimistic,
we are now beginning to see official acknowledgement of the impact of coming away without a deal,
when customs declarations rise from 17 to 350 million a year, or more, and inspections in EU ports cause trade to grind to a halt. "

"There will, of course, be skilled and knowledgeable people in the system, intent on delivering a satisfactory resolution but,

if Mrs May has succeeded in anything, it is keeping such people so well hidden that no-one is sure they even exist < Yes ! >

For the rest, stupidity stalks the land

It is visible on the front pages of national newspapers,
embedded in many of the London-based think-tanks,
everywhere on the internet,
and especially on newspaper comment threads which have brought public displays of ignorance and malevolence to a new level."

"Now, Mrs May is opening the Article 50 box

But no Pandora's box is this, from which the evils of the world will escape.

In a sense, she will release something worse
– the collective stupidity of a nation no longer capable of governing itself and not inclined to learn."

I love that spoof A50 letter! 😁

Brexit is farcical.

Agree BCF. Patten's been great on BBC today. WAWO too.
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08k1b13#play: At 19 minutes. Brexit is............ "the most diminishing and demeaning episode in British public life". Yep.
"When the EU catches a cold, Britain gets pneumonia."

His assessment of the Torygraph performance:
"There are many tales emanating from the Telegraph about the downsizing of the editorial workforce.
What we didn't bank on was a downsizing of the collective IQs as well.

If they got much lower, we would be watering their journalists, not reading them."

Theresa May held private dinner for Daily Mail editor at No 10

www.theguardian.com/media/2017/mar/30/paul-dacre-theresa-may-private-dinner-daily-mail-editor-no-10

Red I have been reliably I formed the world is not laughing at us! I have asked someone they said so so it must be true

Meanwhile every nation we have ever fucked over is getting out its little black book. The list is long my friends

I posted this on another thread, but thought you lot might appreciate it...

EU nationals already being denied mortgages 'due to Brexit'

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-eu-nationals-denied-mortgages-patricia-connell-article-50-a7657941.html

I'm not surprised. When you have no idea of said people will still be allowed to be in the Uk in two years time, you don't really want to give lend them huge sums of money...

The story about only giving eu national short term contracts or being worried about access to the NHS is a totally different kettle of fish.

Next bringing back the death penalty and measuring in pounds and onces.
I've actually had a discussion with a plumber (in his 40s) who told me that he was going to vote Leave so we could have pounds and inches back instead of the metric system....

Oh and corporal punishments in school too. That will help I'm sure

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-poll-leave-voters-death-penalty-yougov-results-light-bulbs-a7656791.html

Surely if an EU resident is paying tax and NI they should have access to public services just like any Brit? I don't understand why they shouldn't have access to the NHS? It's based in what you pay in, if you work legally in a country on a tegular PAYE type contract you're contributing to healthcare, schooling etc.?

Yep I agree but .... nothing is stopping a government from saying that as a foreigner, you have to have private health insurrance.

As I mentioned before, a letter my parents received form the NHS is already mentioning 'possible additional costs' to their treatment due to them not being British..... so something is certainly in the pipelines....

Sam Coates Times @SamCoatesTimes
Lib Dems provide material at speed, they are creative, know their way around government, and work hard. From where I sit Lab minimal effort

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