Westminstenders: Break Up or Make Up?

[RedToothBrush]

The next week or so appears to be yet another crunch point (not that any of these crunch points have actually resolved anything so far).

The EU is set to outline the plan for Ireland. Which everyone thought had already been outlined and agreed already. And it had been admitted was legally binding.

Except apparently we don't want to do that, and we are now crying about how the EU want to break up Britain (nothing to do with England wanting to leave the EU and Scotland and NI wanting to stay in it of course).

Jeremy Corbyn has now apparently decided that the customs union is a good idea. David Davis and Liam Fox have responded by saying that this would stop us making our own trade deals. Yes this has obviously stopped Turkey, and why aren't we doing as much trade with China etc as Germany anyway? A vote in the HoC looms before Easter. Will Tory rebels support.

Will Jeremy Corbyn bow to pressure over the single market too? The customs union alone does not stop the border issue in Ireland. Nor does it stop ridiculous queues at Dover. I'm not sure Corbyn is one for listening though. He's got a whiff of power and democracy and reality is just a hindrance to utopia.

As for the Great Repeal Bill. Word has it, its not going too clever in the HoL. The conservatives had something of a show of strength with an unusual number turning up for the debate. But few on the backbenches were willing to speak in favour of...

It all feels like we are making no progress at all. We are still bleating on about cherry picked deals as if this is a negotiation. Its not.

Leveson 2 abandoned by govt

Did anyone catch this?

Alex Andreou‏Verified account
@sturdyAlex
Great job @susannareid100. Kept probing at inconsistencies in what Iain Duncan Smith was saying about John Major’s speech, which he has spent the last 36hrs going from studio to studio trashing, until he admitted “I had a host of meetings, so I haven’t actually seen the speech.”

Typo. I meant to say “16hrs”.

It is more than they can bear to not be able to stomp all over Ireland quite so easily as in the past. And to have a pr front as the respectable side whilst doing it.

It is probably going to get a whole lot nastier.

Thanks, Peregrina. Yes, the ignorance on display was quite something even by usual standards.

Good job Susanna Reid, then. Sarah Smith also exposed his spiel as bs as German trade not being held back by being in the EU.

the thread about how the EU were trying to break up the Union?

That thread was so clearly a wind-up, like a Milgram-esque experiment in how much vicious ignorant bullshit the Brexiteers would lap up. And it did suck in a couple of supportive posters.

Anyone fancy some Brexit crisps?

I know that Reg. D. Hunter raises mixed emotions, but he tells of being a guest on HIGNY along with Nadine Dorries. Apparently in the green room, Dorries thrust a young lady at the aforementioned Georgian Joker, and fucked off PDQ.

Next thing Mr. Hunter knows is there is a tweet from Nadine Dorries saying ... well, here it is:

twitter.com/nadinedorries/status/200716390305505281?lang=en

I have now left the HIGNFY after party. As I looked over my shoulder, Reginald D Hunter was talking to my daughter.#wheresmyshotgunman

I had seen the N dorries tweet. That was bad enough as a stand alone. But in the context of a set-up... No depths too low.

Donald Tusk @eucopresident 3h3 hours ago

UK red lines will determine shape of our future relationship. Next week I will present draft guidelines on this. Let’s be clear: there can be no frictionless trade outside the customs union and Single Market. Friction is an inevitable side effect of #Brexit. By nature.

One possible consequence of UK #Brexit red lines is a hard border on the island of Ireland. EU27 wants to prevent this, hence the proposal to "establish a common regulatory area" – if no other solution found. Today in London I will ask if the UK government has a better idea.

Today in London I will ask if the UK government has a better idea.

Donald Tusk is a comedian.

If they had a better idea, they'd have drawn up the first draft guidelines themselves. Still, meeting head on with reality can't come fast enough (please let it be coming!)

Faisal Islam
‏*@faisalislam*
Tory donor @PimlicoPlumbers Charlie Mullins tells @adamboultonSKY All Out Politics that he has spoken to Vince Cable, and he’ll now financially support the Lib Dem’s because of the Government’s position on Brexit

I did wonder if Tusk might be a lawyer (since he seems to be doing the "never ask a question to which you don't know the answer" thing) but he's a history graduate.

Funny how the son of a nurse and a carpenter is now one of the "European elite".

Borntobequiet in the Channel4 news report last night, they used Londonderry throughout, though did mention at the start that the name used depends on your persuasion.

Speaking of red lines, here's how that meeting will go:

I would say "SFW", but I suspect some people may actually work in places where this would be snapped up as a training video ....

Today in London I will ask if the UK government has a better idea.

Ha ha ha . Better idea?
Any idea would be a start.

Place marking

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Now this

Is this true? We bloody expressly agreed to regulatory alignment if no other solution. Remember the fuss, a delay while TM got clearance from the DUP. Then AN agreement. For God's sake. An express agreement -which DD threatened to renege on before, triggering the EU to expedite putting it in writing.

No longer is an Englishman's ( or woman's) word his (or her) bond.

David Davis has renewed his threat that Britain will refuse to pay its huge Brexit “divorce bill” unless Brussels backs down on its proposal for Northern Ireland to remain under EU rules.

Nervous Conservative MPs have been sent a letter by the Brexit Secretary, insisting the Government will not cave in to the demands made in the EU’s draft legal agreement published on Wednesday.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/david-davis-brexit-divorce-bill-threat-eu-northern-ireland-remain-brussels-a8234111.html

Sorry a bit garbled but you get the gist.

Placemat king