How professional forecasters attempt to influence politics in their own interest. We can learn a lot from history, good and bad. It can teach us how to do things better in future; it can illuminate what lay behind the good outcomes, such as the benefits that have flowed from democracy; it can warn us of … More Lies, Damned Lies and Economics

How the Political Declaration destroys the current Withdrawal Agreement that Parliament has voted to re-introduce Parliament has voted (52% to 48%: didn’t they complain that was too small a margin after the Referendum?) to deny Boris his ‘no deal’ exit. Actually it wasn’t his; Theresa May’s version was “no deal is better than a bad … More Round and Round the Mulberry Bush

Voters decided they wanted to leave the EU many on the losing side now think that black or white choice was too simplistic. “People didn’t vote for no deal” – indeed they didn’t, because they weren’t asked that question; “People didn’t vote to be poorer” – nor that one. They were asked whether they wanted … More If You Don’t Like The Answer, Change The Question

The EU is floundering economically and the UK politically; nobody knows where Europe is heading. Seeing But Not Believing Why do so many trust what they are told and not what they can see? The EU has devastated the lives and futures of millions of its citizens, especially the young unemployed, through its extreme integration … More Where are we sailing?

The EU increasingly cuts its parliament out of the loop by allowing only one reading of bills before agreeing any changes privately and refusing to publish the relevant discussions between leaders, lobbyists and officials in defiance of treaty obligations The European Union declares that it is a democratic institution; we have previously reported our disagreement … More Law-making in Secret-2: Update

Nobody knows what will happen if the UK leaves the EU, with or without an agreement. Rather than add to the speculation it seems more useful for us to review the main issues and conclusions covered by this blog since the Referendum was announced three and a half years ago. This post summarises most of … More Why This EU Won’t Work: A Summary

Boris Johnson says he aims to get a deal with the EU; EU leaders say there’s a withdrawal deal (WA) “on the table” that they will not change. Johnson says that deal is unacceptable as it stands because of the Irish backstop and is prepared to leave without a deal if necessary. There doesn’t seem … More The Undead Deal?

How new EU regulations are imposed without democratic input. The EU has a process for generating regulations; the linked document shows the process in great detail. Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on electronic freight transport information ( https://ec.europa.eu/transport/sites/transport/files/3rd-mobility-pack/com20180279-proposal.pdf ) In this follow-up post we look at some of … More Electronic Freight Transport Regulation

Does the EU have a possible Irish border solution hidden up its sleeve? [EU-speak-1]We have this, as if we needed it, from President Macron: “Renegotiation of the terms currently proposed by the British is not an option” (he may have softened this a little since meeting BJ). This, contradicting the claim made by Boris Johnson … More Electronic Freight Transport Information

EU leaders want the UK to accept an agreement that would bind the country into the treaties that Brexit makes clear we should leave. If the Prime Minister carries out his threat to leave the EU on 31st October (“No ifs, no buts”) even in the event of no agreement, the EU says that border … More On the Buses—or Under Them?