To cover posts relating to Brexit
The Opposition, the Liberal Democrats, SNP and the Green MP, with the help of a few Conservative rebels, defeated the Government last week by demanding a meaningful vote on whatever ‘Deal’ it strikes with the EU on withdrawal. We can argue about how meaningful such a vote can be if the choices are to accept … More Parliamentary Privilege
Questions about the EU-UK Phase 1 Agreement Has agreement actually been reached? David Davis called it “… more a statement of intent than a legally enforceable thing” and Theresa May assured Parliament that, “Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.” Representatives of the other 27 EU member states have responded with a revised statement, due … More What has been Agreed?
It is probably fair to say that everyone is a little confused and uncertain about what has been agreed and what it will mean. We can be pretty sure that whatever it is the two sides will interpret things differently, as it suits them. Perhaps the clearest evidence of this lies in the agreement of … More EU-UK Phase I Agreement
The EU is run by a moralistic crew, quite prepared to do harm to members and outsiders for the greater good, as they see it. The UK is being bludgeoned into remaining trapped within its web, a kind of forced conversion in a grand tradition that extends back to the middle ages Europe when the … More Bordering on Madness
Remaining in the EU is an appalling option, we’d be a supplicant with all credibility lost, even more likely to be outvoted on everything. From Malta to Ireland, from Spain to Slovakia and from the EU core in Germany and France, every country feels it can tell us what we must do. The German Social … More Carrying on Voting?
News reports suggest that the Government has agreed to offer the EU a ‘Divorce’ payment of between £40 – £55 billion net, pretty much what the EU was asking for at the start of ‘negotiations’ (the €100 billion often quoted is a gross figure). This is a huge amount of our money, perhaps £800 for … More Appeasement, again
On Thursday November 9 Michel Barnier, lead Brexit negotiator for the EU, gave a speech at a conference in Rome. He spoke in French so we rely on the translated text, which can be found among the European Commission’s press releases, here. Much of the speech is bland and unexceptionable (unless you are annoyed, as … More Deadlocked Mandate
This week The Economist’s Europe columnist (‘Charlemagne’) describes how the UK has largely lost any influence in Brussels and how smaller nations particularly feel more exposed to French and German hegemony (read the original article here). Without challenge from Britain it will be far harder for other member states to resist pressure to join the … More Influence or Impotence?
In a fully-fledged, federal union – such as the USA – goods, people, services and money have unrestricted freedom to move where they wish. This has been a prime ambition for the EU and its forerunners from the start, hence the high status of the Four Freedoms. But they are far from complete: goods move … More The Famous Four
A collection of four short, independent pieces on various topics. A European Union was (and is) a good principle, taken up by people with bad ideas, inherited by others with priest-like faith and self-interest. The EU jihadis intend us harm in retaliation for our apostasy. This demonstrates a deep lack of confidence in their project; … More Shorties-11
This EU Won't Work 