Leaders should be judged on their policies and performance but not on tittle tattle or matters outside the public domain unless serious and actionable under law. Is Boris Johnson a domestic bully, a philanderer, a racist, an Islamophobe, a homophobe, a hopeless mayor, a failed foreign secretary, a (£350 million) liar and a bumbling idiot … More Anyone For Boris?
A précis of previous posts on this theme Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, made it clear that the EU would stick to its guns—the mandate—and it did; the draft withdrawal agreement is an elaboration of the mandate and does not stray from it. He claimed that all the problems resulting from the UK’s … More Themes-20: Risks and Crises-2
A précis of previous posts on this theme Just before the Referendum the G7 met (with or without David Cameron we can’t be sure as he’s not in the photo – or is he hiding behind Obama?) and perhaps helped to provoke the Referendum result by declaring how awful leaving would be, by damaging global … More Themes-19: Risks and Crises-1
A top Cabinet minister and committed Remainer has long argued that power should not be ceded to Brussels without explicit approval by citizens. Some other member states have this in their constitutions but so far their votes have always been ignored when they conflicted with the EU’s wishes. David Lidington (sometimes described as Theresa May’s … More Referendums Revisited
Should a deal not be agreed with the EU then international (WTO) rules will apply to future trade, but it is quite possible to smooth the changes implied to give time for the UK to adapt. On 19 January this year BrexitCentral published an article by David Campbell Bannerman, who was an active MEP for … More The Boot’s on the Other Foot
Unequal treaties usually come unstuck later, sometimes with terrible consequences. In January 1919 twenty seven (!) nations began negotiating the terms of peace after World War I ended; Germany was excluded from the talks. This soon reduced to just the major allied powers. The French wanted huge reparations and to ensure its adversary was neutered … More A Lesson From History
The EU treaties include a commitment to cooperate with non-member countries; ex-members are not mentioned but clearly are excluded in practice. Lionel Shriver, the UK-based, American author and journalist, wrote an article in The Daily Telegraph (9th June) describing how US ‘liberals’ know everything about Brexit and won’t be told differently by someone who lives … More We Need To Talk About Lionel
A précis of previous posts on this theme Remainers argue mainly from economic considerations, based on the fear of bad impacts from Brexit. The forecasts on which the fears are based rely on negative assumptions and so have self-fulfilling outcomes. Most Remainers also assess the possible outcome against a scenario in which everything about the … More Themes-18: Fear and Fragility
Is a bad deal better than the risk of getting kicked out of office for the Tories? The next Prime Minister is now a choice between two candidates, both of whom would prefer an agreement with the EU that will keep their party together and in government for at least another three years. Despite the … More The Withdrawal Method-2
A Facebook friend recently posted a video of a well-known economist explaining the ‘facts’ about Brexit, which show indubitably that it will be a disaster for the UK economy. Is he right? https://www.facebook.com/OFOCBrexit/videos/258508251465635/ Adam Posen may be in the majority of ‘top’ economists who take a similar view, or maybe he is amongst a group … More The History Man
This EU Won't Work 