The Brexit Thread

[The Awesome Berbaslug!!!]

What was it that Paul Merton repeatedly Called him on HIGNFY on friday? ah yes "the thickest man in politics". Also, won't the UK have handed over most of the money before the end of the transition?

[Ginger Yellow]

Also, won't the UK have handed over most of the money before the end of the transition?

Don't believe so. The budget contributions, yes, but the reste a liquider amounts will be paid when they would have fallen due were the UK still a member. There are also some large contingent liabilities that may or may not materialise.

[Ginger Yellow]

International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said the U.K. would like a trading relationship with the European Union after it leaves the bloc that’s “virtually identical” to the one it has now.

[Ginger Yellow]

EP unsurprisingly not amused by Davis's comments:

[My Name Is Ian]

Some of the comments under that Bloomberg article are absolute gold. I particularly enjoyed the (presumably) American who believes that Britain should threaten nuclear strikes against Germany if it doesn't get its own way in trade negotiations. Five years ago I'd have said "obvious troll is obvious", but nowadays there doesn't seem to be any idea too mad for a few people to think it's a brilliant idea.

[Ginger Yellow]

More fallout, this time at the Council. No more preparatory talks until March. Fucking Brexiters, constantly stepping on their own dicks.

[Diable Rouge]

EP unsurprisingly not amused by Davis's comments:

Barnier also made similar commitments in a meeting with Coveney:

https://mobile.twitter.com/MichelBar...23670660898817

[Moonlight Shadow]

It's almost as if they were doing their best to push UK towards a no deal...50 top angry cunts willing to do anything to achieve their goal...

[Tubby Isaacs]

When I saw Davis had said his piece, I first thought he was probably "licensed" to say it, and that the EU would say "David is David" or whatever. But really seems that he has pissed things up spectacularly.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Are there statistics that show this to be true? I’m staggered to read this.

Nah, purely my supposition. Maybe they do realise the no deal means no planes taking off, I'm not so sure they don't now.

I've noticed when politicians get prodded on no deal, they seem to envisage planes taking off.

[Ginger Yellow]

When I saw Davis had said his piece, I first thought he was probably "licensed" to say it, and that the EU would say "David is David" or whatever. But really seems that he has pissed things up spectacularly.

Well he seems to have been licensed by May. She was saying the same thing afterward.

[Snake Plissken]

With the added benefit that Davis is too dumb to realise that he's just pissed away the Hard Brexit argument that "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed". I wonder when the rest of them will catch on.

[Ginger Yellow]

Stephen Kinnock (Aberavon) (Lab)

The Prime Minister has repeatedly claimed today that the financial settlement is subject to the conclusion of the future deep and special partnership. May I draw her attention to paragraph 96 of the progress report, which clearly states that the financial settlement is contingent only on conclusion of the article 50 withdrawal agreement and the transitional arrangements? Will she please provide some clarity on this vital issue and confirm that her precise understanding of paragraph 96 is that the settlement is contingent only on the withdrawal agreement and the transitional arrangements, not on the future partnership?

The Prime Minister

No, that is not my understanding of the joint progress report or the position that we will be in. It is very clear at the beginning of the joint progress report that this is a set of proposals that have been put forward in the context of negotiating that final agreement. I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reference to the framework for the future relationship in paragraph 96.

In another comment she said the same thing explicitly about the hard border, which I'm sure Ireland is delighted about.

[Snake Plissken]

Oh Christ, I didn't think that she was that stupid to not understand what she just agreed to.

Then again, it is a perfect example of May at work.

"Has the PM seen paragraph 96? Can she explain what it says?"
"As a means of explanation, I refer the honourable Gentleman to paragraph 96."

She even gets in a "very clear".

[E10 Rifle]

By the way, was going to mention that since the referendum anecdotal evidence points very clearly to educated Romanians no longer heading for the UK (ie the ones that watch the news or that have aspirations beyond simply making more money for manual labour than they can at home), whereas the less educated ones are still heading over in the same numbers to pick fruit or work in factories or what have you.

Wouldn't that be (in part) a good thing for Romania? I mean the very worst pro-migration arguments you hear in the UK are those that frame it only in terms of the financial benefit that they bring to us, as it there aren't actually complex humans involved.

[Diable Rouge]

With the added benefit that Davis is too dumb to realise that he's just pissed away the Hard Brexit argument that "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed". I wonder when the rest of them will catch on.

He's now agreed to work with Verhofstadt to make the document legally binding!

https://mobile.twitter.com/DavidDavi...79318962499584

[Ginger Yellow]

By which he no doubt means signing a full trade agreement.

[ad hoc]

Wouldn't that be (in part) a good thing for Romania? I mean the very worst pro-migration arguments you hear in the UK are those that frame it only in terms of the financial benefit that they bring to us, as it there aren't actually complex humans involved.

Yes, sort of, but (a) we have a huge shortage of unskilled labour now too (a number of restaurants nearby have had to close because they can't get the wait-staff) ; and (b) the migration of skilled labour hasn't dried up, it's just less likely to go to the UK

[E10 Rifle]

Right, thanks. It's one of the unreported stories of this whole farrago, the impact (or not) on countries that have considerable net migration to the UK.

[Tubby Isaacs]

You'd think Syrian refugees might have come in handy in a few places.

[ad hoc]

Indeed

[E10 Rifle]

I don't really care whether they're "handy" for "us" or not. They just need their lives and futures secured.

[The Awesome Berbaslug!!!]

Tubby, I don't think that that is how dying societies always see things.

I'm not sure that David Davies has cost the UK anything, or shut anything off. He's just forced the EU to spell out for everyone, really clearly that they consider all of this binding. Essentially, by blabbing his mouth off, he's made it much more difficult for Theresa May to pretend to her own party that this isn't binding, and probably hastened the end of her govt.

[Diable Rouge]

Peter Foster, on prospects for a UK trade deal:

https://mobile.twitter.com/pmdfoster...35241328324608

[Lang Spoon]

But none of that is compatible with their “promise” re Ireland. Soft or as close to no Brexit as possible, or a border in the Irish Sea that will sink the Govt anyway.