As we watch the growing exodus of companies to the EU while those that remain battle to survive the mountain of red tape created by the Brexit deal negotiated by David Frost, people may be forgiven for being baffled, firstly by Frost's elevation to the peerage and now to the cabinet. According to his tweet yesterday (below), he is to become Minister for taking forward our relationship with the EU. His department will presumably overlap with the Rabb at the FO and with Truss at Trade.
Here is his tweet.
I am hugely honoured to have been appointed Minister to take forward our relationship with the EU after Brexit.In doing so I stand on the shoulders of giants & particularly those of @michaelgove who did an extraordinary job for this country in talks with EU over the past year.— David Frost (@DavidGHFrost) February 17, 2021
Note his sycophantic mention of Gove as a 'giant' on whose shoulders he is metaphorically standing. This is significant in that many believe Gove is unhappy at the appointment although he tweeted his support as you might expect:
Huge congratulations to @DavidGHFrost - a great appointment - no-one better to take forward our post-Brexit relationship with the EU https://t.co/Zz5PAvTOGh
— Michael Gove (@michaelgove) February 17, 2021
What does it mean? It is not good news, not least for those who want to renegotiate the TCA or add side deals or obtain through one means or another some easements to help trade. For Northern Ireland, fishermen, the finance sector, creative industries, fashion and a host of others it is a sign that they should abandon hope of getting any improvements. Frost won't ask for any and the EU won't offer any. Frost is not welcomed in Brussels and the announcement will be seen as signifying a combative future relationship I'm sure.
The bizarre thing about it all, as many have already pointed out is that Frost is unelected and was at the forefront of efforts to separate us from those 'unelected bureaucrats' in Brussels. Ironically, those elevated to senior positions in Brussels are subject to confirmation hearings by elected representatives but Frost has risen to the cabinet without ever facing a vote of any kind.
His only qualification to allow him to serve alongside people like Gavin Williamson and Priti Patel is that he has an equally solid record of failure absolutely unblemished by even the slightest hint of success. In short, he is utterly useless and will therefore be a perfect fit.
Living in Britain seems at the moment to be an extension of Johnson's private life. Chaotic, unpredictable, stumbling from one disaster to another but his poll rating is still slightly above that of Kier Starmer. This tells us a lot about the British electorate.
By coincidence, The announcement about Frost was made on the first anniversary of his speech in Brussels, a cursory rereading of which, in light of the deal he negotiated, looks more and more like hubris down in several thousand words.
He set out to recover something we hadn't lost, sovereignty, and exchanged it for our most of our key industries. At least that must be how it looks in local fishing communities and in many EU member states like Holland, which are now reaping the benefits of Brexit. To them Lord Frost resembles the Indians who sold Manhattan island for a handful of beads, except in his case, the beads were ones he already owned. Frost's TCA is starting to look like the greatest bargain of all time - for the EU that is.
The EU get the jobs and tax revenues in exchange for 'giving' us what we already had. Not bad eh?
During many street stalls and in a lot of door knocking alongside several MPs in 2019, I lost count of the number of leave supporters who talked about the EU only wanting our money and the £350 million a week they thought we were paying for all the Brussels' largesse.
Yet, now we are shovelling money across the Channel like a bunch of demented navvies without so much as a peep, and with the man responsible given a peerage and cabinet post. Literally, you could not make it up.
With Johnson's links to the Russians, perhaps the next honour to be bestowed on Lord Frost will be the Order of Lenin, or whatever they offer heroes of Russia these days. Surely, nobody could be so responsible for such damage to the fabric of a nation without being in the pay of a foreign power?
Elsewhere, Kier Starmer is setting out his 'vision' of the UK under the predictable pressure from his own side. What I can't understand is why the Labour leader is standing in front of a gaping wide open goal with the ball at his feet but refusing to kick it over the line.
We all know Johnson is a congenital liar but his speech (a written speech!) at the end of last year welcoming the TCA and assuring people there would be 'no non-tariff barriers' between us and the EU must stand out as one of the greatest lies of all time. It is provably untrue. Businesses will soon be going to the wall in huge numbers precisely because of these NTBs - yet Starmer doesn't mention it at all!
This is amazing to me. He doesn't need to worry about appearing anti-Brexit, the problems have little to do with Brexit and more to do with the kind of deal Frost negotiated. Starmer could attack that without seeming to be arguing to reverse Brexit. It would at the very least expose the issue at a national level.
The poor saps who will lose their livelihoods need a champion and if Labour can't do it we are lost. Starmer's speech today will be interesting on what it has to say about Brexit.
