There seems to be a recognition, on both sides of the debate, that Brexit has not been the panacea that Brexiteers claimed it would be. The FT had a long read on Monday : The deafening silence over Brexit’s economic fallout, which perfectly summarised the problems and isn't behind a paywall so well worth a read. It also seems there is what looks like a growing consensus that 'something needs to be done' about it, always a good sign in this country.
The FT's report ends with this:
"Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, told the Financial Times last year that Labour wanted to strike a deal with the EU to reduce the most onerous paperwork and checks on food exports. The party also wants an agreement with Brussels on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications.
"Even among the Eurosceptics in Johnson’s cabinet, there is now an acceptance that the UK should be seeking to rebuild economic relations with the EU, including in areas like the Horizon programme, to avoid exacerbating the looming cost of living crisis.
" 'Would I like to be in a better place on Brexit?' asked one pro-Brexit cabinet member. 'Yes, absolutely. But we’ve got to find a way of doing it without it looking like we’re running up the white flag and we’re compromising on sovereignty'.”
The last comment from a pro-Brexit cabinet minister was I thought the most interesting because it shows a belated recognition that things are going wrong. It also shows they haven't got a clue what to do about it.
Over at The Centre for Brexit Policy - a sort of flat earth society run by creationists - the blame lies with the "ruling elites in Westminster, Whitehall and the professions are still in the grip of a defeatist mindset that views the country as doomed to perpetual decline, according to a seminal new report on its future after leaving the European Union."
This is from a hard hitting press release which heralds a new report whose authors include Professor Robert Tombs of Cambridge, former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, former Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, Professor Gwythian Prins of the LSE, and foreign policy experts from the Kings College War Studies Department and Cambridge University. Brexiteers all and not likely to hear a word of criticism of the real problem - which is of course Brexit.
The 100-page report "urges the elites to ditch declinist thinking, embrace the opportunities of Brexit and revitalise alliances with like-minded countries such as the USA and members of the Commonwealth to check the rise of authoritarian states, notably China and Russia."
Although dated 20 June, it wasn't actually available until last night as far as I could see so I haven't had the chance to read it properly. It claims that the CBP has three core objectives:
• Identify the benefits and opportunities of Brexit across the full spectrum of economic, trade, social, foreign, defence and security policy areas proposing new policies for the Government’s agenda.
• Continue to make the intellectual, evidence-based case for a ‘real’ Brexit and provide the Government with clear and constructive advice on how to deal with ongoing negotiation and implementation issues. A ‘real’ Brexit means regaining full control over our laws, borders, seas, trade, and courts.
• Check any attempts to dilute Brexit, as well as serving as a catalyst and rallying point for positive news stories that, over time, will be able to persuade and demonstrate the many substantial advantages of Brexit
Scanning the report, I don't see any solid 'benefits and opportunities' being identified just a lot of nebulous suggestions such as:
- Rejecting the distortions of ‘globalism’ while embracing genuine free trade
- Understand how the US works and take this into account in policy-making
- Support development of an ‘Anglosphere+’ as an alternative to growing Chinese influence throughout the world
I am not sure anybody serious would ever read the report anyway so we needn't worry about that but the last objective is to stop Brexit being 'diluted' so all those calling for closer ties with the EU are to be resisted to the last. These Brexiteers will never admit to being wrong.
As for becoming a catalyst and a rallying point for 'positive new stories' I fear they may have a long wait. Yorkshire Bylines have the Davis Downside Dossier which is regularly updated every couple of days and I must say it seems a lot easier to become a rallying point for negative news stories about Brexit than positive ones.
Even fellow Brexiteers seem to have come to the conclusion it is all going wrong with Allister Heath in The Telegraph writing: Britain is in ruins thanks to the failed dogmas of our permanent Leftist elite.
No doubts about who he blames for the problems - even as we are governed by the most right-wing nationalist government in history. Heath's beef is about the ECHR but you can see what he's driving at when he claims, "The Blob is naturally making the most of a weak Government that doesn’t seem keen to exercise power."
All of this is reminiscent of 'wrecking' in Soviet Russia in the 1930s where "wrecking" and "sabotage" were defined as any action which negatively affected the economy, including failing to meet unrealistic economic targets, allegedly causing poor morale among subordinates (e.g. by complaining about conditions of work), lack of effort, or other incompetence.
The definition of sabotage was interpreted as anything that did not comply with party directives.
In The Gulag Archipelago for example, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn describes how Nikolai von Meck, a railway engineer, advised placing heavier-than-average loads on freight trains in order to increase productivity. He was convicted of being a wrecker and shot — his supposed crime being that he had overloaded the trains for the purpose of wearing out the rails faster! You couldn't win!
Unless this government is voted out very soon, this sort of thing may well become commonplace in Britain.
Note that however harsh the measures Stalin introduced to force Russians to become more productive, he invariably failed and things just went on getting worse and worse. As they will with Brexit - unfortunately for us.
