Brexit Johnson is certainly heading for a great fall, several of them in fact, brought on by his extraordinary hubris. Sooner or later the blind faith he has in his own ability to escape from all the recklessly stupid positions he has got himself into will prove to be insufficient. His world will come crashing down and he will be revealed as the idiot he is. Perhaps the Irish sea border will be the first occasion.
On Wednesday at PMQs, he was asked a question by Jeffrey Donaldson (now Sir Jeffrey, no less) of the DUP:
"As we approach the moment when we will leave the European Union, the Prime Minister will be aware of concerns in Northern Ireland. We welcome his assurance that there will continue to be unfettered access for Northern Ireland businesses to the UK single market, but does that commitment also apply to goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland?"
We all know the true answer is that there will definitely not be "unfettered access" either way but it didn't stop Brexit Johnson, still a fearless liar, who gave this bold if totally misleading and unequivocal response:
"Emphatically it does"
Hubris is as hubris does. Quite what Donaldson was doing I don't know, perhaps laying an elephant trap for the PM? The EU monitor these things carefully and the very next day, speaking at an event in London, Stefaan de Rynck, an adviser to the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, said the UK had agreed to apply necessary checks on goods, adding, "There are clear commitments on the UK which are legally binding and have to be implemented." This was specifically about Northern Ireland:
"We will not tolerate any backsliding or half measures on this. It is clear what needs to be done by both sides and we will stick to that."
Incidentally, while on the topic of Ireland can I link to another great piece by Fintan O'Toole who writes about the revolution that is Brexit:
"Revolutions unleash euphoria because they create tangible images of change and inaugurate, at least in the fevered minds of their supporters, a new epoch. Brexit can’t do either of these things. The problem with a revolt against imaginary oppression is that you end up with imaginary freedom. How do you actually show that the yoke of Brussels has been lifted? You can’t bring prawn cocktail-flavoured crisps back into the shops, or release stout British fishermen from the humiliation of having to wear hair nets at work on the high seas, or unban donkey rides on beaches, or right any of the other great wrongs that fuelled anti-EU sentiment – because all of it was make-believe."
The Brexit finish line?
The WAB received Royal assent last night and is now firmly in UK law. Barring any last minute hitches in the European parliament or at the European Council, we will technically be out in seven days time. Downing Street rushed out a statement from the master of mendacity himself:
"Parliament has passed the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, meaning we will leave the EU on 31 January and move forwards as one United Kingdom.
"At times it felt like we would never cross the Brexit finish line, but we’ve done it.
"Now we can put the rancour and division of the past three years behind us and focus on delivering a bright, exciting future – with better hospitals and schools, safer streets and opportunity spread to every corner of our country."
Whatever goes off in the dark recesses under that bright blond mop, it has an uneasy relationship with reality. It is not the Brexit finish line that we have reached at all. Next Friday will actually see the starter's pistol being fired on Brexit. However exhausted the population might be with Brexit, their journey has so far only brought them to the start line. Next week the real work begins.
Buckle up.
Business consultation
On Twitter yesterday I noticed a tweet about the fundamentals of free trade negotiations from someone with the twitter handle HermanntheGerman:
Shortly after seeing the tweet I noted an article in The Irish Times which begins like this:
"Just days ahead of Britain’s exit from the European Union, both sides claim to be well prepared for the forthcoming negotiations about their future relationship. Downing Street says Boris Johnson would happily start the talks the day after Brexit Day, if only the EU didn’t have to wait until February 24th to agree its negotiating mandate."
Not only is there no mechanism to consult business on the terms of trade the government does not even intend to set one up. Brexit Johnson is ready to start trade negotiations a week tomorrow without agreeing on a mandate or any objectives. He is intent on reaching a deal with the EU which satisfies the Conservative party and no one else. It's quite clear now he does not intend to consult anyone at all.
But then again, f**k business is, as we know, the PM's mantra. The trouble is nobody actually believed he was going to do it - but he is.
This struck me as absolutely right. Brexit is often clothed in the language of free trade but we know it's really about ideology and nationalism. The whole Brexit thing has been played out as if we will be better off somehow out of the EU single market and customs union. But this is not the position of business, at least big business and the trade organisations who are largely in favour of EU membership. The government is neither talking or listening to business.My professors in the early 90s were the actual Mexican negotiators of Nafta. They said one thing and one thing only. Talk and listen to business, then you can negotiate. You negotiate for them, not for your politics. Simple, really. This government has failed there, massively.— HermanntheGerman (@Herman_a_German) January 23, 2020
Shortly after seeing the tweet I noted an article in The Irish Times which begins like this:
"Just days ahead of Britain’s exit from the European Union, both sides claim to be well prepared for the forthcoming negotiations about their future relationship. Downing Street says Boris Johnson would happily start the talks the day after Brexit Day, if only the EU didn’t have to wait until February 24th to agree its negotiating mandate."
Not only is there no mechanism to consult business on the terms of trade the government does not even intend to set one up. Brexit Johnson is ready to start trade negotiations a week tomorrow without agreeing on a mandate or any objectives. He is intent on reaching a deal with the EU which satisfies the Conservative party and no one else. It's quite clear now he does not intend to consult anyone at all.
But then again, f**k business is, as we know, the PM's mantra. The trouble is nobody actually believed he was going to do it - but he is.
