Brexit.

[Sid]

There are some knifes pulled and sharpened in Austria today.

Chequers plan is dead, says Tusk as Macron calls Brexiters liars | Guardian

Donald Tusk, the European council president, has ratcheted up the pressure on Theresa May by rejecting the Chequers plan and warning of a breakdown in the Brexit talks unless she delivers a solution for the Irish border by October – a deadline the British prime minister had already said she will not be able to meet.

The stark threat to unravel the talks came as the French president, Emmanuel Macron, broke with diplomatic niceties and accused those of backing Brexit of being liars. “Those who explain that we can easily live without Europe, that everything is going to be all right, and that it’s going to bring a lot of money home are liars,” he said.
“It’s even more true since they left the day after so as not to have to deal with it.”

 

[Kara Spengler]

I thought Chequers being DOA and Irish-solution-by-October-or-no-deal were both knowns?

 

[Sid]

I thought Chequers being DOA and Irish-solution-by-October-or-no-deal were both knowns?

Yup, it was clear to all, except for May and her negotiating team it still isn't.
They still feel they can cherry pick and demand things. Just because, well.....
Britannia rules the waves and such.

The EU couldn’t help May at Salzburg because she’s seeking the impossible | Guardian

 

[Kara Spengler]

Like toad she is under the impression that she rules an empire. Both of them with deals. They think you get your ideal terms in dealmaking. Um, no, that is not how deals work.

 

[Veritable Quandry]

I suspect May is getting exactly what she wants from the EU. She can't push her plan through Parliament, but now it ain't her fault, it's the dammed EU preventing her glorious plan from succeeding.

 

[Kara Spengler]

Well, she has one country on her side (Hungary?) ..... that makes up for not having the other 26, right?

 

[Ashiri]

Like toad she is under the impression that she rules an empire. Both of them with deals. They think you get your ideal terms in dealmaking. Um, no, that is not how deals work.

It became clear the mindset of some of the Brexiters when one of them thought they could just resume trading relationships with the Commonwealth just as if the last 40+ years had never happened.
The British Empire has been dead for a long time.
Current policy is to do a trade deal with the EU before bothering with Britain.

 

[Kara Spengler]

It became clear the mindset of some of the Brexiters when one of them thought they could just resume trading relationships with the Commonwealth just as if the last 40+ years had never happened.
The British Empire has been dead for a long time.
Current policy is to do a trade deal with the EU before bothering with Britain.

At least the trumpites make less sense than them but that is a pretty low bar. For both groups it seems their decision was based on the emotion of 'my country first, all others can pound sand, etc etc'. Rather than reasoning what makes sense today they both thought they could return to the policies when they were kids and just assume it would be just dandy with the rest of the world.

I am sure both groups wonder why they can not set textbook standards for everyone else. Forget translation, I am sure Finland's system would love hearing from pretty much anyone else how to teach their kids. Remind me how far ahead of them we are? Oh, it is the other way around .... by miles.

 

[Sid]

The blaming Europe has started (as predicted).

Theresa May demands respect from EU over Brexit as pound falls | The Guardian

 

[Val]

Wake me up when they start discussing all the trade, education, transport and other agreements with specific people and present clear documents and plans. We are still stuck in "surely Brexit will not actually happen" mixed with "let us retain all privileges and have no responsibilities " and sprinkled with a "Labour/Tories are wrooong". I am quite impressed with Tusk as he started as a very crap, meek Polish PM who had to run because he got bullied and he evolved into the opposite.

 

[Kara Spengler]

Wake me up when they start discussing all the trade, education, transport and other agreements with specific people and present clear documents and plans. We are still stuck in "surely Brexit will not actually happen" mixed with "let us retain all privileges and have no responsibilities " and sprinkled with a "Labour/Tories are wrooong". I am quite impressed with Tusk as he started as a very crap, meek Polish PM who had to run because he got bullied and he evolved into the opposite.

Clear plans? Surely you are joking. They do not have one because if they did by now everyone would know the details of it, everyone that needed to sign or vote would have done so, procedures would have been set up, and they would be well on their way doing things like ramping up staff where needed. This will be a no deal situation. Even if, for who knows why, the EU gives them longer than March, it will still be a very hard brexit and the actual deadline will be all the harder.

 

[Tris]

Seems the Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt wasn't amused though.

(sorry, couldn't find an english link for his reaction )

 

[Luisa Land]

"Seems the Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt wasn't amused though.

(sorry, couldn't find an english link for his reaction )"



Here I found one in english
Britain fumes at ‘insulting’ Tusk post about PM’s Brexit plan

"British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt on Saturday accused EU Council President Donald Tusk of “insulting the British people.......
Tusk created a mini-sensation during a difficult EU summit on Brexit in Salzburg by posting a photo on Instagram of himself offering May a tray of cakes.
“A piece of cake, perhaps?” Tusk wrote alongside the picture. “Sorry, no cherries.”



.

 

[Tigger]

The ever elusive brexit-bonus has in fact finally been identified.

MP warns Love Island could be axed because of BREXIT

 

[Sid]

The ever elusive brexit-bonus has in fact finally been identified.

MP warns Love Island could be axed because of BREXIT

Now if that isn't a valid reason to cancel Brexit, what is?

 

[Luisa Land]

Standing ovations for Keir Starmer "Nobody is ruling out remain as an option"
Starmer , the shadow Brexit secretary in his speeh at the Labour conference today

Keir Starmer launched an unexpected Brexit zinger – and it hit the spot | Martin Kettle

 

[Sid]

Remain would really be the best option. Or the Norwegian or Swiss deal.
The EU is simply to far integrated to step out of it just like that.

 

[Kara Spengler]

Isolationist groups always think they are better off going it alone. The fact is no country has been able to do a good job of existing for awhile now. I am not sure when the switchover was, but certainly by the end of the 20th century nobody sane would propose unplugging from your neighbours in a short period of time and running a modern nation.

 

[Tigger]

Standing ovations for Keir Starmer "Nobody is ruling out remain as an option"
Starmer , the shadow Brexit secretary in his speeh at the Labour conference today

Keir Starmer launched an unexpected Brexit zinger – and it hit the spot | Martin Kettle

Yeah the problem is, it's only him saying this. It is not official Labour policy. Corbyn as usual won't commit himself, McDonnell has said that they might consider a 2nd ref but that it would not include a remain option and now Starmer says remain would be an option. Who could possibly vote for that cluster fuck?

Labour's new Brexit referendum would not offer option to remain in EU

Which leaves the ever burning question - if no deal is reached (now clearly the most likely outcome) just what would the choices be? No Deal (intentional) or No Deal (accidental)?

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

Aren't they basically out of time for negotiations? The options are "drive off the cliff" or "chuck a u-ey", no?