Brexit On The Brink...

[ex-khobar Andy]

From the Guardian piece:

While speculation before the ruling was that the court would find against the prime minister, the fact that the decision is unanimous came as a surprise. [Yes, that does surprise me especially as the High Court was, to some extent, attempting to reconcile seemingly opposite decisions by the English Court and the Scottish Court so you might expect some differences of opinion] Most commentators had anticipated a split decision, as there was in the article 50 judgment in 2017.

and

Responding to the judgment, the Commons Speaker, John Bercow, said he would recall parliament on Wednesday at 11.30 am for urgent questions to ministers.

I'm not by any stretch a monarchist but I think it's important to have a separation between the head of government and the head of state.

And BTW the full ruling (linked in my prior post) is a model of clear writing. 25 pages and worth a read.

[ex-khobar Andy]

And on this very interesting day in British politics, the Daily Mail headline is

Drum roll, please

Wait for it

Meghan Markle is seen in public wearing a headscarf for the first time as she visits Cape Town mosque with Prince Harry on their African tour

The Mail never lets us down.

[Big RR]

Indeed.

[ex-khobar Andy]

Reading the European tea-leaves, I think the common attitude has gone from 'you're wrong guys, your politicians have misled you, and we wish you well' to 'why don't you all just f-f-f-fade away?'

[Gob]

The sooner Boris finds a way to give us a clean break from the EUSSR the better.

[RayThom]

The sooner Boris finds a way to give us a clean break from the EUSSR the better.

I think he'll be too busy trying to make a second attempt to prorogue parliament.

Obviously, new ideas are not working. I feel BloJo may very well try to push through May's original withdrawal agreement.

Trump -- Johnson... mirror images. Governments seem to get exactly what their citizens deserve.

[BoSoxGal]

The sooner Boris finds a way to give us a clean break from the EUSSR the better.

There aren’t enough eye rolls on the planet to properly express the disdain that comment deserves.

[Scooter]

[ex-khobar Andy]

BloJo has for years had a reputation of being a serial shagger; although this has usually been ascribed to his charm, good looks, personality, ability to turn a Latin jest, his sixpack and his general laddishness. Not to mention having a few £££ at his disposal.

The anti-Johnson press has scurrilously suggested that some of the £££ weren't his to give; and that the commercial rewards rendered unto Ms Jennifer Arcuri (£115,000 IIRC) by London while BloJo was mayor, may have been connected with his frequent visits to Ms Arcuri's flat in Shoreditch. Now I am inclined to believe Mr Johnson's assertion that their time together focused on the strength of sterling and how it might affect the balance of trade and that Ms Arcuri used her dancing pole purely as a means of supporting detailed charts illustrating the precise details of the RSA public key cryptography algorithm.

The Sunday Times (paywall) and the NYT are now reporting that Ms Arcuri has been telling her friends that she had been having an affair with the blond gentleman. I am shocked, shocked, I tell you! Talk about loose lips!!

Will Johnson last into October? (Hint: maybe a day or three.)

[Gob]

It looks like the EUSSR are pushing their luck, "No Deal" it is then.

Britain quitting the European Union without a deal on October 31th would deal a harsh blow to Germany's already stuttering economy in 2020, leading think-tanks said in Berlin Wednesday.

"For the coming year, we should reckon with a deduction of 0.4 percentage points" in growth if Britain crashes out, experts from five leading economic institutes said in a joint statement.

By contrast, "if Britain's future relationship with the EU is reliably clarified, there should be a swift brightening of economic prospects," they added.

https://www.thelocal.de/20191002/no-dea ... th-in-2020

[Scooter]

So your plan is "it will be worth tanking the UK's economy just to see Germany feeling the pinch as well"?

[Big RR]

I guess the same could be said for Germany risking serious economic problems just so the UK could be lectured Z"You've have the best deal we will offer...". Cooler heads should prevail, but they may not; and like it or not, a hard brexit is not going to be good for any of the involved parties, and even many third parties. But it seems everyone would rather swagger and scream than to address what path would be best.

[Gob]

So your plan is "it will be worth tanking the UK's economy just to see Germany feeling the pinch as well"?

My plan is that there is no reason on earth why the UK economy would tank.

Why are you not arguing for Canada to join with the US, Mexico, Chile, Argentina etc in an "ever closer union"? Your little country should be proud to fund Honduras and Patagonia.

[Gob]

The sooner Boris finds a way to give us a clean break from the EUSSR the better.

There aren’t enough eye rolls on the planet to properly express the disdain that comment deserves.

[Lord Jim]

Now let's see if he has any more luck with this than May did...

Frankly Boris' track record as PM for persuading Parliament has thus far not been anything to brag about...

Boris Johnson agrees Brexit deal with EU

Boris Johnson has agreed a new Brexit deal with the EU after last-ditch talks ahead of a crucial leaders' summit in Brussels.

Negotiators worked until 2am on Thursday to strike the deal – but questions remain about whether it can gain enough support back in Westminster.

"Where there is a will, there is a deal – we have one!" Jean-Claude Juncker said in a statement on Thursday morning.

"It’s a fair and balanced agreement for the EU and the UK and it is testament to our commitment to find solutions. I recommend that European Council endorses this deal."

In his own statement Mr Johnson said: "We’ve got a great new deal that takes back control — now Parliament should get Brexit done on Saturday so we can move on to other priorities like the cost of living, the NHS, violent crime and our environment."

But the agreement is crucially understood to not have the support of DUP members of parliament, whose votes in parliament are almost certainly required for it to pass it.

“Read our statement. It hasn’t changed," a DUP source said.

Later on Thursday EU leaders will meet to discuss the accord, which will need to be signed off by member states. They will also consider whether an extension to Article 50 is required.

British members of parliament are expected to discuss the agreement at an extraordinary sitting of parliament on Saturday.

Speaking at a press conference in the European Commission's Berlaymont headquarters EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said the deal was "the result of intensive work on the part of the two negotiating teams".

"A point extremely important to prime minister Johnson and the UK was that Northern Ireland remains in the UK's customs territory. Discussions in the past few days have at times been difficult, but we have delivered, and we have delivered together," he told reporters.

Under the agreement, Northern Ireland will stay inside the UK customs territory, but UK authorities will have to collect EU tariffs for goods that are "at risk of entering the single market", Mr Barnier said. He added that the arrangement would allow the territory to "benefit from the UK's future trade policy" – a key demand of Brexiteers.

More:

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... 59606.html

[ex-khobar Andy]

I must admit I've lost track with all the permutations, but I think this means that if it goes through Parliament, there's an effective customs border in the Irish Sea. . Where there is a border there will of course be smuggling. It's a major problem between EU Sweden and non-EU Norway.

This could run and run.

[ex-khobar Andy]

There's a Guardian piece explaining some elements of BloJo's 'agreement'.

Stormont [that's the Northern Ireland semi-autonomous assembly] will have a key role in future Brexit arrangements.

So the Northern Irish tail (1.9 million - about 3% of the population) will wag the Brexit dog for the UK (67 million). Ok, got it.

This guarantees that the UK will remain in line with EU conventions on climate, environment and workers rights in a future trade agreement.

Of course the UK has been in line with these European conventions for years while a member of the EU and thus having an influence on these policies. Now they will stay in line despite having zero influence on the policies.

You know, I could have sworn that one of the main drivers for Brexit was that some people wanted more control of their destinies.

[rubato]

Legal beer in Norway is staggeringly expensive but on the other hand it is some of the best in the world. the HaandBryggeriet brewery is notable for a lot of their offerings. I haven't tried their lagers but the ales, porters and stouts are outstanding.


yrs,
rubato

[MajGenl.Meade]

Beyond time to turn over the northern enclave to the noisy neighbours to the south. One Ireland - problem solved.

[Gob]

Stormont [that's the Northern Ireland semi-autonomous assembly] will have a key role in future Brexit arrangements.

So the Northern Irish tail (1.9 million - about 3% of the population) will wag the Brexit dog for the UK (67 million). Ok, got it.

That's the problem with democracy, they should abolish it and go over to the American system.