buctootim

So there have been 'Brexit betrayals' before then?

Really? What happened to the surrender WA? The no border down the Irish Sea?.

He has set a crude trap. But it remains to be seen who its for and whether anybody falls into it. One analysis is that he is deliberately ramping up concern about breaking international and the break up of the UK so that it will soften up Parliament to accept a watered down deal that tacitly accepts the status quo over a level playing field without ever formally agreeing to it. And the EU hold off any retaliatory action until the UK actually changes it - ie never.

Yes you pitiful excuse for an intellect, it is as important as 27 separate deals with individual countries. That's why smooth trade and good relations with the EU is so vital for the UK - it accounts for 43% of trade, not 2% like Japan.

Its a straw man article. He's arguing against things no-one has said. 42 deals does not overstate the EU's trade portfolio. In fact it understates. The single market facilitates free trade between 27 members but only counts as one deal. Arguably the EU has in effect the equivalent of 68 trade deals.

You were talking about the Empire, which mostly finished 20 years or so before the UK even joined the EEC. You face planted trying to make a lame gotcha about staying contemporary. Doh. Zimbabwe were in the Commonwealth but got sanctioned for breaching international agreements and went off in a huff. Whatever happened to Zimbabwe and their economy .......? Boris and Bob, two peas in a pod.

Bizarro, congrats. They stayed in the Commonwealth, like the EU a voluntary association of independent countries engaged in trade between members.

Still only in your head. The EU has more trade deals than any other bloc or nation - 42. The next highest, Switzerland has only 29. The US has 14.

It's still all happening in your head and nowhere else.

Two things. 1. No-one is going to give you a new deal if you aren't trusted to stick to what you agreed to only a year previously 2. It's nothing to do with being told what we can and can;t do. The problem is we still havent moved on from cake and eat it. Trade deals are give and take. You want something I have then you have to give something you have and I want.

That's not it imo - he's simply unprincipled in that he will back whatever policy is going to make him look good. As Mayor of London he was liberal because London is majority liberal. In the case of Brexit he said what he needed to to get the backing of the eurosceptics. You cant pigeonhole him by beliefs because his beliefs have little to do with his actions

Duckie covered this is a very good post a few days ago. Is it morally right that some economic migrants who have money to pay people smugglers get to be processed in the UK whilst genuine political refugees languish in prison or are executed - of course not. No-one doubts that economic migration is a real issue. The tricky part is what are you going to do about it and how you are going to separate the genuine from the liars when neither carry papers.

Very easy to say when you live in a country which helps cause refugees flows but is an island and doesnt have to deal with most of the consequences of its actions. Many of the refugees flowing into France are from Libya or are transiting Libya because there is no effective government there - largely the UK's fault. Lebanon, a country of six million people is struggling with 1 million refugees from Syria. You think they alone should bear the burden because although they had nothing to do with the crisis they happen to be a neighbour?

Wes doesn't like facts. He prefers his feelings

Those posters demanding the duplicitous French stop people making the journey would argue exactly the opposite if they were French. Why exactly should the French spend time and money stopping those illegal immigrants to France who just want to leave and get to Britain.

Religions are faiths. That's why they are called faiths and not 'Empirical Evidence Based Concepts'. You either believe it or you don't. There is and cannot be, by definition, concrete evidence of an afterlife. We'll find out soon enough when we die and not before who was right. Why the fuck you need to bang on for 41 pages telling other people they are wrong is odd - especially when what you think are smart gotchas are mostly slightly ignorant and crass.

Religions are faiths. That's why they are called faiths and not 'Empirical Evidence Based Concepts. You either believe it or you don't. Why the fuck you need to bang on for 41 pages telling other people they are wrong. There is and cannot be, by definition, concrete evidence of an afterlife is disturbing. We'll find out soon enough when we die, not before. What you think are smart gotchas are mostly slightly ignorant and crass.

Religions are faiths. Thats why they are called faiths and not empirical evidence based concepts. You either believe it or you don't. Why the fuck you need to bang on for 41 pages telling other people they are wrong. There is and cannot be, by definition, concrete evidence of an afterlife is disturbing. We'll find out soon enough when we die, not before. What you think are smart gotchas are mostly slightly ignorant and crass.

Johnson is starting to show authoritarian traits. Parliament has already been significantly bypassed and marginalised. Now he is developing a cult of patronage. All previous PMs that I can recall willingly accepted the primacy of Parliament even when it restrained them, even after 10 years as PM. Johnson feels entitled to do wtf he likes only a year into the job.

Agree. Its the simplest to do and and easiest for everybody to remember. 1.5 metres as used in other countries would be enough.

Gone up by 250% in a week in Southampton. Yes they are small numbers but if you dont check it at that rate with a few weeks you have thousands of new cases.

The travel ban has nothing to do with covid and deaths? Logic leaps of a mountain goat.

I thought we were all going to be richer and freer after Brexit. Will be a shock to many that we will be poorer, prices higher and more bureaucracy.

You were linking corona with Brexit negotiations then. Better from the horse's mouth than the pantomime arse.

Aren't Scotland, Wales and NI co-ordinating with each though?