I’ve been waiting for the dust to settle a bit before commenting but, it seems to me, the dust may never settle. I’m a Remainer and I find the tag ‘Bremoaner’ so very insulting and an attitude from so called Brexiteers that shows an arrogance of a winner with a small majority who wants to take all.
I am not objecting to Exit and Article 50 being triggered much as I would love to see way of avoiding it. My deep seated problem is the how. Whilst not legally binding I accept that this was the result and understandable that we leave.
When Theresa May was elected by her party she said two things that appear to bear conflict
- Brexit means Brexit
and - She wants to deliver serious social reform – and make ours a country that truly works for everyone
So, what sort of exit wills satisfy everyone?
Well, for Remainers retaining the single market even when it demands some or all the existimg freedom of movement of people would be preferred. To do anything that damages trade woud be regarded as madness. There are variations. Norway is not a full EU member. They have much access to the single market but freedom of movement depends upon the people having a job to go to before entering Norway. [see below]. We have to hope that the British government will get an agreement that willsatify Brexit withoudamaging trade and jobs.
“The argument about free movement of labour, is perhaps difficult for British voters and politicians to grasp” according to Poland. bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-37720199
Every time I hear a Brexit supporter use trade with Britain as a reason that EU will do a deal with us I shudder.
No matter whether or not Germany wants to sell us cars – any country in the EU can block a deal with us – note the problem Canada has experienced with just a small Belgian region!
It’s about time a whole load of heads were taken out of the sand.
But what do the Brexiters want?
Well that’s really the problem because no-one seems to know except that the seemingly general view it we must be ‘to get our Country back’ – whatever that means – and tighten our borders against immigration.
Given the many lies used to campaign for exit and the different recipes for exit depending upon which strain of Brexit you followed the only real common thread across the Brexit campaign was to leave the EU.
But on what terms?
Some recent research conducted amongst those who voted to leave a third felt that we could do everything including exiting freedom of movement without any financial cost to the economy.
For those who were asked how much they would be prepared to sacrifice [pay each week from their pay packet] a very large percentage said between £1 and £5 per week. I wonder whether any of these ‘Brexiteers’ will relate to the rising prices to their vote that caused a collapse of the £pound.
And so many people still seem to believe that an extra £3bn is going into the health service. Well done UKIP.
Today Theresa May held talks with the first ministers of the three devolved UK governments at Downing Street and they have been given a “direct line” to Brexit Secretary David Davis ahead of the UK’s negotiations to leave the EU. The Scottish and Welsh leaders want the devolved legislatures and Parliament all to vote on Mr Davis’s approach. And we are aware of the Scottish position where the single marked and immigration are seen as crucial to their eonomy.
Mrs May says she is “ready to listen” to their ideas but the final position must work, as she keep saying, for the whole of the UK. It will be a long time before we know what that really means.
Norway
The EEA agreement grants Norway access to the EU’s internal market. From the 23,000 EU laws currently in force, the EEA has incorporated around 5,000 (in force) meaning that Norway is subject to roughly 21% of EU laws. While the Norwegian parliament has to approve all new legislation which has “significant new obligations”, this has been widely supported and usually uncontested; between 1992 and 2011, 92% of EU laws were approved unanimously, and most of the rest by a broad majority.
This arrangement facilitates free movement of goods, capital, services and people between the EU and EFTA members including Norway. Free movement of goods means freedom from customs fees, where however food and beverage is excluded (because those are subsidised by the EU). Free movement of people means freedom of movement for workers between Norway and EU.
Norway’s total financial contribution linked to the EEA agreement by an amount corresponding to the relative size of their gross domestic product (GDP) compared to the GDP of the whole EEA.