Trade Deal, or No Deal...

[kernelbogey]

...As a teacher first of English in Germany and then of German in England, hopefully making some small contribution to better relations and communication with our nearest neighbours I feel sad and betrayed by a government whose policy is to antagonise them with blame and confrontation. At least Covid means we can't go to Germany where we now feel ashamed and embarrassed to be from this country.

And I think language teaching has been woefully neglected in this country - to the country's great detriment....

[french frank]

I think it was a catastrophic error of judgement .

Because people don't like foreigners? Even before the referendum took place, it was reported that immigrants, including those from A8, contributed far more to the economy than they took out - money that could have gone to expanding services which were perceived as being 'under strain' due to the population increase. But to get back to the Brexit-voting population, again, the argument that immigrants 'pushed down' wages doesn't apply to the areas which saw very little immigration but still voted to leave 'because of all the immigration'.

News comes that the UK has negotiated trade agreements with - Japan and Singapore, both of which already have free trade agreements with the EU (2018 and 2019 respectively). We need to see a number of lucrative agreements with 'the rest of the world' which doesn't have agreements with the EU before we can count any benefits from leaving.

[Dave2002]

Agree with all of that. I've been stockpiling tins of vegetables, pasta and frozen stuff for several months but now I learn that there might be a problem in obtaining chemicals used for water treatment so it's off to buy some bottled water. Anything else I should be getting in?

Not sure what else you need.

Maybe I need to install the water butts after all - we have some ready to go, but I've not put them in because there's so much wind round here that they'd probably fall over, so need some more secure fastenings. Then at least we might be able to filter the water and otherwise purify it - assuming mice and rats don't get in!

Otherwise there's a river not far away with water which may be good enough for drinking with just a little treatment.

[Cockney Sparrow]

As a soft Southerner I asked a relative whether he ever had hosepipe bans. I received the astonished reply "In Scotland??"). Surely it won't take long to fill up the water butts and make them a permanent fixture?

[teamsaint]

Because people don't like foreigners? Even before the referendum took place, it was reported that immigrants, including those from A8, contributed far more to the economy than they took out - money that could have gone to expanding services which were perceived as being 'under strain' due to the population increase. But to get back to the Brexit-voting population, again, the argument that immigrants 'pushed down' wages doesn't apply to the areas which saw very little immigration but still voted to leave 'because of all the immigration'.

News comes that the UK has negotiated trade agreements with - Japan and Singapore, both of which already have free trade agreements with the EU (2018 and 2019 respectively). We need to see a number of lucrative agreements with 'the rest of the world' which doesn't have agreements with the EU before we can count any benefits from leaving.

No .Because many people are under huge economic pressure. Where just a few percent drop in wages causes poverty. Because people take time to adapt. More so perhaps where educational and travel opportunity has been limited. Where they are deliberately misled by a very powerful media, and let down on the basics by government after government. Or doubtless many other reasons.
Narratives on how the British feel about multiculturalism are just that...narratives. Despite all of the nonsense, EU nationals are staying to build their lives here in numbers that appear to have bettered all the estimates.

Re the A8, judgements on change had to be made. Germany and France made one judgement, we made another. I think it was an error of judgement, but who knows, perhaps we made the right decision, and the Germans and French the wrong one. Doesn’t really look like it from 20 years down the track though.

[Cockney Sparrow]

Tony Blair should take a great deal of the blame for this,as the really big decision was taken on his watch, he being of course a prominent and vocal pro- european.

I think Bush suckering Blair over the gulf war was a tragedy for ongoing UK politics. I know it was a terrible tragedy for our military and the Iraqi citizens too.

Whilst it was a mistake, more so in retrospect than at the time in my view, the open door for new member states issue provided an ideal platform for the likes of the Daily Hate to light on and build up the antipathy (straight bananas already being well underway in the minds of the susceptible). Governments seem resistant to training our own workforce to do the work they'd rather not do - care workers, nursing, etc. So we had the benefit of those EU workers. Agreed an element of EU migrants provided copy for the popular press.

When I see Blair now, he seems head and shoulders above anyone on offer in the Liberal and Conservative party. Sturgeon is a capable con-artist with a mission. OK, its not a complete con - open about the ambition for independance, but gives an unjuistified impression of competence in government which doesn't match the evident outcomes. Starmer is capable, decent and at least has the nous not to play into the hands of the reigning party, their media and financial backkers.

Blair's contribution to Newscast was eminently sensible. Brexit's done (already out) - get the best deal on offer, poor as it is - but most importantly start the hard tasks of working out the UK's place in the world, invest in the future accordingly and put the effort in to achieve it. Made such a contrast to the unicorn visions we've been fed on for the past four years. Not interested in Remainer Regrets, not indulging in rejoining scenarios (it will happen when it becomes a movement demanding it, not from being invoked) and realistic that we face a difficult future and need to make the best of it.

Of course, it was a unicorn moment for me - back with a bump to reality, we are stuck with Johnson or some other chancer until 2024.

[HighlandDougie]

.

... Oliver Edwards, in Boswell's Life of Johnson lives for his one deathless remark - “You are a philosopher, Dr. Johnson. I have tried too in my time to be a philosopher; but, I don’t know how, cheerfulness was always breaking in.” Like Edwards, I am normally of a chirpy disposition, 'cheerfulness always breaking in'.

I am finding this very hard at the moment. I know that over a longer time span these things will diminish in their importance, but for the moment I feel (a) I'm getting old and won't see anything as good as we've had over the last forty years, and (b) those of the younger generations I care for will be the ones who suffer most. And as others have said, not so much for those of us who have a privileged and comfortable life, but those with slender margins if any, who will be punished with many unforeseen miseries.

And having worked believing in the promotion of a certain idea of British and Western values - I have never felt so ashamed to be seen as British.

Seriously depressing. Concentrating on a few local good things will be the way forward for me. As the man said, "Il faut cultiver notre jardin".

.

.

Couldn't have expressed it better. As I juggle trying to lead a life which encompasses both France and Scotland (which is my choice so it's the rough with the smooth), I feel profoundly depressed about the future - idiots lead by donkeys or is it donkeys led by idiots?

[Anastasius]

Not sure what else you need.....

Your own never-ending spring ? And a well. OK. Northumberland must have some plusses !

[Dave2002]

Your own never-ending spring ? And a well. OK. Northumberland must have some plusses !

Northumberland?

[Serial_Apologist]

Northumberland?

An imaginary annexation too far!

[Jazzrook]

https://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/11/britain-no-deal-crash-out-ultra-brexiters-disaster

JR

[Anastasius]

An imaginary annexation too far!

The abtruseness of the comments alludes me !

[Nick Armstrong]

https://theguardian.com/commentisfre...iters-disaster

JR

Yes, the twisted attribution of blame for what may be to come, and the consequences of that, are as concerning as the direct effects of Brexit, imho

[oddoneout]

We’ve developed a playbook which maps out every foreseeable scenario with minister-approved courses of action so we can implement them immediately if needed.

(a 'Whitehall source' quoted here https://www.theguardian.com/politics...no-deal-brexit)

Apparently the term playbook has a business meaning but all it says to me is 'not taking this seriously', not least because if such a thing exists it should/would have been available months ago as part of the forward planning. Government ignorance of the workings of the EU and our trading activities with it were tiresome and sometimes damaging when it was just at the level of bendy bananas and malicious journalists but to have the complete deficit of knowledge laid bare at this stage is beyond irresponsible, it is criminal, not least because it is totally unnecessary. Regardless which side of the leave/remain divide is adopted the general purpose of government is to act in the country's best interest - supposedly, although I'm all too aware that went out the window some time ago. As chaos in business isn't in the Tory Party best interest either it seems odd that it is opting for that state of affairs. Perhaps activity on the money market manipulation front has been calculated enough to offset loss from business chaos for those who benefit from such things.
In common with many(most?!) on here I remember the likes of the 3 day week, oil crises, power shortages, disruption to services, etc. and have no wish to go through that all again, especially when it is all completely unnecessary.

[kernelbogey]

I am incandescent with fury about how the No 10 ship of fools is handling this.