Trade Deal, or No Deal...

[french frank]

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', .

Business leaders are complaining that the government is keeping it to itself and not telling them.

[DracoM]

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

x 100000!!

[kernelbogey]

A fine article today in The Observer by Andrew Rawnsley:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/13/boris-johnson-wont-be-able-escape-responsibility-for-a-crash-out-brexit

Bringing me a shred of hope:
A deal is in the interests of both sides. This is why, despite the gloomy noises coming out of both London and Brussels, some of the smart money is still betting on an agreement. The hope is that Mr Johnson will grasp just how much a catastrophe Brexit could cost him personally.

[Frances_iom]

x 100000!!

don't worry - there is much worse to come - keep your multipliers for overprinting the banknotes when the debts come home to roost.

[DracoM]

Rawnsley hits nail on head.
UK will never, never forget this, or IMO forgive or trust 'Tories' of whatever shade of blue, for a generation, whatever the outcome.

[Frances_iom]

no - the English constituencies are so arranged that there is an inbuilt advantage for the Tories - all it requires is the opposition to put up 2nd or 3rd rate candidates for leader (eg as both Labour under trades union votes or lib dems under a suicide pact did) and they are home again

[oddoneout]

Rawnsley hits nail on head.
UK will never, never forget this, or IMO forgive or trust 'Tories' of whatever shade of blue, for a generation, whatever the outcome.

I would so love to believe this and that it might make a difference but in practice the FPTP voting system means that it wouldn't make any significant or functional difference since however much the voters may not want to vote Con again they also won't want, or are very unlikely, to vote Labour in my view, and that would be the only change option available. Perhaps enough will change by the time another election comes up to swap sides from Con, but that isn't in itself a solution, just flipping from one party with a minority of votes and a majority of seats to another, and still leaving millions unrepresented.

[DracoM]

Huh!

You two are making me feel even more depressed!!
Because...................



I fear you're right!!!!!!

[Roslynmuse]

I would so love to believe this and that it might make a difference but in practice the FPTP voting system means that it wouldn't make any significant or functional difference since however much the voters may not want to vote Con again they also won't want, or are very unlikely, to vote Labour in my view, and that would be the only change option available. Perhaps enough will change by the time another election comes up to swap sides from Con, but that isn't in itself a solution, just flipping from one party with a minority of votes and a majority of seats to another, and still leaving millions unrepresented.

Also, turkeys do have a habit of voting for Christmas. Johnson has been at No 10 for a year today. Can anyone name a single thing he has touched that has not been disastrous for great swathes of the British population?

[oddoneout]

Also, turkeys do have a habit of voting for Christmas. Johnson has been at No 10 for a year today. Can anyone name a single thing he has touched that has not been disastrous for great swathes of the British population?

Stockholm Syndrome?

[Roslynmuse]

Stockholm Syndrome?

For many, I'm sure there is an element of that.

[Frances_iom]

those who voted in the red wall seats had near 20years of seeing their towns + regions abandoned whilst London + the city became 'masters of the universe' - the rapid change in populations involving double digit percentage of certain East European countries moving to the UK and putting significant demands on a totally stressed infrastructure was the final straw + DC was one who could see this and exploited it with the result we have. The referendum was the only way in which their votes were counted in a 'fair' way - but there is no history of anything other that FPTP in England, both our legal system and Parliament are set up to be adversarial which as seen to the highest degree in the US places the common man at an impossible disadvantage - I am truely worried that the combined effects of covid + no deal with the nationalism pushed by BJ (who in my opinion is a boastful fool) will push us to semi fascism.

[DracoM]

<< I am truly worried that the combined effects of covid + no deal with the nationalism pushed by BJ (who in my opinion is a boastful fool) will push us to semi fascism. >>

I share exactly those sentiments.

[teamsaint]

those who voted in the red wall seats had near 20years of seeing their towns + regions abandoned whilst London + the city became 'masters of the universe' - the rapid change in populations involving double digit percentage of certain East European countries moving to the UK and putting significant demands on a totally stressed infrastructure was the final straw + DC was one who could see this and exploited it with the result we have. The referendum was the only way in which their votes were counted in a 'fair' way - but there is no history of anything other that FPTP in England, both our legal system and Parliament are set up to be adversarial which as seen to the highest degree in the US places the common man at an impossible disadvantage - I am truely worried that the combined effects of covid + no deal with the nationalism pushed by BJ (who in my opinion is a boastful fool) will push us to semi fascism.

There was an interesting report the other day which suggested that almost all governments had become more authoritarian since the start of the pandemic. There is excellent reason to be very suspicious of every move in the direction of coercion, increased surveillance,controls and so on.
Much is being done under the cover of covid, and also to an extent brexit.

[cloughie]

<< I am truly worried that the combined effects of covid + no deal with the nationalism pushed by BJ (who in my opinion is a boastful fool) will push us to semi fascism. >>

I share exactly those sentiments.

Little Englanders may in due course find that the UK is just that!