UK Politics Thread (Part 1)

[Derecho]

Boris Johnson (BorisJohnson)

anyone else get a craving for

[Flobs]

He seems to be waffling a lot for someone without a worry in the world. Hope your not pestering him.

[Kopstar]

Call that waffling?! He’s a mate, we just chewed the fat for ten minutes.

[Red_Submarine]

If the fishing industry has influenced the deal that is hilarious The British fishing industry is the most bent-from-top-to-bottom game in world trade! Cod might get booked in as cod (instead of as coley) again, when a boat was over quota, but other than that nothing much will change. There aren’t many licensed fishing boats left in the British fleet, yet the wholesale cost of fish in the UK has barely changed in the last 30 years.

[Mascot]

@Klopptimist

5%? Worth every penny.

I’m delighted for you that you feel you can ride that shock out. Not everyone can though.

[Klopptimist]

It would be very interesting if members on here could let us know in a year’s time if they’ve suffered in any way financially due to BREXIT.

Granted this isn’t the Scottish seed potato growers association forum.

[aussielad]

@Arminius

@Lowton_Red

Apparently, the EU & UK plan “to put in place a regulatory dialogue on financial services based on a separate memorandum of understanding”.

In other words, there will have to be another, separate deal or deals, as the trade deal just agreed has no provisions for financial services.

Not sure what the discussion will be about.

UK - let us provide banking services.
EU - No.

TD Bank, at least, is stunned at this development. London offices are not big, but every position is going to need to demonstrate a rationale for remaining in the UK next month, with the expectation that most won’t. They did not see this coming.

I’m not sure how anyone in the financial services sector could be stunned. This is something that most have known/expected and planned for since the referendum.

We used to have a lot of residents at work that were working in finance for the big European banks and financial firms and most of them have spent the last couple of years relocating their staff from London back to Europe due to they knew the chances of a deal which included financial services not being effected was close to 0.

[Kopstar]

@aussielad

We used to have a lot of residents at work that were working in finance for the big European banks and financial firms and most of them have spent the last couple of years relocating their staff from London back to Europe due to they knew the chances of a deal which included financial services not being effected was close to 0.

That simply hasn’t been borne out across the sector though. The rush to move out of London and relocate offices and employees hasn’t happened, only a tiny fraction (less than 5%) have been relocated to satellite offices established within the EU.

[Lowton_Red]

Here’s some light after dinner reading, the Government’s 34 page summary of the trade deal:

TCA_SUMMARY_PDF.pdf

Don’t say I haven’t given you lot something for Christmas.

[Kopstar]

I read the whole legal text last night so you guys don’t have to.

[Flobs]

I haven’t a clue but I feel it would be difficult to instigate action over stuff that doesn’t directly concern the EU-UK stuff.
From the start the concern is investment before Brexit French companies where investing heavily in the UK and lots of money just dissappearing through UK financial companies. As the UK was member this was ‘overlooked’ now it’s no longer a member it’s lost money. For France it’s imperative that the money ‘lost’ to the UK now stays mainly in EU and creates investment in EU (particularly France that has suffered a lot due to the exit of all this potential investment).

[Flobs]

Thanks that’s one less thing to worry about.

(My 1st GIF you might get some competition now )

[Kopstar]

Brexit deal: What is in it?

[Hope.in.your.heart]

Excellent. I don’t know the ins and outs of the deal, who wins and who loses, and to be brutally honest, I don’t care. But the fact that a deal is now done and that everyone knows what happens next is good news. It will allow both sides to move on.

The UK will need decades to find it’s way from being one of the big bullies within the EU to a relatively small isolated entity, creating trade deals, alliances and so forth on an individual basis, but that’s the choice which has been made, for the better and the worse. Good luck to them.

For the EU, it’s an opportunity. They get rid of a quite reluctant member, one which always acted as a brake on common goals and aspirations. For instance, many observators think that the recent EU budget for 2021-2027 (1’074 billions Euros) and the special Covid-related stimulus package (750 billions Euros) wouldn’t have been adopted with the UK still in there.

So, for the better or the worse, things will probably get done at faster pace than until now, and maybe more coherently, who knows?

As an outsider to both entities, and with our country having already secured a good trade deal with the UK, the situation is now probably better for everyone than it has been since four years. Nothing is worse than not knowing what will happen next. At least, Brexit is now finally done, and everyone moves on.

Phew, that’s at least one positive in this shit storm period!

[Mascot]

@Hope.in.your.heart

For the EU, it’s an opportunity. They get rid of a quite reluctant member, one which always acted as a brake on common goals and aspirations.

It’s an interesting thought.

The U.K. has always been opposed to an Euro Army, or an alignment of defence policy. Fortunately it had a veto on such matters and could easily prevent it happening.

A lot more likely now though.

Well done Britain.

[Hope.in.your.heart]

@Mascot

The U.K. has always been opposed to an Euro Army, or an alignment of defence policy. Fortunately it had a veto on such matters and could easily prevent it happening.

A lot more likely now though.

Yeah, I’d expect Germany, France and the other founding members to press ahead with this issue now. Especially in a world where it becomes increasingly clear that the USA aren’t trustworthy allies/protectors anymore, a common Army and defence project is probably the next important step for the EU in order to ensure it’s credibility and longevity.

[Lowton_Red]

@Hope.in.your.heart

Yeah, I’d expect Germany, France and the other founding members to press ahead with this issue now. Especially in a world where it becomes increasingly clear that the USA aren’t trustworthy allies/protectors anymore, a common Army and defence project is probably the next important step for the EU in order to ensure it’s credibility and longevity.

That wouldn’t bode well for the future of NATO. No wonder the Russians were so keen for Brexit.

[Lowton_Red]

One hopes that the change to EU fishing quotas does not presage what we shall discover in the remainder of the agreement. If it does we shall be in for particularly lean pickings.

Britain wanted the EU’s quota to be cut by 80%, but we have had to settle for a 25% reduction spread over five and a half years.

Hardly a resounding success for our negotiators, or taking back “total” control of our waters/fisheries.

[Klopptimist]

I’d like to point out that @Lowton_Red is a thoroughly upstanding and decent chap. A gentleman of his word and an all round good egg
Our wager is settled

[Magnus]

I am a great NATO supporter. But the problem today with NATO is that the US is using it for purposes that have little to do with mutual defence, but more US geopolitical interests. I have also become bit of a skeptic after I watched the Americans vote Trump in. I will still back NATO to the hilt, but not with enthusiasm.
I no longer trust the US, and I am not at all alone. I have always argued NATO with a Socialist friend of mine (who of course hates NATO with a passion), I have always felt I had much stronger arguments than him. One of his arguments though, have been that if push comes to shove, the US won’t go to war for us. I always said they would, they would have to, or they would have no credibility. But now I am only 60% sure. Not certain like previously. Having listening to the American rhetoric, having seen what their voters write, I no longer trust them at all.
And sure, we should spend more on defence and all of that (I have always argued we should spend more than 2%), but the trust is wrecked. And this isn’t just me, you see these arguments now among politicians, they are no longer 100% sure many of them.
The US, and NATO indirectly, will pay for decades for Trump. How can you trust a country that is a pact breaker ? How can you trust them to come to your defence when they want to run NATO like a mafia family with them as Don ? I don’t trust them anymore. Not at all. When you are willing to elect Trump and when 74 million votes for him AGAIN, they can’t really be trusted the way I see it. They are too uninformed, vulgar and too susceptible to populist base propaganda (the voters) and one of the 2 parties proved completely corrupt and untrustworthy even in Foreign Policy.One must always remember that they elected Trump. It cannot be forgotten nor forgiven without a large “Apology Crusade”, and I doubt that will happen. Always, at the back of the head of many policy makers, the fact that they elected Trump will be there. Who knows what they do in the future ? They are susceptible to probably elect someone even worse. Unlikely, but possible, and defense treaties and alliances are all about certainty and trust.
I hope Putin and Russia does not create a huge geopol issue where trust amongst NATO states is vital. Not sure how that will go after Trump.