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Finessing the Withdrawal Agreement | 43 comments (43 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)
But of course... (4.00 / 3)
Hence the need to inveigle Boris to put the Withdrawal Agreement sans the Irish Backstop to Parliament and put it up to Jonny Foreigner. Hence the need to call the new customs arrangements at N. Ireland air and sea ports "MaxFac" even though that name was original used by Tory MPs to trivialise the border issues. Hence the need to allow Boris to "bypass Brussels" and deal directly with the Irish on that pesky Good Friday Agreement...

Boris will presumably tout the new deal as reflecting the desire of the majority in N. Ireland to remain close to the EU - as if this were some great new discovery of his, and not the original Irish/EU backstop proposal. The hated name "backstop" will be no more... It's all in the marketing, you know...

Index of Frank's Diaries

by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Sat Jul 20th, 2019 at 11:59:48 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: But of course... (4.00 / 6)
And the Brexiters will say that they expected the Germans to cave all along: they need to sell all those Beemers and Audis, y'know...

I'd be sincerely relieved to see an agreement rather than a crash-out, but it makes me sick to see Merkel and VdL rolling out the welcome mat to that shit Boris.

Things are going to slide, slide in all directions
Won't be nothing
Nothing you can measure anymore
L. Cohen

by john_evans (john(dot)evans(dot)et(at)gmail(dot)com) on Sat Jul 20th, 2019 at 12:45:01 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: But of course... (none / 1)
Optimistically, I wonder if they expect him to survive beyond October.
by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Sat Jul 20th, 2019 at 11:53:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Diplomatically speaking... (4.00 / 4)
In Diplomatic speak, the size of the "welcome mat" is often in inverse proportion to the actual affection and regard between the parties. I'd be worried, if I were British, about how calm and kind and relaxed all those European leaders are about the prospect of the UK leaving - "sincere regret", "respecting democracy", "ongoing mutual cooperation"... yadayadayada.

They just might be "waiting in the long grass" for when the British are at their most vulnerable. Certainly there will be no "special relationship" with our "British Friends".

On the Brexiteer side, talk about "our European friends" can be translated roughly as meaning "we hope you die, and  if we have any say in the matter, you certainly will".

Index of Frank's Diaries

by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Sun Jul 21st, 2019 at 07:32:57 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: Diplomatically speaking... (4.00 / 3)
I wasn't thinking there was any love lost. But the suggestion, however obtusely framed, that the backstop can be made to "disappear" via new language in the political agreement must surely be welcome to Boris's ears. What else can he hope for?

Though I realize that last question presupposes a capacity for the appraisal of real conditions that has not previously been on display in Boris-the-chancer's career.

Things are going to slide, slide in all directions
Won't be nothing
Nothing you can measure anymore
L. Cohen

by john_evans (john(dot)evans(dot)et(at)gmail(dot)com) on Sun Jul 21st, 2019 at 09:05:53 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Finessing the Withdrawal Agreement | 43 comments (43 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)
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