Soft, hard, Norway plus, no deal or second referendum? However divided the parties and however unstable UK politics becomes, the UK’s politicians cannot put the choice off any longer.’ Kirsty Hughes on Tuesday’s Commons vote
UK Eurosceptics
The Withdrawal Agreement and devolution
‘The continued lack of shared understanding about the status and role of the devolved governments does not bode well for the ongoing efforts to reform the UK’s system of territorial governance in preparation for life outside the EU.’
Does Europe want the UK to stay?
‘A multi-choice ballot between May’s deal (which could amount to no-deal), or in/out of the customs union and in/out of the single market, would allow voters to make a real and somewhat nuanced choice.’
Brexit: debunking myths about the EU position
The current domestic debate in the UK thus represents the beginning of the Brexit process, not the end, and it would benefit from a greater understanding of what drives the EU in this process.
Labour, SNP, ‘People’s Vote’ and a Brexit Deal
‘Fudging both the timing of an independence referendum and the SNP’s position on a ‘people’s vote’ looks like getting more difficult as Brexit D-day draws nearer this autumn.’
Leave voters don’t want a ‘Global Britain’
‘For them (Leave voters), Brexit wasn’t about rebooting Britain as a global player, in fact it was about recognising we have limited capacities—particularly economically—and that these should be focused almost exclusively domestically.’
Kicking the can down the road to Norway
‘ The story of betrayal is already being constructed. It is a dispiriting prophecy that foretells we will still be arguing about our relationship with Europe, and only that, in four years’ time’.
England: goodbye to Northern Ireland, hello to Hard Brexit?
‘It’s time to think what was supposed to be unthinkable in the Brexit negotiations over the last 12 months: that England will wave goodbye to Northern Ireland as a necessary price for Hard Brexit, giving Northern Ireland a special status within the UK and towards the EU….’
Englishness and not just class lies behind Brexit
‘Identities are complex and it appears that Britishness, while slightly related to views on Brexit, was much less important in differentiating between groups than English identity was…’
Corbyn’s pick’n’mix approach to eating cake
‘It is not true to say nationalisation or state ownership is forbidden by the EU. There are plenty of models of ownership in Europe, often involving workers sitting on boards or devolved regional governments making laws to support local economic development.’