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Following the 2016 referendum, two elections, three prime ministers and three years of attritional political fighting that has split the UK, the day of Brexit has come on January 31st, 2020.
This is not the end, however, the UK and the EU agreed that between January 31st and December 31st, 2020, they would negotiate the bare bones of a trade deal that will define their future relationship.
European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen told MEPs on January 28th, when Britain’s Withdrawal Agreement was approved in Brussels, the EU will look to negotiate a deal that benefits its member states, its companies and its citizens.
Both Von der Leyen, as well as EU Chief Negotiator Michel Barnier said that a comprehensive deal was unlikely to be completed by year’s end.
What could be reached is no quotas and zero tarrifs on British exports. But key points remain freedom of movement, EU access to British fishing waters, despite the government claiming that it would take back control of British fishing.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised no issues regarding Northern Ireland, which departs the EU, alongside the UK, but physically remains part of the island of Ireland.
He is to give a speech at 23:00 CET on January 31st, an hour before the UK leaves, in the city of Sunderland, which was first to declare its support for “leave” in the 2016 referendum.
In his valedictory speech to the European Parliament on January 30th, Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage said that he hoped Britain’s exit would mark the beginning of the end of the European Union.
The country’s exit from the EU has also renewed calls from Scottish independence with Nicola Sturgeon, the country’s First Minister, expected to lay out in a speech on January 31st for “the next steps on Scotland’s journey to independence”.
“There is the prospect of a brighter, better future as an equal, independent European nation,” she will add.
However, Brexit also doesn’t mean the EU and UK immediately split.
They will enter a transition period until the end of this year, during which the free movement of people and trade between them will continue as before. There is no expectation of long lines at ports on the English Channel.
Britons will no longer be EU citizens, but they will still broadly enjoy the same rights they do now. The U.K. will keep paying into the EU budget during this transition period, but British lawmakers will no longer sit in the European Parliament or help shape EU rules.
The future is uncertain, and the UK has a long way in front of it, specifically in negotiating with the EU, China and the US. This is furthermore exacerbated by the fact that London doesn’t have the leverage of being a part of a wider market, thus Washington has vowed to support it, but it has not been once or twice that the Trump (and previous) administrations have made empty promises.
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The Brits don’t need the US. We are a trading nation and always have been. Our standards mean that our products are wanted everywhere abroad. We still have links from the days of the empire.
If the US thinks that Brexit gives US shysters a free hand in Blighty, they should think again. We haven’t left one control mechanism to have it replaced by a US other.
Onwards and upwards.
Well said. WTO Rules are in place now with the US, so we should continue with that.
It would be far better to engage in honest debate with China and Russia and to come clean with all the UK government duplicity in recent years that has actually harmed the UK.
Now is the time to repent our sins ( the Scripal and White Helmets pantomimes being just two) and to disengage from the Common Purpose loonies that currently control the US and EU.
ROFL! Please pardon me my British friends but when you’re saying Brits are trading nation most of ex. USSR people recall Stalin’s words that Brits are merchants and not warriors so they can’t really fight. I am not agree with Stalin, but please think twice when you’re saying it in the international comments section.
PS British goods were wanted everywhere just because of strong protectionism inside of the Empire and it’s satellites.
PPS please don’t blame me too much but American fat cats were too scared in the beginning of the EU because United Europe represents a huge threat for the USA corporations. So they just corrupted you from the inside. At my point the better option for you was to vote far right nationalists in EU elections to build EU as it was designed. But I could be wrong because it’s opinion outside of the EU.
Since the UK joined the EU, it has been mainly downhill. The Brits do not have enough good jobs for their own people. Those that do have a lifestyle are forever working or have luck on their side. Wages and prospects have depleted yet the EU insist on increasing the influx of refugees, caused mainly by US warmongering. The last straw came when the Brussels wanted to pass new laws only fully known by a handful of unelected officials. IMO, the EU dovetails nicely with the NWO.
At my point, polish plumbers and kebabs are not EU but USA agenda. The only difference for Brits this agenda will be pushed directly from Washington and not via Brussels proxy now. Just a view outside of fight.
Do you not think that the USadmin has already been calling the shots in the EU? They are the largest bribers on the planet. Soros, their toxic monkey, has been allowed to stomp his jackboots over every social platform in the region.
Remember the GMO ban? That didn’t last long as the EU unelected officials are already reconsidering it. The ban doesn’t need any reconsideration, it should stand. The French people are now experiencing the pitfalls of EU membership.
The British people now have one less tier of gov’t to fight. Our beef will be with our own gov’t without having to go via Brussels first. We also have opportunity to do what is best for Britain without having to worry over EU diktats.
Brexit isn’t a disaster, it’s an opportunity. One this gov’t will use to the benefit of all its people otherwise another gov’t will be chosen for the task.
[sarcasm on] Oh you ignorant Brit! You have to call it right! Not bribes but lobbyism! You have to be hardly lectured about equity and tolerance! [sarcasm off]
Brexit is not disaster neither opportunity at the moment. All depends on the next steps your elites will make. Who knows? There is a saying in Russia: it’s better to be the first rat than the last captain. Maybe it’s your case.
A nation of shopkeepers, thats a cute euphemistic framing of the British Empire. But blessed are you my friend. Brexit is a gift for every european.
Britain now has the Coronavirus so they are as fucked as everyone else! When it takes hold, no-one will care about Brexit!
My dear Ed, like SARS and MERS, the coronavirus is no cause for concern, the mortality rate is below 2% and thus below the rate of an ordinary influenza.
You are a dummy, influenza doesn’t kill 2% of people, there would be millions dead. Also coronavirus can mutate very easily , as it is a single strand RNA virus which assembles and reassembles an uncountable number of times per host, it has already met certain pandemic milestones like, ability to transmit human to human, air drop transmission, ability to infect persons prior to showing symptoms. basically, you are a dummy, so dont comment on this.
We are talking about the mortality rate, the 2% refers only to previously detected cases of the virus.
Either you didn’t read my article correctly, or you didn’t understand it. In either case I will gladly return your kind initial words to you.
You are obviously some sort of a retarded person not trained, educated, or read in anything related to science. 2% mortality rate is huge. The flu has a mortality rate of something like less than .1%. There is also the matter of easy genetic drift and shift for this type of a virus. I read your post. You are using words and concepts incorrectly, probably because you are talking out of your ass. run along.
Each year about 650.000 die because of the influenza.
I am not here to explain anything to you my friend, and I especially wont take critic by someone who seems to know nothing about using decent language.
I think your confusion is about the word rate. You should look it up. bugger off.
You are right, I meant letality rate.
edit: or case mortality rate.
I admire your optimism but it appears the situation only seems to be getting worse as it’s spreading rapidly and causing many deaths on a daily basis. The mortality rate could change and go up. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Sure, we will see.
I’m so glad this is finally happening. Change and progress are awfully slow comrades, with the withdrawal of our friends from Britain, the long-awaited disintegration of the European Union has finally begun. There will still be many tears to be shed.
Nigel Farage expressed perfectly yesterday in the European Parliament: “We love Europe, but we hate the EU“.
Die Brüsseler Union muss untergehen und mit ihr die Dritte Republik.
Time for Scotland to leave the UK
Scots had their chance and blew it, caved in to the British ruling classes. Just imagine how Scotland would be sitting pretty over the last 3 years, raking in oil and gas royalties and fishing exports ! , and laughing at the Westminster rabble. Too late now, you’re out of EU.
The question shoild not center on harm to Great.Britain but the harm that will happen in the already crumbling economies of remaining EU nations.
Any threat to Germany, Netherlands or French nations economies due to EU Board could well see those nations depart.
The anti Macron within France is directly tied to not liking the EU, as they see Macron as but an elite member that puts EU needs over those of France.
Germany stands the most to gain by seperation from EU, of which EU cannot exist without, and leaning towards a.future not westward but North and East with Russia and China economies.
Germans are wondering why their industry and works should support Greece, Italy and Spain’s sputtering economies, all outflow no incoming advantages.
British coinage still reins in over 10 of its old Commonwealth nations and the “City of Londons” financials in Caribean hides and handles hundreds of billions of Euro nations wealthiest personalities, politicos and Corporate cash transactions.
US Northern neighbors economy is worth taking a look at as to who actually owns and controls its economic engines and land mass, it is not Canadians, but British Crown and connections to it.
To whom do all off Canada’s First Nations look towards, remember they were given Northern Territories and rights of minerals forestry and oils, they look to their Queen Mother as their protector.
We oft hear of those terrible balance of trade balances of Japan, S. Korea and China, when Great Briains trade imbalance with US is almost as large as China’s and more if true Canadian trade is entered.
Throw in Austrailia and theirs is larger tha.n S. Korea added to by around more than 15% of Japans.
The inflow to Great Britain from its foreign holdings ot he of Sovereign and Industrials, nations EU not only needs but has to trade with in order to exist.
Where is the Gold Trade of Sovereign Nations that are increasing their gold reserves located; in London England.
A vast shift of worlds economic system is underway, one that with a Combined Great Britain’s Pound Sterling joining with US Petro Dollar, also shifts worlds geopolitical power away from Europes, EU, participation.
As to what advantage the citizens of Great Britain will gain, it will not trickle down to them , and only help their social welfare, and central planned economic systems remain in place.
What will soon come is a closer tie Between Great Britain and its 10 lacky nations joining US military Industrial and its’ military build up.
I won’t go into every point. Since you draw a pretty wide circle.
Your reasoning is based in part on false premise.
Firstly, it must be pointed out that there is another link within the EU, the common currency area. This includes all states except Sweden, Denmark, UK, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia. Germany benefits, among other things, from the fact that the members cannot devalue their currency and wages in the competitive market. Leading German economic critics describe this situation as the export of unemployment.
The idea that Germany could leave the EU because of its own interests sounds logical, but does not correspond to the anti-national spirit of the governing individuals in Berlin. They conceal states of emergency, they lie and don’t care about their voters/citizens, Angela Merkel speaks without saying anything, her policy is called “without alternative” by her, yet there will never be a revolution here in Germany, that’s unfortunately how Germany is.
They submit their foreign policy completely to the will of Washington.
Germany is lost, it must first be crushed against the wall so that there is a dawn here.
Macron no longer has high approval ratings, but the French were also disappointed by their last two heads of state. France can only be saved if the Rassemblement National and their niece win. But the citizen protests against Macron are not united, they range from right to left.
Europe has no geopolitical power, individual states have a certain weight, if Great Britain now liberates itself, France will be the only one left.
If at some point the US debt bubble does burst, the world economy will follow, and so will China.
Well it’s a start, but leaving the EU is just the beginning. A lot of work left to rid Britain of globalist scumbag influences.
After 3-1/2 years of tortuous negotiations, endless “deal-no-deal” waffling, deliberately dragging out talks for as long as possible, untold time. effort, public resources wasted for nothing, what has or will change ? Answer: Almost nothing – Britain will continue to trade/interact with EU and vice versa. No need to impose import/export tariffs or restrictions. Are Norway, Canada, US, Brazil, Australia etc.. members of EU ? No but no problem trading with EU or Britain. Has the sky fallen in ? No. Have there been overnight critical shortages of ANY products in shops ? No . All the hype of “economic armageddon” just hype. Get over it whether “Leavers”or “Remainers”. No big deal – hopefully less hysteria in MSM now things calm down.
Our banks, after threatening to leave the country, have decided to stay in Blighty. Still, one cannot have everything.