The BBC is only now allowing us to know that the real problem with the Brexit negotiations and the establishment of a single, strong, compelling and assertive policy for Brexit is the stay-behind Remainders in the Cabinet who do all they can to disrupt and sabotage the negotiations. The BBC narrative had always been about ‘disruptive’ Leavers, Boris in particular, who was targeted viciously by the BBC for every comment he made. Boris would write something in the newsapers about the direction he thought Brexit should take and this was a ‘stab in the back’, a ‘betrayal’, for May and the Government. Remainers like Hammond and Rudd could do the same and be praised for their interventions…apparently bringing common sense and a dose of reality to the issues. Never mind that they were actually trying to hijack Brexit and to water down, if not totally thwart it, by trying to soften the terms of Brexit to such an extent that it was Brexit in name only, BINO, or maybe more appropriately Beano. The BBC barely mentioned these interventions and certainly didn’t protray them as betrayals and attempts to overturn Government policy, as they were, and as they did with Boris. Just a week ago when Hammond insisted we were heading for a minimalist Brexit whilst May was away in Davos the BBC still refused to acknowledge that he was doing anything controversial or disruptive.
Remember Government policy was…
Theresa May’s first government was committed to a hard Brexit, meaning one that prioritised sovereignty at the expense of close economic ties. She said that she would exclude the European Court of Justice (ECJ) from post-Brexit Britain; she implied that she wanted the number of EU immigrants to fall significantly; and she argued for Britain to leave both the customs union and the single market.
How much of that exists now in reality as the siren voices for single market membership by the backdoor, remaining in the Custom’s Union, staying under the ECJ and allowing the flood of immigrants to continue by other means gain the ascendancy?
Only now as loud noises about May’s leadership are being heard does the BBC start to give us any inkling that Hammond and fellow travellers are the ‘opposition’ and are deliberately seeking to soften Brexit. The BBC obviously thinks May is on her way out at any moment and is positioning Hammond as the leader-in-waiting who will come to the Remainers’ rescue. Charles Grant notes May is Brexit’s best hope…and hence why the BBC wants to encourage the narrative that she is wounded beyond recovery and everyone is out to get her….and she must go…a narrative they have pushed for over a year…
May persists in saying that nothing needs to change. Many eurosceptic Conservative MPs are backing her as their best hope of achieving the hard Brexit they desire.
Guido tells us that the FT ran a story about secret attempts to keep us in the EU’s clutches…
“Theresa May’s Brexit advisers” are “secretly considering” keeping us in a customs union with the EU has got members of the European Research Group of Tory MPs kicking off.
The BBC ignores that corroborating evidence that backs the thrust of JRM’s claims and it is now trying to damp down JRM’s rather unsurprising and credible accusations that Hammond is leading a campaign to undermine Brexit and that the Treasury is concocting misleading assessments that are entirely, and overly, negative about Brexit. Look at this BBC report, it is designed purely to trash JRM’s claims and to back Hammond and Charles Grant, Grant being a man who has let slip the truth about Hammond and the Treasury.
In the Commons on Thursday, Mr Rees-Mogg asked Brexit minister Steve Baker to confirm whether he had heard that officials were deliberately trying to influence policy in favour of staying in the EU customs union.
He attributed the remarks to Charles Grant, the head of the Centre for European Reform.
On Friday, Mr Baker apologised to MPs for saying Mr Rees-Mogg’s account of the remarks was “essentially correct”.
Mr Grant had denied making them and an audio recording emerged where he did not say what was attributed to him.
Trouble is the recording did essentially back the thrust of JRM’s claims and Grant’s own words in several articles made clear that he did think the Treasury and ‘officials’ were seeking to water down Brexit and shape it in their interests. The BBC makes no attempt to examine what he said and no attempt to assess whether the reality matches JRM’s claims…to do so would of course undermine the BBC’s narrative about an entirely blameless and neutral Hammond and Civil Service.
Grant admits in the recording two things…that Remain MPs will stymie Brexit by trying to keep us in the Custom’s Union and that the Treasury is working along those lines…
It is not certain we’ll leave the Customs Union for two reasons.
“Firstly I’m not sure there’s a majority in Parliament for that. The Labour Party is now in favour of staying in a customs union with the EU, you just need a fairly small number of Tory rebels and we stay in the Customs Union.
“Secondly, the Treasury is determined to stay in the Customs Union. In private, Treasury officials say that we know we’re going to stay in it during the transition and hope that when we’re in the transition, people will understand that the economic costs of leaving are rather high.
Not sure how the BBC can claim Grant does not say that.
Note he also says…
And there is [sic] unpublished papers sitting in the Treasury that certain people are trying to get hold of under FOI requests showing that the economic costs of leaving the Single Market and Customs Union are greater than the benefits of doing trade deals with any other country in the world.”
No coincidence we get the leaked Treasury documents a few days ago that made doom-laden claims about the economy under Brexit…based upon an assessment of what the economy would look like in 15 years…LOL. They can’t get it right for months never mind years.
In July last year the Guardian told us the Treasury was forcing the issue towards a Brexit designed to please and enrich the Fatcats of Business…
Growing Treasury influence [is] helping force ministers to choose between prioritising economic interests or sovereignty…Internally, the influence of Treasury mandarins is said to be the decisive factor in sweeping away the pretence of a “cake and eat it” option.
Grant in the same article is quoted saying…
“The coalition of forces pushing for a softer Brexit is considerable,” Grant said. “The Treasury, long an advocate of retaining close economic ties to the EU, is newly emboldened.”
Pretty clear…the Treasury is looking for a Brexit that completely ignores the referendum result and the ‘Will of the People’.
Here he is in his own article…
Britain prepares for a softer Brexit
Just a handful of pro-EU Conservative MPs could defeat the government, if they joined forces with the opposition, most of which wants a softer Brexit.
The coalition of forces pushing for a softer Brexit is considerable. Business lobbies note that they have more access to senior figures in the government than they did before the election, and they are exploiting that opportunity to push for a rethink. The Treasury, long an advocate of retaining close economic ties to the EU, is newly emboldened. Before the election, Chancellor Philip Hammond was expecting the sack, but the weakness of the prime minister means that he is now unsackable, and he is making a strong case for a business-friendly Brexit.
Access to EU labour is probably the number one concern of businesses in the UK; the Treasury, representing their views, may well win much of the argument.
Indeed here’s the Guardian admitting Hammond is lobbying for Big Business…hilariously telling us ‘The people want a sensible Brexit’…as if he is concerned at all what ‘the people’ think…..
Chancellor welcomes business leaders’ call for indefinite delay to leaving single market as Liam Fox appears to challenge his stance
Note this though, and contrast it with the rhetoric today about the single market and custom’s union…
He said he did not believe it would be “legally or politically possible” to remain in the single market or customs union after Brexit – as that would limit the UK’s ability to control immigration or make trade deals.
How times change…Hammond is now trying to steer us into accepting both by whatever devious means he can invent to keep us in them, Brexit by name only.
It is astounding that both the BBC and Labour are onboard for this hijacking of Brexit by Big Business. They have campaigned relentlessly against Big Business and Capitalism and yet put all that aside when it comes to the EU and staying in. Suddenly the interests of Big Business come first, the people, the environment and the anti-commercialism, anti-Capitalism ‘Occupy’ narrative, get shelved as they clearly now think staying in the EU is the greater good and that everything else can be sacrificed for that.
I’ve said before that in an ideal world May would resign / be sacked and a brexit Cabinet be formed . Whether it could either survivd the screams for a general election or beat the pop star Corbyn is another matter .
Sadly the tories are indulging themselves in internal debate whilst the arch chancer Corbyn continues to be everyrhing and nothing in the classic Marxist subversion of democracy. Where are the labour voices who voted ukip and switched to labour come election with the referendum in the bag , believing after 45 years of public opposition to the EU Corbyn would see through on his promises. No ,we hear nothing from labour and the BBC continues to peddle its own eletist monopolistic fascist view. Tories shut up and deliver brexit then you have 3 years to fight back against the much bigger threat of Marxism within labour. Labour brexiteers stand up now or you will never be heard. Finally on a brighter note when you need an antidote to the BBC ,s propoganda listen to talk radio in the morning where they actually have a debate not 5 vs 1 as per beebs question tine, any questions or any answers all hideous travesties tapped off by every comedy show they broadcast . Agh
The result of the referendum was unequivocal – we leave the EU – no subsidiary questions about ‘would you prefer a hard or soft Brexit’ – and an equally unequivocal commitment by the government to ‘implement what you decide’.
The relentless guerilla warfare since undertaken by the Remoaners, especially those in a Parliament which signed up to the referendum and agreed the two simple choices offered to the electorate, has been the biggest and most breathtaking anti-democratic movement the country has ever seen.
Our democracy may not quite be dead yet but it is without doubt in cardiac arrest and desperately in need of someone who can apply the defibrillator.
I can see the quandary that May finds herself in as there is no doubt that the EU supporting traitor Tory MP’s will vote with the opposition in an attempt to bring her and the Tory government down should the PM lean toward the Brexiteers (ie – what the country actually voted for).
My advice – sack Hammond and make JRM Chancellor and then issue a list of ‘requirements’ to the EU to allow them to continue to flog their goods to our nation.
She will be attacked and ostracised by all the usual suspects (BBC/MSM/ Tory wanker rebels/Chancer Corbyn and the EU mafia. So what! She will restore pride in the majority of the voting public because she knows what we voted for. And – she will create her very own historical footnote to join the pantheon of British hero’s.
It is what the majority voted for.
This needs to be brought to a head! The war of attrition currently going on will end with our vote to leave being diluted until it ceases to exist. It’s all or nothing time – and if it comes to taking to the streets to defend our democratic right to vote – and having that vote carried through – then so be it.
We are the deplorables .That much is clear. As most of us are not state employees or students or quangocrats it will be necessary to bring maximum pressure to bear. That means trouble.
That also means the state ( the executive) which is clearly in favour of remain will act against the voters. This is a dangerous time. It could have been avoided if the government had carried out the will of the voters speedily and as requested. If the BBC and the Guardian had accepted our vote and shut up . If the prominent remainers in the Tory party had shut up and if it was clear to us that our vote ( agreed by our parliament ) would be honoured.
None of this now applies so we are heading for trouble. The responsibility rests with the government led by Mrs May.
No doubt it will become clear what form our opposition to our betrayal will take.
What is clear is that we will all have to take sides and that means for once actually speak out. The aftermath is not going to be pleasant for any of us. Institutions and vested interests that are seen to be hostile to the general will are going to be discredited probably terminally.
Bad government and weak leadership never succeeds.
What is needed right now is a real leader, a tough minded fighter who can face up to their detractors and laugh in their faces – someone like Trump perhaps?
I believe the sane half of the country would back them to the hilt, but they’d need a hide like a rhino, an ego the size of Everest, and a will of steel.
Far from draining any swamp, May is floundering in the mire and sinking fast.
Sadly, I think Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are otherwise engaged.
Open letter to Treezer.
Dear Prime Minister May
You have always wanted to do the right thing but always have been held back by your fear of failure and your awkwardness in your presentational style. You are concerned at having your so so legacy to date crumble to dust by choosing the wrong side or taking the wrong decision.
THEN DON’T CHOOSE.
You all (ALL MP’s) gave the voting public the choice to make. We made it for you. All you need to do is fulfil the promise you made to carry out our wishes. This is on us if it goes tit’s up. But – imagine your legacy when you get the undoubted support of the sensible patriotic majority of the voting public in this country in carrying out the result of the referendum – as voted for. Your star will never have been or will be as bright and you will have the eternal gratitude and respect of not only those who voted leave – but a large number of remain voters as well. Courage and grit are high value currency no matter what your political persuasion.
Personally, the idea of a ‘RUDDerless’ Government has some appeal.
‘HAMMONDless’ has a similar attraction.
The Treasury has yet to explain how leaving the EU/Customs Union would make us worse off by 8% of GDP every year. Leaving the EU and continuing to sell the same goods to the EU would cost us £b billion a year (0.25% of GDP). The simple fact is that in order to avoid that 0.25% of GDP cost we are currently paying the EU 1% of GDP as a membership fee (and getting 0.5% back in rebates and grants). That still leaves us better off out, and even more so when we are able to buy goods at world prices rather than the tariff protected prices we would have to pay in the EU.
What people seem to forget is the fact that prior to 1973 we traded with the Commonwealth, and also the rest of the world…. We once had the biggest TRADING empire in the world… In fact had we not on two occasions found ourselves dragged into two world wars, we would still be a very rich country indeed, as we were the only European country who actually paid off the massive debts incurred fighting two wars which we had no choice but to become embroiled in.. France, Germany and Italy did not have to pay their debts and we actually helped rebuild these countries economies and infrastructure afterwards, add to that the heavy costs of securing post war borders during the cold war era the total costs of the last two world wars it is fair to state that without our involvement our place in the modern global markets would be very different…
Write to your MP and state this simple fact…
Currently the EU and its bureaucrats are responsible for much of our nations laws, rules, and trading…. They even involve themselves in our internal affairs via the ECHR and overrule or impose their will on us. Ask your MP if they`re a REMAINER … If they are then ask them why they are they at Westminster, also whether or not they should be paid for being an MP if they`re unwilling to do their job as representatives who were elected to represent the interests of the electorate.. Finally remind them that it is not their place to decide on whether or not our wishes are to be followed. They are no different to the public in that respect and they too only have ONE vote in elections the same as everyone else… If they don`t wish to do the job they`re meant to do on OUR behalf, then they should resign forthwith and let someone else be a member of parliament instead….
Our days of Empire were not the product of imperialism, we were a trading empire, yes we administered and governed a lot of territories, but not via occupation, we had Naval Power to protect our trade routes but our land forces were quite small and incapable of waging war… That is why the Commonwealth still exists, it is also a testament to our past that these countries still stay members of the Commonwealth…. It is also the reason why they assisted us as allies during the dark times of the last centuries major conflicts.. Caused by German, French and also Italian Nationalism and sabre rattling….