BPX078: Brexit - A Decade On

[Lebowski]

The landslide win always felt like it was down to the massive slander campaign run from both sides (Labour and the conservatives ). We essentially had a coup in the Labour party that would rather see the party burnt to the ground than be led by Corbyn.

We had papers and a media obsessed with running hit pieces on Corbyn, with papers like the Sun doing 6 pages specials on how bad it would be under Corbyn (sending the uk back to the 1970s), making up links to Terrorism, and running hit pieces about how unpatriotic he was. At the same time we had the media parroting Jonsons get Brexit done and his Oven ready deal bull****,

Its funny how post Brexit things that it would be good to have control over are run by European company's, (rail power Ect) where as things like taking back our borders have completely failed. immigration spiraling out of control and missing the Tory's own targets by about 400,000 is the results they deserved, as european imigration was never a problem pre brexit the majority of immigration came from outside europe.

It feels like if we had gone down the Corbyn route and brought utilities back into public hands we might of been in the same position as a lot of European countries that where able to insulate their citizens from costs that spiraled out of control by imposing profit restrictions. We instead put people in a position of heat or eat while handing over record profits to big energy. We bankrupted smaller providers who where reliant on buying and selling on the open market and pretty much removed any competition from the marketplace.

[wakka]

Yes we successfully secured the freedom to be poor.

I went on a stag to Ibiza last year and unfortunately the villa we were staying in got burgled while we were out. We were a mixed group of Brits and Americans and the Americans got their passports stolen. No word of a lie mine was lying on the bed when I checked my room. The thieves had found it in my bag and then had actively discarded it. Brexit benefit!

[Blobcat]

That's awful and hilarious at the same time.

[Neon Ignition]

The landslide has been one of the ways the hard right side of the Tories have lost their perspective. They adored the scale of win but did, do and will continue to massively mis-read it. It never existed due to Johnson's personal popularity or a love of the party, it was always going to evaporate in the next GE, voters just wanted the subject of Brexit to go away and the Tories were the only ones advertising on that basis. That vanished the second Johnson said 'it's done' and in hindsight, to an extent, it was a good thing COVID happened when it did because it tied the parties hands for two years of their term giving them a lot less time to destroy even more of the country. Johnson and his conveyor belt of cohorts have been a shining example of the 'taking back control' ignoring who actually is in that control.

[Protocol Penguin]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/michael-barnierbrexit-boris-johnson-b2353982.html

“Britain can rejoin at any time” (yeah, I know it won’t be as easy as would be ideal, but it’s not an impossible feat as British politicians and the media would have you believe).

[Neon Ignition]

Yep, but guaranteed even if a genuine attempt ever happened it would get derailed because the UK would want to rejoin on the same terms it was in before as though nothing ever happened.

If I'm being honest, I can picture an eventual scenario where we end up with some sort of agreement that brings us into incredibly close allignment on nearly every area with the EU but I have a feeling that the UK will never officially rejoin it ever again

[Protocol Penguin]

Yep, but guaranteed even if a genuine attempt ever happened it would get derailed because the UK would want to rejoin on the same terms it was in before as though nothing ever happened.

If I'm being honest, I can picture an eventual scenario where we end up with some sort of agreement that brings us into incredibly close allignment on nearly every area with the EU but I have a feeling that the UK will never officially rejoin it ever again

It’s exactly that attitude about the populace that will make it a self-fulfilling prophecy. There’s nothing to say that the UK couldn’t eventually be pragmatic and accept the old preferential deal was gone; given who desperate the UK might eventually be to return, it might not be a relatively big issue.

On the ‘alignment’ issue, the current problem is politicians wanting all the EU benefits without the freedom of movement of labour to keep out the horrible dirty foreigners (the Starmer approach). Which doesn’t wash with the EU. It’s got to involve accepting to be a rule-taker without the rule-maker powers, if we’re talking about return to the single market. Politics will hopefully learn to grow up over the issue in time…

[Neon Ignition]

Barring a major shake up I can't see how that shift would ever come about to make the population pro-rejoin enough to swing it into action. It's a nation that gave the Tories a massive majority simply to 'get it done' rather than reversed. The decline of the Tories now isn't even Brexit related, any rejoining wouldn't come from the Tories - who are now so entrenched in Leave they can't separate it - and that just leaves Labour who I doubt would ever touch it after seeing how it panned out last time. It would need a seismic shift in public favour simply to get to referendum and there'd undoubtedly be one because the whole scenario revolved around 'the will of the people'.

The immigration angle might turn around though, especially if figures post-leave remain so hugely larger than they were in the EU. But it took those against being in the EU four decades to pull off the narrowest of exits and I fully expect that once the cost of living and economic situations of the country improve post-pandemic/post-Russia etc that that alone will kabosh the discussion

[Neon Ignition]

2020 - The Coronavirus Pandemic Begins As Brexit 'Gets Done'
Just as Johnson's Government attempts to pass off finalising a bill on leaving the EU as Brexit being delivered, the pandemic begins in full. Bringing countries around the world to their knees, it becomes the first time in years that the news isn't dominated by Brexit. Did the pandemic provide Johnson with a distraction or did the pandemic cause so much disruption it protected the UK from the full extent of corruption the Tories may have pursued?

[QualityChimp]

I definitely think this period in history will be discussed for decades to come and questions will be asked in school exams about it.

"What were the reasons for the UK to financially collapse, become a 3rd world country and finally a prison island that the President had to be rescued by Snake Plissken from?"

[wakka]

Definitely can see 'What factors led to Brexit?' being a popular GCSE/A-Level history essay question in a few short years. At least, I hope so, and that a clear eyed view is taught.

[Neon Ignition]

[QualityChimp]

Definitely can see 'What factors led to Brexit?' being a popular GCSE/A-Level history essay question in a few short years. At least, I hope so, and that a clear eyed view is taught.

Yeah, I embellished a bit, but yeah that's the bit I was serious about.

[Neon Ignition]

2021 - As the Vaccine Rollout Expands, The Tories Claim a Brexit Victory
With the rollout leading to the third Lockdown being the last, the Tories celebrate the rollout claiming that being outside of the EU had been a benefit in ensuring that the vaccines went first to UK citizens rather than to EU nations as would have been the case if the UK had remained a member. Was this a genuine sign that benefits exist in Brexit?

[Neon Ignition]

2022 - The Pandemic Subsides and the Cost of Living Crisis Emerges
The world moved from one event to the next with public finances being absolutely hammered once again. The impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine caused financial ramifications globally that nations are still dealing with today. Had the Pandemic and Cost of Living Crisis not occurred though, how much do you think Brexit alone would have impacted UK finances?