Brexit watch, round 2

Exactly Badenkate- I mean the Uk went metric 45 years ago- plenty of time to adjust perhaps?

If the UK want to sell to the rest of the world, it will just have to sell in metric measurements.

So who under the age of, let's say 40, has any notion of yards, feet and inches; pounds and ounces; gallons, quarts and pints etc? All the different number bases are a nightmare to teach in school. So don't really think that's going to be too popular apart from those who are still reminiscing (or more likely fantasising) about the 'good old days'. Or maybe we could go back to pounds, shillings and pence as well!

I thought they still could, so long as they also displayed the price and size/volume in metric/decimal.

Just been reading that shops have been getting in touch with the government to ask if they can start selling in imperial again after Brexit.
Anyone think that's a good idea?

Not to mention the billions we owe the EU, how many trade negotiators we will have to employ (ironically from EU states) and also The Good Friday Agreement. There will be big consequences for the peace agreement. Of course no one has a clue how this will pan out.

When they come back from their hols, it's only a couple of weeks ubtil the conference season, so May will get even more goodwill for doing nothing towards Brexit for at least a couple of months.

www.theguardian.com/society/2016/aug/25/nhs-needs-eu-employees-to-avoid-collapse-says-thinktank

From the IPPR.
Will not be able to have any more EU employees because they are not paid enough.

I think you are both right JessM and Jen. We do not know the "walk away" point. For the far right of the Conservative party it will be freedom of movement but that is not true of everyone who voted leave by any means. I have no idea how you negotiate without know that or how you sell this to the country when you have.

I cannot see how any negotiation can be carried out anyway without a vote in parliament.

Saw Daniel Hannan on TV this morning, trying to wriggle out of the migration less than 100,000 position which Brexit says.
That's not why he voted out, he said. Maybe not, but a lot of people did, and that's what they were promised as far back as 2010.

I think that's right Durhamjen - they can't really start negotiating until they start the process formally and they are scared to start the process when so much is uncertain. If they start the process early next year the end point will be just over 12 months off a general election and they will be worried about that, for sure. Cameron/Clegg government passed that act of parliament that makes a snap election difficult (you have to have 2 votes of no confidence in the government, so they would have to vote that they had no confidence in themselves).
But before you start a negotiation process you need to be clear in your (collective, team) head what your aims are, what your range of good/acceptable outcomes looks like, and what your strategy is going to be. Suspect they are a long way off that. Trouble is once they launch into the process they are in a very, very weak position and that does not help if you are trying to negotiate. You also have to analyse what the other team are trying to achieve and in this case one of the aims of the EU must be to make it look like a very painful process for any other country that thinks about leaving.
There's also the Scottish problem, but the massive drop in N Sea oil revenues, announced yesterday will take the wind out of Sturgeon's sails. And the Irish question - how can we possibly "take back control of our borders" when one of them meanders through quiet (and, currently, peaceful) Irish farmland, with all the locals enjoying the freedom to travel to and fro to shop etc.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/aug/20/tory-brexit-negotiators-unpromising-start

Brexit is going to take a lot longer than people think, particularly as nobody in government knows what to do.

Ian Dunt does not like Corbyn, Tegan. That bit was debunked straight away, but Dunt doesn't believe it.

Corbyn said as soon as possible, which is not the same as straight away, and on a par with May saying Brexit means Brexit.

'In contrast, Jeremy Corbyn's camp, who demanded we trigger Article 50 the day after the referendum vote and who can barely contain their glee at Brexit, want to "work with" the result of the referendum'..is that correct??

Anyone who supports Smith and voted Brexit might be disappointed now.

www.politics.co.uk/blogs/2016/08/24/smith-is-one-of-the-only-people-in-labour-talking-sense-on-b

theconversation.com/how-overseas-degrees-could-offer-students-the-best-of-both-worlds-post-brexit-63171

For anyone with students in the sixth form.

Here's an interesting idea - immigration is good for us.

theconversation.com/after-brexit-nationals-could-take-a-lesson-in-integration-from-immigrants-63674

Apologies Daphnedil.Just realised I didn't address you directly with my question regarding your post 15.27.
I have lived and worked all my life in one large town,but having family in the South East,Merseyside, Leeds,Wales and Midlands to name but a few areas I am genuinely interested to know which are the places you would consider negative to all things foreign?

Which places specifically,in your experience, are negative to all things Foreign?It's a genuine question because DD teaches in a rather deprived area of a large city.One of her roles, amongst many is co-ordinating languages in the curriculum and she has commented that the children really engage with, and enjoy the Spanish lessons.A very small minority of the parents are negative to most things on the curriculum, and dreadful at supporting any school events,responding to letters home etc sadly.But the majority get behind the ethos of the school,languages and all things 'foreign'.Including the annual Cultural evening which she has organised for the last 4 years.

You'll have to wash it yourself!

Unfortunately, Theresa May has given no such assurance. Phil ip Hammond has repeatedly stated that EU nationals already in the UK will not automatically have the right to stay permanently.

"The British government could only ensure the protection of European citizens living in the UK if British citizens were afforded the same rights in other EU states, Theresa May has said in the presence of the Italian prime minister.

The British prime minister’s remarks came during a press conference with Matteo Renzi, who said that the UK’s vote to leave the European Union represented a blow to 600,000 Italians living there.

Asked by a journalist whether the rights of Italians living in the UK could be protected, May said: “I want to be able to guarantee their rights in the UK. I expect to be able to do that and I intend to be able to do that, to guarantee their rights. The only circumstances in which that would not be possible would be if the rights of British citizens living in other EU member states were not guaranteed.”

www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jul/27/theresa-may-eu-citizens-rights-britons-abroad

In other words, she has NOT given a guarantee. They will remain a 'bargaining chip' until there have been negotiations. Any other interpretation is wishful thinking.

£35k a year! Who's going to wash our cars!

Cameron said as much before he resigned, and think it was repeated by Theresa May ( about all EU nationals here before June 23rd) thankfully, my dreams are much more exciting than that dd and quite unrepeatable for Gransnet ( it must be the tablets mingling with the gin and tonics,)

No comment!

My thoughts exactly Roseared in those last two posts.

Where has it been made clear that nobody will be sent home? I'm not talking about your dreams, roses. Who has made any firm commitment?