Brexit is fast becoming a disaster

Everyone I know who is entitled to apply for a second passport from an EU country has done so or is in the process of doing so. Irish passports are very popular.

Kali2 I think that now the UK is out of the EU people could apply for dual nationality which wasn't possible whilst we were still members. It would be a good idea for young people in order to ensure their freedom of movement.

Many young UK residents in France and other EU are applying for nationality, because they want the option of being EU and have the freedom to travel and go and work in other parts of EU- and also because they are very unhappy about what is happening with Brexit.

Dominic Cummings finally admits what all the well informed voters knew

www.newstatesman.com/politics/2021/07/dominic-cummings-has-admitted-leave-campaign-won-lying-we-should-never-forgive-him

The cost of Brexit so far compared with the budget for "levelling up"

www.theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news/europe-news/brexit-costs-38-times-more-levelling-up-8152576

Oh I know. Nationality is a much more tortuous process isn't it. We thought about it, but our first Cartes de Séjour experience was a bit of a nightmare, so we stuck with residency. The WARP ones were a breeze by comparison.

Mamie

You say that the residency process is similarly difficult for UK citizens in Europe, but that is not entirely true Lin52.
Here in France the process for residency has been simple (especially by French standards where paperwork is notoriously complex). The online application took 15 minutes, the visit to the Préfecture was efficient and pleasant and the cards arrived promptly. Comments on forums report a similar picture across France. My son in Spain had no problems getting his card and I have not heard of major difficulties in other European countries.

But to gain French nationality, which I needed to be secure, took me from the Brexit vote until just before Christmas last year because of the bureaucratic mess up they made over one word.

I’m not sure changing course is on the cards because it’s the EU that is running the show. Any regulations will be EU regulations which would then exclude any third country deals that conficted.
Are we really going to reinstate freedom of movement and rejoin the EU VAT system, maybe a Labour government would but not much hope of that.

"Many people and communities are really struggling from the dual impact of this hard Brexit and the Covid crisis.

Musicians have been unable to tour for over a year, and post-Brexit rules could drive many out of the profession for good. Many EU citizens who have made the UK their home, started families here, and given so much to our country – like those on the frontline of the NHS – face the prospect of deportation. Students, whose best years have been stuck inside, are unable to learn, travel, and expand their horizons as they once were.

Two weeks ago, we wrote to the Prime Minister to plead urgent action. We shared the stories of people affected. We asked the government to take seriously the damage their hard Brexit dogma is inflicting and to reduce some of the unnecessary hardship created by their deal[1].

In his response, Lord Frost not only refused to consider the sensible and pragmatic solutions that I and my fellow signatories suggested. He boasted that "people were waking up to the opportunities of leaving the EU"[2]! That's not what the farmers, fishers, teachers, and community leaders would say. It’s not what the people of Northern Ireland would say either.

The toxic cocktail of complacency and delusion we find in his letter is characteristic of this government. But their lies won’t stick forever. Brexit isn’t working, and over time it is becoming increasingly obvious that the government will have to change course, to protect peace and our economic interests. "

The European Movement

www.europeanmovement.co.uk/still_european_2021/?amount=5&utm_campaign=frost_letter_supporters&utm_medium=email&utm_source=euromove

80% of UK businesses say brexit will cause long term damage to the UK

inews.co.uk/news/business/business-brexit-eu-long-term-negative-uk-economy-blick-rothenberg-poll-1097920/amp#amp_tf=From%20%251%24s&aoh=16261144110358&csi=0&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com

"It is important to deconstruct the false arguments made by Brexiteers. Yet, the really shocking thing is that in Brexitland a loss of 7,500 jobs and the move of £900bn in bank assets out of the country is considered good news, because it is not as bad as some – arguably not without political motives – said it might be.

We are hence debating the size of the self-inflicted wound
rather than who wounded us in the first place.

Indeed, it is not clear why the benchmark for judging whether Brexit is a success or a disaster should be the Remainers’ predictions about how bad it could get, rather than the many promises Brexiteers have been quietly dropped, abandoned, or turned out to be wrong at various stages of the process. Had Brexit really been an incontestably ‘good thing’ as promised, of course Brexiteers would not have to use this type of discursive strategies.

Yet, in Brexitland the onus has been reversed so that now Remainers were wrong because things are not as bad as they thought they would be. Worse still, that assessment is made a mere 100 days after Brexit, based on one single data point (‘See, exports bounced back in February!’), on exceedingly low expectations (‘See, only 7500 jobs were lost in the City!’), or completely neglect any realistic timeline within which some of Brexits’ worst consequences might materialise (‘See, Scotland is still part of the UK!’).

The reversal of the onus allows Brexiteers to celebrate a monthly loss of around £1.7bn of exports, a 5% decline in trade, or the loss of 7,5000 jobs like a victory."

Gerhard Schnyder

brexitactually.quora.com/?__nsrc__=4&__snid3__=23613201987

"bumps along the road to brexit "

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000xpcm/panorama-brexit-six-months-on

Having just returned this week from a few days away in a luxury hotel (as featured on TV in the most luxurious hotels in the world) the staff were definitely international, sommelier’s from Sicily and Latvia, Restaurant Managers from France and U.K., waiting/bar staff U.K., Spain, Italy, Poland. These are just the nationalities we observed/came in contact with. Maybe Ms Polizzi should pay the going rate or ask for some advice?

Far to soon Hetty, but can you name one positive gain, maybe we can make up for some of the losses - someday .

It's far too soon to judge the effects of Brexit - oh, and impossible to disentangle them from the devastating economic impact (and major changes) of a terrible world pandemic - yet still some folk will try!

Dinahmo

Another Brexit casualty. Alex Polizzi is unable to recruit staff for her hotel and she is having to serve behind the bar. Apparently she voted to Leave but didn't think it would be this bad. If you don't know who she is - she's The Hotel Inspector on tv and the granddaughter of Lord Forte. If someone of her background and education (St Catherine's, Oxford) didn't think how Brexit could be such a disaster what hope was there for the less well educated?

Grandaddy Rocco is a a prominent Tory supporter and despite his depleted means these days still supports the cause, poor Alex having to work for a living.
Regarding Brexit, you don’t have to have a privileged education to make the right judgment, in any negotiation or power struggle you pick the winner, it was pretty clear to me that 26 to 1 was an odds on winner and we were going to get nowt.

Exactly Mamie. I specifically chose things which do not look as if they come from Marks or Next etc. They all have a little French flavour. As it happens I have already sent money and a mobile was purchased and also DD has shopped for me but these are things I chose as I was out and about.

"Send vouchers or a cheque in future so that your DGD can choose what she wants?Much easier and better all round in any case".
Actually lemongrove I can't agree with you there. A gift carefully and personally chosen for a new great-grandchild is an expression of love isn't it?

When is Boris Johnson ever going to be held accountable for his barefaced lies????

brexitactually.quora.com/?__ni__=0&__nsrc__=4&__snid3__=23290966847&__tiids__=31912428

Welshwife Before 1 January 2021 we did not have to complete the customs declarations to send parcels from France to the UK. I agree it's difficult navigating the La Poste website to find and complete the forms - French bureaucracy.

Another Brexit casualty. Alex Polizzi is unable to recruit staff for her hotel and she is having to serve behind the bar. Apparently she voted to Leave but didn't think it would be this bad. If you don't know who she is - she's The Hotel Inspector on tv and the granddaughter of Lord Forte. If someone of her background and education (St Catherine's, Oxford) didn't think how Brexit could be such a disaster what hope was there for the less well educated?

It's not French bureaucracy- it is the British choice to not be part of a group that has indeed got rid of bureaucracy between themselves - yep the Customs Union. A choice the British made, a bad one btw.

There will still be the right for peaceful protest in the UK btw.

Welshwife

I see the bill which basically curbs the right to peaceful protest has gone through the Commons.

Just another little benefit of leaving the EU — this of course will only affect those of us living in France but maybe the whole EU. I bought some outfits for my DGD’s young baby. I wrapped them up etc and took them to the local PO and the woman on duty sort of ran me out of the place telling me to go to the website and fill in the papers and take them back to her. Up till now they have had any necessary forms in the PO. So I looked and not only were there pages and pages to fill in but the cost was extortionate.
I looked around and finally decided to send by UPS and filled in their now simplified forms stating it was a gift worth less than €70 and weighing less than 1kg. - I gave them the exact weight/size and value. I checked the form several times and eventually printed out the label which does state it is a gift etc and the value. They have sent to DGD to say it is held up waiting for more info from the sender but not asked me for the info! A French woman rang me this morning and said she would send an email which has not arrived. I have now spent several hours perusing their site and eventually finding a section which allowed me to email them and now wait to see what they want.
Such joy spending the afternoon doing this.!!

Ah well, that’s French bureaucracy for you !
Send vouchers or a cheque in future so that your DGD can choose what she wants?Much easier and better all round in any case.

ooops 47.5 billion