Is this an example of the #FalseNews we've been hearing about? BBC Radio Scotland interviewed Nicola Sturgeon yesterday - and, en masse, the media here picked up on and ran with, the interviewer's claim that she said "Soft Brexit takes indyref off the table". Nothing like a lie to start the day, as shown 9:40 or so in... http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04nkd8m
What we have seen in recent times is the heavweight news media also falling for sensationalism and half truths.... I used to trust the BBC news ... no longer sadly...
The whole of the UK will leave the single market and the customs union. The scots realise they are being well subsidised so will not leave the UK to flounder in isolation.
But the UK should leave the EU to flounder in isolation? You're so stupid you even manage to contradict yourself with your constant ****ty Tory soundbites
Can you manage to debate without insults, I look forward to the 'insult police' on here commenting on your remark. The UK's export trade is steadily increasing in the non EU market and decreasing to the struggling EU. We have free trade deals lined up with many countries, although it is perfectly feasible to trade without FT deals. Scotland outside of the UK and outside of the EU really would be isolated. It does four times the trade with the rest of the UK as it does with the EU. Scotland would have to have its own worthless currency without relying on the crutch of Whitehall. There is no way the Scots would be daft enough to vote for that.
Can you answer me 3 questions SH. The first - You claim to have been a business man, so you will know that it is easier to hold onto existing customers than to win new ones. Does it make sense, from a business viewpoint, to alienate your best customers in the hope of replacing them at some stage ? The second question - You claim to want to increase sovereignty. Yet every new trade deal involves some loss of sovereignty - would the EU. have had any sovereignty left if they had blindly accepted TTIP - yet you appear to propose a similar deal for Britain. What type of sovereignty would be left after the further 'Americanization' of Britain which would follow a free trade agreement with them ? The third question - Britain has failed to effectively control non EU. immigration despite having full control over this. What signs are there that this would be any more successfull when applied to EU. citizens ?
As far as I know nobody is suggesting ceasing trading with European customers. We are leaving the EU, it is for the EU to decide how difficult they want to make trading. Any trade would be negotiated by the UK government of the day. It would be for them to accept terms or not. What we do know is that we are far from having UK control whilst we rely on Brussels.
Any trade will not be decided by only the EU. or the British government but by whether European customers still want to buy British goods. What you have said to them is, in effect, we want your money but we don't want you. Against that background if the same product or service is obtainable (or is made obtainable) from an EU. producer then their preference will lay there.
The same can be said of UK consumers. I'm sure sales of EU goods will be affected once the stroppy part starts. The UK imports more from the EU than we export to them. I expect the majority of UK citizens would be quite happy to exist within a free trade area similar to the old Common Market. The move towards an EU federal state is unpopular in most, if not all, member states. Businesses, especially in the UK, are very flexible. They can seek alternative markets for purchase and sales.
As you say the move towards a federal state has a lot of opposition amongst Europeans - but the way to counter that is to stay in and fight your corner. Give the politicians (in the EU. Parliament) who we elect, the powers to counteract the EU. commission - this can only be done through increased involvement of citizens in shaping 'their Europe'. It is not done through running away, which Britain is doing. It is a well known fact here that the British voted primarily on the issue of European immigration and the result of that vote has seriously damaged Britain's image. Normal Germans and French are now asking the question 'am I welcome there' or, 'am I safe there' - you expect them to go on buying British goods as before ? The percentage of the British GDP which is tied up in exports to the EU. is 3 times higher than the percentage of EU. GDP which is dependent on exports to Britain - ie. we need them more than they need us. In order to counterract this loss you are still talking only about hypothetical markets which do not exist yet.
The UK has decided the best option is to leave a failing system and to freely trade worldwide. Immigration is a huge concern throughout Europe so the UK's attitude is both sensible and entirely understandable. I'm sure consumer buying patterns will change, temporarily or permanently. The UK already has growing non EU markets which very much exist. The Uk is looking to strengthen those markets with free trade deals.
Can we have a full list of insults which are now allowable on these threads without censorship? Where are all the shrinking violets?
For those poor souls desperate for information on Brexit the PM spelt out a few guidelines today. Theresa May has indicated that Britain will leave the Single Market after Brexit and build a "really good, ambitious trade deal" with the EU. Asked repeatedly whether Britain will leave the Single Market, the Prime Minister said that she will not try to "keep bits of membership". Her comments suggest that Britain is prepared to leave the Single Market and the Customs Union and apply for a good deal from outside after Brexit. She also denied suggestions by Sir Ivan Rogers, Britain's former EU ambassador, the the Government's thinking on Brexit is "muddled". Asked if she will prioritise immigration controls over Single Market access, Mrs May said: "We are leaving, we are coming out, we are not going to be a member of the EU any longer. "We will have control of our borders, control of our laws, but we still want the best possible deal for UK companies to trade with and operate within the European Union and also European companies to trade with and operate within the UK. "We mustn't think about this as somehow we're coming out of membership but we want to keep bits of membership. What we must say is what is the right relationship for a United Kingdom that is no longer a member of the European Union. The best possible deal for the UK will also be a good deal for the EU. "I am ambitious for what we can get for the UK in terms of our relationship with the EU because I also think that's going to be good for the EU."
