' If the Irish back-stop is removed, Dan, so checks take place away from border, it may be the withdrawal agreement can be revived. If not, the answer may be Heads of Agreement. A non-binding document of intent dealing with the central issues. That may be enough for Parliament if it includes a tight timescale up to formal agreement.
Well, first, I was not talking literally about German biological DNA, Cologne as you well know! Historically, neither the UK nor Germany want to dominate the world, but I do think Germany want to make Europe in its own image - and some aspects of that image are to be commended - industrially for example, and fiscal and financial management. The cynicism starts to come in, as Sooper said in an earlier post, when you have a German Defence minister parachuted in from nowhere, to the top EU job. Where Greece is encouraged by euro rules to buy German goods, and then hit hard by German banking advisors when they find they can't repay debts. Where the Commission in Brussels is seen, essentially, as a front for Berlin. If there is to be a deal with the UK, and as I say, I'd be gob-smacked if there isn't one, the motivation will come from Berlin. Macron will be told to get in line and will. That is realpolitik.
It was an article with a German europhile in which he made that claim re. DNA. I’ll try to find it later.
I don't understand what deal you think can be done. How can the Irish border issue be resolved by 31st October?
The UK won't put up a hard border. The EU are already looking at a technological solution to the border to protect the Single Market. If the EU offered a time-limited backstop, I'm sure the UK would consider it
You mean when Theresa May and Ollie Robbins were apologising to the EU for leaving, and begging for an extension? Even the EU admit they never took Theresa May's weak claim of "No deal is better than a bad deal", and Robbins's sympathies were all with the EU. The difference between then and now is vast. The EU look at Boris's team and know he's serious
I mean the time the right wing of the Tories decided the agreed deal wasn’t economically damaging enough for their bets against the pound. There’s nothing serious about his bluster. The EU have been remarkably consistent for 3+ years while we’ve come out with endless nonsense rhetoric rather than hold our hands up and just admit Brexit is a ****ing stupid idea the masses were conned into.
Supposing they did offer a time limit, 5 years say. What would Johnson's ERG masters have to say, I wonder? Such fun.
I meant when the then Tory prime minister had a deal agreed but it was knocked back by parliment. The EU never renegotiated any last minute deal. Now we have a bigger clown in charge and you expect then to take him seriously. Ffs
It's not a backstop if it has a time limit. Everyone knows that. Nobody has come up with a solution to this most important issue. But if we just keep believing and have optimism then it might just vanish into thin air!
Those right wing Tories voted in the same way as your Mr Corbyn for a terrible deal negotiated by a Remain prime minister and pro-European advisors