All over Europe roads are blocked by tractors. The pictures tell you a lot. These are not rusty old John Deeres from the 1970s with seats padded with old fertilizer sacks tied on with baling twine; these tractors are state of the art, climate conditioned, computer controlled, GPS driven dream machines with air-sprung cabs, surround sound entertainment and tyres that cost as much each as rental on a Docklands apartment. A basic New Holland T6 will set a farmer back about £54k. Plus VAT. What are all these farmers complaining about? The prospect of falling incomes, of course, as restrictions on nitrates, pesticides and irresponsible herbicide use start to bite. They, like every other pressure group, want more money 'from the EU' which disguises that it is taxpayers who must pay it.
Personally, I think we are now seeing the reverse Europe play. Just as UK governments have for years blamed every unpopular and gold-plated measure from Whitehall on the EU, I think the EU will now blame every unpopular budget move on Brexit. Neonicotinoid ban in Rhine-Westphalia? Brexit. Cancelled road tunnel in the Vosges? Brexit.
David Frost, our chief negotiator, has done no harm in making a reasoned, calm response to the EU's hysteria in a speech at Brussels University. He already has his full brief – which was given to Parliament in a written statement by the PM on 3rd February, quietly released on the day of the Greenwich speech. There are just four major heads -
1. Free Trade Agreement (12 sub heads)
2. Agreement on Fisheries
3. Agreement on Internal Security Cooperation
4. Other areas of Cooperation
We'll give them another document next week, but we can be quietly confident. We've got them on the back foot, and we must not rise to their increasingly hysterical public demands – they're not meant for us.
20 comments:
We will be better off out. I went to sainsbury's yesterday and there were plenty toilet rolls. I can wipe my bum to my hearts content...unlike in the socialist paradise of Venezuela which jpm would have us copy.
Let these tin pot dictators shout all they like. It's the beginning of the end for them and they know it.
Jaded
I must admit, I liked the Government's statement, reported yesterday, that alignment with EU regulations would destroy the point of Brexit, so wouldn't be happening, and there will be no extension of the year's transition period.
The Violet Elizabeth Botts over the channel are going to scweam and scweam and scweam until they make themselves sick.
2 points:
Macron shouting at us pretending he's negotiating for the EU; he's failed France so his only hope is to find legitimacy as Mssr. Europe.
The EU budget negotiations are in full flow, there is no sign that the EU plans to reduce its spending following loss of UK cash, so will Germany pay SO much more? Methinks the recession in Germany will tighten purse-strings and France will get a nasty surprise.
The scenes in France are nothing whatsoever, compared to what happened in Toxteth and across the country under Thatcher, let alone in Canary Wharfe and the Arndale centre thanks to our then policy in Ireland.
Some people have short memories.
The disorder in France is subsiding, and questions are now rightly being asked about the police conduct there.
Macron has been forced into substantial pension concessions. It's a pity that people here were rather more supine on that point.
PS, I'd just draw attention to the heading "we love the nations of Europe" on this blog.
I can't find much evidence of that, TBH.
Most of the commenters here apparently wish them jointly and severally every kind of ruin conceivable.
It seems that Leave voters are just as much liars as the campaigners were.
The EU can of course have regulatory alignment and a level playing field- all it has to do is adopt British law. They won't of course because it would upset the special interests in whose behalf EU law is made.
And whilst we have no fishing fleet we might as well let them fish our waters, for the right price of course.
Yes it would be folly to tie ourselves to EU standards when that organisation has some pretty poor standards, which our government have already stated that they don't approve... Live animal shipments? Stun fishing? Nasty little deals with African potentates leading to many ambitious and peckish Africans feeling the need to come here. The list goes on...
We should make sure that the EU farmers and manufacturers can meet our high standards, however, I doubt whether our government has the spine when it comes to it.
@JPM
From Wkipedia 1981 Toxteth Article:
In all, the rioting lasted nine days during which 468 police officers were injured, 500 people were arrested, and at least 70 buildings were damaged so severely by fire that they had to be demolished. Around 100 cars were destroyed, and there was extensive looting of shops.
From The Local ( https://www.thelocal.fr/20190129/france-in-numbers-police-violence-during-yellow-vest-protests ) - a year ago -:
According to government figures, 1,700 people have been injured and 1,000 policemen or gendarmes have been hurt in the 11 weeks of conflict.
Out of those injured, 100 have been seriously hurt and 11 people have now died.
And the Yellow Vest protests continue...
So I guess remembering Toxteth is not quite the slam dunk you imply.
"Most of the commenters here apparently wish them jointly and severally every kind of ruin conceivable."
Mainly because we've had 3 years and counting of them demanding we bow our knees to them and grovel. Its hardly behaviour designed to engender a great deal of love.......
I think it’s important to distinguish between the nations of Europe and the increasingly imperial-minded regime in Brussels. I suspect these differences will become much more pronounced over the next 10 months as Mr Frost's words and actions sink in.
The EU certainly believe that “attack is the best form of defence” because their request for a “level playing field” is laughable given that our standards are in many cases far better than those of the EU, as was pointed out by BJ in his last speech.
Perhaps the UK should ask the EU to stop many of its countries undercutting the UK with minimum wages levels a fraction of those of the UK and not allowing other EU countries to harvest corporation tax with especially designed low rates ?
With regard to state aid, the Germans have been doing this for years with impunity through the use of tricks such as paying their companies for “reports”, “research” etc..
It wasn't just Toxteth was it though? It was across the cities.
Then there were the Poll Tax riots, and the miners' strike.
You don't mention the mainland bombing campaign of the IRA either.
Canary Wharf cost a billion alone.
The GJ are pretty normal for France.
And you "love" neither it nor Germany, nor their peoples it seems to me.
Fuck off JPM. All our 'problems' were single-issue, self-inflicted.
The French problem is the EU.
The German problem is the EU.
The Italian problem is EU.
The Greeks problem is the EU etc etc etc.
The UK problem was the EU too and like all the other issues we've put up with, we've resolved it.
The French haven't, the Germans haven't, the Italians haven't etc etc.
What's the common denominator?
Dave_G Please don't feed the trolls it only encourages them.
JPM said @ 08:19
'Most of the commenters here apparently wish them jointly and severally every kind of ruin conceivable.'
No mate. We don't owe them a living that's for sure - not after the blood and treasure it took liberating them from Nazi tyranny. That said even today there is this knowledge on the Continent that we 'little Englanders' stand ready to prevent the ruination of Europe. Yes we are Europeans, but not in the sense you and others like you have in mind. In the forces I worked with Norwegians, Dutch, Danes, Belgians, Germans, French and even Luxembourgers, and we're all of a like but I'll leave that for you ponder how, or why that should be.
Steve
I didn't know that the European Union set fuel tax levels in or retirement ages in France, or had gone into Iraq, Libya, Syria etc. and caused a refugee crisis for Italy and for Greece by turning them into collapsed states, Dave.
No, the heading at the top of this blog should be "We love Trump's US and wish ruin upon its betters".
But yes, the woes of this country are indeed now self-inflicted.
Does Cheesy ever comment on blogs where virtually everyone agrees with him?
I suspect not, since there can't be that many loonies around, but it would be interesting to know.
Mr Frost is giving us the opening bars of The Rebuffal Gavot to the tune of Same As May. A very very slow and and very very dull dance set to last all summer. Our eyes will bleed with boredom.
Then come Autumn we move on to The Panic Polka to the tune of Surrender My Principles (Johnson & Cummimgs version). A lively dance occasioned by thoughts of Lorries At Dover. Spread-em Boris, it's your 2020 Christmas present.
"These are not rusty old John Deeres from the 1970s with seats padded with old fertilizer sacks tied on with baling twine..."
LOL...great memories although it was David Brown in my case, plus the fertilizer bag was only 'in season' or when really wet, the 50Kg sugar beet paper bags were better but only in the dry! :-)
JPM, it may have escaped you but the French riots have been every weekend for over a year...and the yellow jackets just one front. Almost every other country has suffered although not as much as France. Your willful blindness to do down your own country (or am I presuming that?) is getting boring.
About those higher standards.
New visa conditions come with a lower salary threshold than was previously the case (from 30k down to about 25k).
On qualifications, strike out university degrees and replace with A levels.
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