even as a staunch remainer, i'm no longer convinced a confirmatory vote would resolve anything. i suspect the divisions are probably irreparable now, in our lifetime at least.
I fully agree it's the tail wagging the dog. I'm ardent remain but it's ridiculous that our ability to run our country is infringed by thugs and extremists of both Unionist and Nationalist persuasion. That is, nevertheless, the situation and was before the referendum. It's just that the brexiteers chose to ignore it and then lie through their teeth about it.
1.But remember, it’ll be the easiest deal done in history. 2.There will be no hard border in Ireland. 3.We will make our own laws. 4.We will take back control. 1. Er, not quite 2. Not looking good 3. We always bloody have done and will continue to - at least for well over 99% of laws. 4. Of what? And who are we giving that ‘control’ to? Us remoaners and our project fear eh? They’ll be admitting there’ll be quite dramatic short and medium term financial impact next. Oh wait, they already have... I see Preeti Patel has said she’s to stop all free movement post Brexit and introduce a points based system like Australia. Few points - a) The ‘deal’ they hope to do with the eu will require some or all of the free movement rights to be retained; b) The U.K. has actually had a points based immigration system for non/eu migrants for a decade. It doesn’t work. c) She has made no suggestion whatsoever that the net migration rate would reduce whatsoever (I’m not implying I think it should but I think it is very clear that a great number of people strongly think it should, and voted to leave the eu for that reason in the main) so this is just a useless sound bite. We will likely end up with a crap deal, some kind of enforced border control in Ireland, will have to conform to the eu laws we are running away from just to trade with them and the rest of the world (we might be allowed some chlorinated chicken...), and we will have one of the furthest right governments we’ve had, with more self serving elitist snobs at the top letting working class communities go to the dogs. The very people who secured the exit from the eu will be the ones to suffer it’s consequences the most. Remind me exactly what the gains are from leaving the eu to offset this?
If were only going to let skilled workers into the country who is going to do all the crap jobs that they do now???
Quite right Marlon , clubs applying CIU model rules would require a 2/3's majority of those available to vote for a rule change which is basically what this is. Referenda normally only have a simple majority because they are only deemed to be advisory. Had the government really wished the result to be mandatory then it should have passed a law to change how referenda majorities are dealt with. Simple majorities don't really work for single issue votes, hence the issues we have today.
There’s some weird reading of Irish history on this thread, but then again the posters are, I assume, mainly English so will have learned the ‘truth’ from their history books and unbiased news outlets. From the view that the British State was/is some kind of neutral force in NI keeping extremists apart to ‘we should unite Ireland’. The former view is extraordinary, even looking at events many decades later and the latter isn’t in the gift of the British People or the British Govt. It’s not even in the gift of the Irish people/Govt. It rests with the residents of NI, and although many things in life are unclear I’d bet any money that Ireland is united, by democratic means, long before BFC get a Championship play off place. One of the certainties of Brexit (with or without a deal) was a speeding up of the break up of the UK. Soon it will just be England and the West of England (lets call that Wales if there’s a rugby match on). That’s not something to fear. The UK idea - a great 20 century concept, but not fit for purpose as we move to the middle of the 21. This new arrangement may even force the good people of the North of England to get off the knees and ‘take back control’ from Westminster/London/ the South East, and take more control of their own lives. One can only hope.
We don't....and Leo Varadkar has spent almost two years telling the Irish people that there will be no hard border, unfortunately the EU have informed him late on in the game that they will insist on border protection for the single market. Johnson is trying to find a halfway house deal that is acceptable to the EU and not paint Varadkar any further into his corner. This article from Dan O'Brien in the Irish Independent is interesting. https://www.independent.ie/opinion/...ead-and-the-nodeal-brexit-looms-37729129.html Britain did not swallow the Irish border backstop. The massive rejection by Westminster of the EU Withdrawal Agreement containing the backstop reflects well on none of the participants in the Brexit fiasco. That includes the Irish Government. The 14-month-old backstop sought to ensure that, despite Britain's exit from the EU and its enormous implications, there could never be any change whatsoever to how the Border on this island functions. One of the many reasons Brexit presented a strategic nightmare for Ireland was that it would inevitably change how the two jurisdictions on this island interact. Absolutism in the face of the inevitable is rarely a wise position to take. Demanding of the British that there be absolutely no change to border arrangements was always more likely to bring about the hardest and most damaging form of Brexit than it was to preserve the status quo. Despite this, absolutism on border issues has been the position of the Government since November 2017 when the backstop was put on the Brexit negotiating table. Those taking this position failed to see the constitutional implications for the UK of the backstop, then sought to dismiss those implications, then sought to 'de-dramatise' them. All of these failed because they were based on a multiple misreadings, most particularly a misreading of British politics. The breadth of the opposition to the backstop across the political spectrum in Britain was evident last week in the House of Commons debate. Some of the many anti-backstop comments made by MPs during the debate are worth quoting because they illustrate the breadth of the opposition to it. Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition Labour Party, said: "Northern Ireland would be subject to significantly different regulations from the rest of the UK, but the EU would have a right of veto - a right of veto - over the UK's exit from the backstop arrangement. Far from taking back control, that is actually handing control to somebody else." Hilary Benn, a Labour Party frontbencher, added: "The House of Commons will not agree a deal because of fear that we will be locked permanently into a backstop."
I disagree...the EU has put the technical solutions to test with Smartborders2....they know it will do the job given a little time and willingness to make it work...certainly according to Lars Karlsson who designed it during his time as Head of Swedish Customs,
As a matter of interest tosh...how many countries have insisted on a super majority to join the EU or ratify an EU treaty? I think I'm right in saying the answer is none....super majorities are only required to protect a status quo.
Yet again sb.....The Irish have consistently said they don't want a hard border. The reality that there will be one is of our own making. Will you STOP trying to palm the blame for this mess on to Ireland. We signed the GFA. We are choosing to break it. Own it. Even Boris is now admitting there has to be one.
I dont really care what others do and my point is not about the EU as such. If you wish to embark on a course of action that requires good public support then that is a better way. I have that heard argued that the status quo was protected by this vote because 62% didn't vote to leave.