remain in the EU was taken as a provocation, making a Brexit
transition deal impossible. Lets look at that again.
Markedly, it is an improvement on the May deal backstop provision.
Here, at minima, only Northern Ireland need stay in a custom's union.
But more importanty, it is a reaffrmation of the EU refusal to negotiate
away the provisions of the Good Friday agreement. This is what appears
vexatious to UK negotiators; they now face the entire EU holding
steadfastedly to every tenet and consequence of that agreement
in the interest of Ireland. And Ireland sees no reason to budge.
There have been reports that the UK has offered Ireland quite a bit
of investment money, that has been refused so far. But then, Ireland
will be the country that will suffer the most from Brexit, and no one seems
that concerned about this fallout effect. Wishing all this Brexit business would
just go away is not a plan, either. Essentially, the two Irelands need to
negotiate a custom's union with each other, essentially a trust relationship
like a couple. Maybe that could be a positive from all this haggling.
The worst aspect would be the currency question. Here practice sometimes
overtakes principle. We in St-Jean live near the US border and Canadian money is
accepted at par for gas and certain restaurants in the US. Meanwhile, my
change purse is full of American nickels and dimes because, hey, a dime's a
dime. The border would be with the UK, and Northern Ireland a tax free zone
that accepts both currencies. Why not!? In a world of electronic payment, this
need not be complicated.
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I'm enjoying this Brexit thing way too much; it's a debater's tavern brawl!!
So here's another wild one.
Remain makes no more sense than Brexit does. So long as Britain keeps the
pound sterling, it's dangerous to let go of the other policy instruments on
the economy. I never worried about it because the pound and the euro were
always close to each other (and far from the Canadian dollar). But in a
situation which demands corrective action - and I gather the crisis in the
Health sector is one - government needs all its marbles. So I get the truth behind
the 'we'll have x million a week for the NHS' slogan.
What REALLY needs to happen in all of Europe is a double currency: everybody
has euros for everyday concerns( like small change in one's pocket, or an allowance
for tourists...); and a national currency for major sales and purchases house, car) ,
imports and exports. Do-able, but ugly. This rebalances power with the financial
sector. As Europe progresses to financial integration, the categories can morph again...
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https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2019/10/09/brexit-dublin-et-londres-se-preparent-au-no-deal_6014820_3234.html
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