re brexit

James Edward Caulfield > ‎The Bruges Group
Things are not looking good at the moment. The media is in control of the narrative and Mr Corbyn is having a field day.
A general election is needed and it is needed soon but even if secured we need to be realistic. The damage done to UK democracy by the remain campaign, assisted by the media and EU grandees, will not be repaired overnight.
Many of us have had to endure strains in relationships with friends and relatives that may or may not be eased over time.
In this forum we can discuss and debate openly, but hopefully with courtesy.
The common factor is that we want to leave the EU.
Britain Exits the EU = Brexit
There were no caveats in the referendum, we were simply asked if we wished to leave or remain. The risks of leaving were made clear but the majority of the electorate said we would accept the risks and voted to leave.
In accepting the risks we accepted a responsibility to mitigate those risks. Ignoring them is not sensible. I believe that how we mitigate those risks should be decided in the UK Parliament not in the Brussels commission. The deal offered to Mrs May was a Brussels solution and thus unacceptable to me.
Leaving the EU without mitigation in place is a risky strategy but remaining in the EU will bind us into a federation that will be harder to escape in years to come. So in the equation Mr Johnson has resolved that leaving now will cause some damage but it is damage that can be repaired. We go now or risk damage to the UK through the Lisbon Treaty that would be greater than the damage caused by leaving. In other words he has accepted the risk, he has tried to mitigation but in the end the choice is leave or remain and we voted to leave.
Democratically the only way he can now achieve his goal is through a General Election that will,we hope, give him a significant majority. With that majority he can remove the amendments placed by the remain campaigners and he can negotiate with the EU from a position of strength. The reality is that he is up against the clock. He promised to take the UK out by the 31st October. The current legislation being pushed through by the opposition will make that very difficult to fulfil. If it were me I would urge him to abandon any attempt to renegotiate and concentrate on legislation ensuring we can leave without a deal on the 31st. It is reckless but he has embarked on a reckless strategy and it would be foolish to try and reign in now. He is in this to win and the stakes are high.
Above all however we need to support each other. We need to be able to go out to our places of work, our homes, families friends and offer words of wisdom that will encourage them to vote in the GE and vote for leave.
In stormy waters we need to reef sails and baton down hatches not hoist full sail. We are in stormy waters and need to trust the man at the helm can keep the ship afloat.
All hands on deck in a common purpose of preparing for the General Election, how can we win people round to voting for leave candidates, how can we manage things so that those leave votes are not split. How can we ensure that the helmsman will be given the support needed to turn the ship into better weather.
We all want to leave the EU let us brace ourselves for the hurricane that is coming, even though we are exhausted from the storm currently raging but with each others support we will open a bottle or two of champagne in calmer weather in months to come.


 ·