TUC Leader is spot on over May’s failed Brexit ‘Deal’

That Teresa May’s failed Brexit (and now withdrawn) ‘deal’ would have been bad for jobs, the economy, employment rights etc. etc. is a given simply because it’s a poorer deal than we presently have as EU members. Here’s what the TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady had to say about it:-

www.tuc.org.uk/research-analysis/reports/deal-will-threaten-uk-workers%E2%80%99-rights

But of course, every form of Brexit deal will only deliver a worse outcome than we presently have so no one can ever promise one that will meet, never mind better, our present situation as EU members. The TUC knows this better than most because it’s the millions of trade union members across the UK who are at risk from us leaving the EU under ANY deal.

However, I fear that Frances O’Grady has to be careful what she says with TU leaders like UNITE’s Len McCluskey trying desperately to stop Labour from adopting a pro-EU stance. Sadly there’s always been a wing of the trade union movement who have been anti-EU despite it being a really positive force for good on things like employment rights and protections. How on earth they can call themselves trade unionists beats me. As a life-long supporter of the TU movement, I’m ashamed that it has Little Englander’s in its ranks.

What universe are the Government living in – Child-like challenge to EU!

Back May’s Brexit plan or risk no deal, David Lidington tells EU

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-45344203

Frankly I don’t know whether to laugh or cry, this mess is all of the UK’s making. We said we wanted out and now we want ‘out’ to be on our terms. I’m not even sure that the Government or indeed the Official Opposition, who also back Brexit, know what kind of a deal they actually want anyway!

We must look an odd self-destructive lot to our soon to be ex-European partners as they clearly can’t work out what we are up to or even why. Then again you only have to listen to the drivel that comes from the lead Brexit politicians in both the Tory and Labour Parties to realise they don’t have a clue what they are talking about most of the time.

If I were the EU I would treat the UK like a naughty petulant child. Send our Tory and Labour Party Leaders (who seem to be having an attack of the Terrible 2’s) to bed early and ground them until they are capable of behaving anything like the adults we are supposed to have as our political leaders.

The UK has been taken over by political lightweights who think that whatever they think must be fact so they continue to repeat their nonsense whilst the UK economy goes to the dogs. The poor are going to be made poorer, we are all going to be made poorer yet those who promote Brexit just keep ploughing on as though all is going to be well. It’s NOT, there needs to be a peoples vote on the outcome of the negotiations with the EU. We can’t leave it to our MP’s as the vast majority of them will just go along with whatever their ‘other universe’ leaders tell them. The people need to speak before we consider whether we really should go over the cliff edge or not.

Brexit – Why are our political leaders prone to embarrass us?

Today I woke up to hear that the Tories had nearly lost a couple of Brexit votes last night but that they had scraped home with majority of just 3. But it turns out that a handful of Labour MP’s had voted with the Government and 2 Lib Dem MP’s were missing in action during the vote.

The Tory Government was there for the taking, the Labour Leadership had finally sobered up and decided to do what they should have been doing months ago i.e. be the Official Opposition, but even then 3 of their MP’s went into the Government lobby (whilst other Labour MP’s abstained) to vote for the Tory Brexit plan. Then to put the tin lid on it 2 anti-Brexit Lib Dem MP’s, who should have known better, were absent on other business.

Frankly, along with many other progressive politicians, I am livid with those Labour MP’s who were not willing to kill off the Tory’s Brexit and indeed sided with the Government! I’m also livid with the two missing Lib Dem MP’s for not ensuring they were in the House of Commons Chamber to have their votes counted.

I have no worries that the two Lib Dem MP’s (Cable and Farron) would have voted against the Government had they been there but not being there was a big, a very big error of judgement. I also realise that had they recorded their votes the Government would still have had a majority of 1 because of Labour’s Brexit 3 but none the less they should have been there.

I’ve been in politics for 38 years now and have been a elected local councillor for 33 of those years but rarely have I felt so angry about a matter as I do today with regard to these 5 MP’s.

Maghull – Comrades poke Corbyn in the eye with EU Flag?

Labour in Sefton Borough are keeping their heads down as their great party leader nationally seemingly argues more forcibly each day for a Brexit agenda that will inevitably lead to job losses, no extra NHS funding, the poor being made poorer and a crisis economy.

Yet maybe, just maybe they can see that Comrade Corbyn is leading them down a very sorry path because in full public view, if you look closely, Labour-run Maghull Town Council is still flying the EU flag on Maghull Town Hall!

A small act of defiance maybe and one that they would not like their Momentum masters to know about (so please don’t tell them) but is there just a chink of light following 4 Merseyside Labour MP’s breaking ranks to defy Corbyn recently?

Michael Morpurgo: My family fought for peace, not for Brexit

www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/07/michael-morpurgo-my-family-fought-for-peace-not-for-brexit

The Guardian has the article on its web site – see link above

This is a really interesting piece in The Guardian and it exposes one of Brexit’s must troubling questions. Why do Brexiters feel it OK to put peace in Europe at risk, be it in Northern Island or across Europe generally via their isolationist stance. Have they learned nothing from history?

With thanks to Roy Connell for the lead to this posting

Brexit – Surprise, surprise it now looks toxic even to the Brexit Ultras

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/apr/02/ultras-are-in-fear-their-brexit-now-looks-toxic

The Guardian has an opinion piece on its web site by Polly Toynbee – see link above

Quote from the article ‘The referendum set a fuse under democratic institutions, yet it’s the old Tory “establishment” who are turning into anarchist bomb throwers. They know they will have to defend the indefensible for ever. No instant economic calamity, as claimed by Project Fear may happen on Brexit day, but a slow frog-boiler of losses to growth (estimated by the government to be 2-8%), which will see the UK fall further behind erstwhile equals. How will they escape blame?’

With thanks to Roy Connell for the lead to this posting.

Note for Phil (in joke) you know you shouldn’t have read it!