How to deal with awkward journalists

[1959_60]

Aye Super, it is a real dilemma.

What do your Northern Irish friends want to happen?

Shamefully, this issue got very little oxygen during the Brexit debates - but I'll bet it was at the forefront of discussions in Northern Ireland.
Perhaps a major reason why they voted to remain?

[sinkov]

Aye Super, it is a real dilemma.

What do your Northern Irish friends want to happen?

Shamefully, this issue got very little oxygen during the Brexit debates - but I'll bet it was at the forefront of discussions in Northern Ireland.
Perhaps a major reason why they voted to remain?

Yes you're right 59/60, I'm glad you noticed that, it got very little oxygen during the debates did it, no one seemed to think there was a problem did they, and no one discussed it because there was no problem, there was nothing to discuss. It was our intention to negotiate a Free Trade Deal alongside the Withdrawal Agreement and so there was never going to be a need for a hard border. But the EU flatly refused to go along with this, and refused to talk trade until after we'd left the EU. For some reason unbeknown to me, our negotiators backed down, gave in and capitulated to the EU (sound familiar ?) and accepted their timetabling sequence. So now we have a problem entirely of the EU's making, which is why I keep calling it a manufactured problem, deliberately manufactured by the EU.

Was this simply incompetence on our part, or was something else at work ? Who ordered our negotiating team to back down and why ? We'll probably never know who, but I think I know why.

[1959_60]

You are missing the point about stopping free movement of people Sinkov.

Taking back control of our borders surely means having border checks?

Otherwise what is to stop people entering the UK via the Irish border?

[Altobelli]

Someone enlighten me please, as I cannot grasp it

I don't understand this hard, soft or back stop with Northern Ireland.

What sort of borders do some of the other 27 EU Countries have bordering on non EU Countries ? and Switzerland ?

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Aye Super, it is a real dilemma.

What do your Northern Irish friends want to happen?

Shamefully, this issue got very little oxygen during the Brexit debates - but I'll bet it was at the forefront of discussions in Northern Ireland.
Perhaps a major reason why they voted to remain?

I would guess everybody thought that the Conservative and Unionist Party would not chuck Northern Ireland under the first available bus.

[Supersub6]

Aye Super, it is a real dilemma.

What do your Northern Irish friends want to happen?

Shamefully, this issue got very little oxygen during the Brexit debates - but I'll bet it was at the forefront of discussions in Northern Ireland.
Perhaps a major reason why they voted to remain?

My friends all voted to remain because their take on those wanting Brexit was that they wanted to curb immigration and, in order to do this, they assumed that the UK would have to introduce much stricter border controls in order to keep the Brexiteers happy. The major concern was that the Irish border would have to be re-instated in order to maintain control of immigration etc. They are still not convinced about any arrangements which may or may not be agreed although it appears that the DUP will keep pushing the point!

[1959_60]

Someone enlighten me please, as I cannot grasp it

I don't understand this hard, soft or back stop with Northern Ireland.

What sort of borders do some of the other 27 EU Countries have bordering on non EU Countries ? and Switzerland ?

The shengen zone is largely in operation Alto - free movement of people.
Only the UK and Ireland are not/will not be members.

Other countries outside the EU are also in the Shengen area.

The four European Free Trade Association (EFTA) member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, are not members of the EU, but have signed agreements in association with the Schengen Agreement. Three European microstates—Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican City—are de facto part of the Schengen Area.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schengen_Area

[Altobelli]

Thanks for that 59, I still do not see a problem, or am I still missing something ?

[1959_60]

Alto, the Brexiteers want to take control of our borders. They want to limit foreigners coming in to the UK.

How can we control this if the Irish border remains open? People can travel to Ireland and then just cross the border into the UK in Northern Ireland, then hop on a ferry to the mainland if they wish.
People of both Northern Ireland and Ireland insist that they don't want a return to a hard border, with checks, we can all remember what problems it caused during the troubles.

On trade, we are currently aligned with the EU so there is no need for a hard border in Ireland, or any other UK border in fact.

Once we leave the EU we will be working on different trading agreements. Goods that once were imported/exported could enter and leave the UK unhindered. The new arrangement means that these goods would be subjected to tariffs, custom checks etc. and somehow we have to be able to do this. In Dover etc a hard border would simply result in huge bottlenecks while these checks are carried out.
In Ireland, being our only land border with the EU, the situation is more difficult. How can these custom checks etc be carried out without a hard border? And if there was a hard border then people from both sides of the border would be affected. At the moment, they cross the border as easily as driving from Burnley to Padiham. People may work on the other side of the border, or sell their produce across the border. Plus the fact that the border was a big problem during the troubles.

During the "implementation period" (March 2019 until December 2020) it has been agreed that we will stay in the single market and customs union, meaning that we continue to trade on the same terms,freedom of movement will continue.. therefore no need for a hard border.

the problem is, if a solution cannot be found for the Irish border problem in this implementation period, then the backstop kicks in.
This will mean that Northern Ireland would continue to remain in close alignment with the EU to stop there being a hard border.
The DUP and others can't accept this because Norther Ireland would have a different status from the rest of the UK.

[Altobelli]

Thanks again 59, Just as I thought then, there is no problem with a hard border IMO.