The EU is phooked...

[sinkov]

"As you well know sinkov, I’m just a normal British working-class sort of bloke who likes nothing more than occasionally purchasing a cheap airplane fare and heading off towards southern Europe with my wife to take up a bit of sunshine and drink my own body weight in readily available, cheap alcohol. The UK leaving the EU was always going to put a bit of a dampener on these types of sojourns...."

But would it BT ? The southern European tourist trade still needs it's Brit tourists to survive, we and our money would still be more than welcome, the cheap booze depends on the exchange rate so nothing changes there, the only difference would be a different passport channel at the arrival airport. My annual trip to Paris has now been suspended, but every time I went the place was thronged with Americans, Chinese, Japanese, Australians, Brazilians, Koreans, none of these people EU citizens, but that seemed no impediment to them holidaying in the EU. Why would leaving stop us ?

[The Bedlington Terrier]

I really don't know sinkov.

I think the death knells are ringing out loud and clear for globalisation and how that will effect plebs like you and me, I cannot predict.

[1959_60]

If I were you I would be more worried about your own country.

Up to 35% contraction in our economy in this quarter. Normally a third of one per cent would be worrying....but a third of our entire economy is off the scale.

Unemployment estimated at 3.5 million in June....

It is hoped that it will bounce back later (if restrictions are lifted) but it is estimated that our economy will still be 15% down.

So I reckon you prophets of doom should be looking a little bit closer to home. This time we really are on our own.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

We have had this conversation before 59er. For the first time in living memory a Tory Chancellor has said health comes before the economy!

No idea where he is going to get the loot from and I really don't care.

We now have a divided Europe at our mercy, we also have a single currency with some real reserves and clout behind it.

China & South Asia need trusted trading partners, Singapore and South Korea are fully fit and raring to go. I've even been offered an old job back to boost my-ex companies exports. After this layoff I'm as fit as a fiddle and raring to jump back in the saddle. Hi-ho Silver Away!

We have a resolute, determined government who will pump the money back into the economy. By Christmas the fiscal bounce back in the UK will go down in history.

Boris has waited for this moment all of his life. Cometh the hour...

[1959_60]

BT, you are sounding like a cross between Boris, Trump and Comical Ali.

What has happened to you in the last three months?

You used to be just left of Stalin but now you are more right wing than Willie Morgan.

And I thought that you have decided a couple of weeks ago to retire?

I'll look forwards to next weeks exciting episode

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Flexible, fluid and pragmatic, that's me 59er. I don't believe 99.9% of the shoite the global media puts out, but what I can see and witness is a government that is doing the very best it can in extremely trying circumstances.

I hate to say this and I really do mean I hate to say this, but thank foook Jeremy Corbyn is not in charge of this sh-itfest!

I'm not the mean sort, I always give credit where I think credit is due. By the way, where's Swindle and the Lib Dems these days?

[1959_60]

Aye BT. Fair play to the Government - they have listened to, and acted on, advice from the "experts".

It is nowhere near finished yet but the measures that have been put in place appear to be defending the NHS from being swamped.

Despite the Governments claims, the NHS is still underfunded and the amount allocated to social care is pitiful. See attached (dated November 2019)

Perhaps Boris will have a eureka moment when he realises how important these services really are.

I don't know what Jo is up to these days but fear not for the wider Lib Dems. We are very active doing stuff for the community at the moment.

https://www.health.org.uk/publicatio...l-care-funding

[sinkov]

We have had this conversation before 59er. For the first time in living memory a Tory Chancellor has said health comes before the economy!

No idea where he is going to get the loot from and I really don't care.

We now have a divided Europe at our mercy, we also have a single currency with some real reserves and clout behind it.

China & South Asia need trusted trading partners, Singapore and South Korea are fully fit and raring to go. I've even been offered an old job back to boost my-ex companies exports. After this layoff I'm as fit as a fiddle and raring to jump back in the saddle. Hi-ho Silver Away!

We have a resolute, determined government who will pump the money back into the economy. By Christmas the fiscal bounce back in the UK will go down in history.

Boris has waited for this moment all of his life. Cometh the hour...

And it gets even better BT, yesterday the Torygraph was saying an extension was likely, but James Forsyth in the Speccy has a more up to date story.


"David Frost, the Prime Minister’s chief Brexit negotiator, has held discussions with the First Secretary of State Dominic Raab and other senior ministers in the last few days. As I say in tomorrow’s Spectator, the conclusion of these discussions has been that the UK will not request an extension to the transition period. Interestingly, I understand that no one in these discussions backed asking for an extension.

The thinking is that a delay would not solve the fundamental policy problems and that a deal is either possible or not. Another factor, I understand, is that the government worries about the cost of any extension. There is concern that extending could drag the UK into the arguments about who pays for the various EU schemes designed to protect the European economy and preserve the Eurozone. It is worth remembering that it isn’t only the UK who can request an extension to the transition period. There is nothing to stop the EU proposing one – though, the EU has acted as if requesting an extension is a decision for London alone.

If the EU did ask for more time, it would put the government in a difficult position. Rejecting the request would sit ill with the idea that the UK wants to be a good neighbour to the EU. Frost and Michel Barnier will video conference today. But it now seems that the only way the transition period will be extended is if the EU requests it."

And Boris was't even involved, when he gets back in the saddle it really will be all systems go for out on December 31st, deal or not. I really wonder when the penny will drop in Brussells that we won't be extending and they'd better start taking our exit seriously. I'm sure they still delude themselves that we'll back down and plead for an extension.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

No chance sinkov of us asking for an extension.

I hate to admit it, but I am really starting to take to this ETON T-W-A-T...

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[sinkov]

If I were you I would be more worried about your own country.

Up to 35% contraction in our economy in this quarter. Normally a third of one per cent would be worrying....but a third of our entire economy is off the scale.

Unemployment estimated at 3.5 million in June....

It is hoped that it will bounce back later (if restrictions are lifted) but it is estimated that our economy will still be 15% down.

So I reckon you prophets of doom should be looking a little bit closer to home. This time we really are on our own.

You've changed your tune 59, this is what you were saying two weeks ago.

"A bit of a doomsday scenario there blueheeler? Practically every country will be in the same boat, and it looks like the vast majority of our decent companies will be ready to get going again as soon as they are able. I reckon things will return to normal a lot quicker than you think."

And this is what I was saying in reply, as usual you've come round to my way of thinking, these OBR forecasts are no surprise, I was predicting them two weeks ago.

"Tend to agree with Blue more than you 59, this is bad and economically potentially catastrophic, Blue mentions the Great Depression, if it only gets as bad as that we'll have got off lightly imo, it could well be a lot worse."