BREXIT! BREXIT! BREXIT!

[Rum]

The last thing? They save it to the end to tell you do they? I don’t blame them

[Scot Dutchy]

Correct has a multitude of meanings Rum as you well know.

[Brian Peacock]

Plenty of negatives around?

Experts debate the Brexit outlook: 'Stand by for gale-force winds'

Two former members of Bank of England’s rate-setting committee assess the economic future

Brexit uncertainty slows economy and raises risk of job losses
How has Brexit vote affected the UK economy? February verdict

Enjoy!

"I think people in this country have had enough of experts." -- Michael Gove, June 2016

[Scot Dutchy]

Well plenty have but can you ignore them?

[Brian Peacock]

Do you mean 'me' you or 'us' you?

[Scot Dutchy]

Put in whatever you want.

[Svartalf]

direct to the point of being rude, how Dutch of you.

[Scot Dutchy]

Lived here too long. Just a native.

[pErvinalia]

The last thing? They save it to the end to tell you do they? I don’t blame them

[PsychoSerenity]

Worrying set of results with the votes today as I see it.

Good that the protection of citizen's rights in the case of 'no deal' is finally in place, - except that the process is still fundamentally flawed, requiring applications and lifelong updating of identity documents on a special register, and so is no real guarantee of rights even if a deal is agreed.

The amendment to commit the government to Labour's soft Brexit was defeated by 83 votes, notably not nearly as heavy a defeat as for May's deal which was lost in January by 230 votes, but it's a defeat nonetheless. Labour are now on their last resort to try and stop 'no deal' by trying to get a second referendum between any deal and remain.

The government had little choice but to back Cooper's amendment which does nothing but force May to stick to her word and hold another vote by the 12th of March, and if May's deal is rejected again AND parliament votes to reject 'no deal' then there will be a vote on the 14th to see if parliament want to extend the deadline by a few months. What happens if the extension is also rejected is anyone's guess. Only 20 of the ERG voted against Cooper's amendment, - they want 'no deal' and they want it now, - but that suggests the other 40 or so might be persuaded by something softer.

What worries me is even this temporary extension still requires parliament to actively rule out 'no deal'. They've previously had a couple of non-binding votes on the concept of ruling it out that both only very narrowly passed. Today they had chance with the SNP & Plaid amendment to actually rule it out and that one lost by 36 votes.

So we are still very much on course for crashing out at the end of March, and even if that date is pushed back by a few months, the only way to permanently avoid it will be if enough Tories decide they want a second referendum (unlikely) or if parliament agrees to back a deal that they previously overwhelmingly rejected (also unlikely).

[Brian Peacock]

As one frustrated soft Tory put it on the radio today, "The tactics that Mrs May used to stay at the Home Office for 8 years are no way to run a country."

[Scot Dutchy]

Do they affect the deal with the EU? No. It is all internal stuff for home consumption.

[Brian Peacock]

MPs ignore May's pleas and defeat her Brexit deal by 149 votes

So... No-deal or extend the transition period? Looks like a so-called 'People's vote' is off the cards, and May won't call a general election nor will even the hated Tory ERG etc vote against in a no-confidence ballot.

[Rum]

She should resign now I think.

[Svartalf]

Maybe she will, and with another ineffectual, newfangled tory puppet at Downing, there won't be any lengthening of the negociation period, come march 31, ya"ll be out in the rain without an umbrella... and there will be blood spilt in Ireland.