Enjoy…
Blair’s Institute for Global Change has put out a paper overnight pushing for Britain to rejoin a “reformed” EU over ten years. The old believers are seeing the entire project fall apart before their very eyes…
There are numerous ways in which the proposals set out would not work. Guido takes them in turn:
It is simply the case that the preferential treatment Britain enjoyed prior to Brexit was not palatable to the public. Whatever is offered next will be ten times worse…
There is a new push for Burnham to select rejoining the EU as his wedge issue in an election. Good luck…
Alex Burghart asks why it is so hard for Labour ministers to rule this out. Obviously knowing the answer is ‘because we don’t want to’…
What’s going on with Burnham and the EU talks? The PM said he would be ‘bolder‘ in a readout this morning:
“The UK had to be bolder in terms of getting closer to the bloc, the Prime Minister said. That included building on the close defence and security ties already forged between the UK and European Allies to drive greater cooperation across all areas of the relationship, he added.
The UK-EU summit set to be held later this year, would offer a platform to continue that work, the leaders agreed. Both looked forward to seeing one and another at the Coalition of the Willing later today.”
Questioned on the ‘bolder’ point, sources from the government insisted that in his final months Starmer also said Britain should be ‘bolder’ with the EU ‘reset’ and Burnham was simply ‘reiterating that ambition’ instead of changing the position of the last government. So according to this version – no change…
Contrast that to the end of last month when Hamish Falconer, the minister tasked with picking up Nick Thomas Symonds’ negotiations with the EU, said:
“Well, look, Nick and the previous Prime Minister did really important work to help reset relations and I want to consolidate some of that work. But we also need to see how we can go further. Even since when we started those talks, the world has changed quite dramatically. The threats have changed quite dramatically.
Both, we were talking about some of the threats in Eastern Europe, but clearly there are economic security threats, disinformation threats too. And I’ll be wanting to look at those issues in the round with my European counterparts.”
Burnham himself wants to rejoin eventually. Labour’s EU policy is to repeatedly smack itself in the face but from different and unpredictable angles…
Brits off to Europe this summer will encounter the hated EU EES or Entry Exit System, which uses biometrics and requires a photograph, significantly slowing down passport checks. All while the EU’s external borders are wide open to illegal migrants…
The EU has a deadline of 6th September to fully implement EES, which has suffered major software outages this year. The British travel and tourism industry is panicked about the effects of the full rollout. Several EU member states have been given a derogation from implementing the system. Now we learn Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the European commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism, responsible for negotiations over EES with non-EU countries, “has given private assurances that blanket border checks will be paused”, according to a briefing that seems to have emerged from the office of Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander. The UK Government appears to be relying on this chit chat rather than pursuing an exemption, you know, written down somewhere…
Why? As The Times puts it: “The UK is treading a fine line on the EES system, fearful that criticism of the scheme could disrupt trade talks with the EU”. Another negative outcome from Labour’s pro-rejoin push…
The new Intergovernmental Relations and European Relations minister, Hamish Falconer, has suggested that rejoining the EU could be on the next Labour manifesto. That’s what they’re von der Sayin’…
Falconer said of Starmer’s ‘reset’ efforts that he wants “to consolidate some of that work, but we also need to see how we can go further.” More rule-taking…
Asked on Sky News about whether rejoin could be on the next manifesto, he said:
“Well, look, the questions for the next manifesto are not yet sorted, but I think it’s been absolutely clear from what the prime minister has said, and I share his views on this. Look, we had this vote 10 years ago. It was the will of the country. It was the will of my own constituency as well. We’re not backsliding from that. The world has changed since 2016. We need to make sure that our relationship with Europe changes, too. Europe and the UK both face real challenges.”
Pushed on the matter, he added: “We’re not talking about rejoin today. What we do in our next manifesto will obviously be a question for the Labour Party.” Lathering up…
Kemi Badenoch at the 1922-ConHome bash last night:
“I did praise [Burnham] for his stamina, it was amazing. All I had to do was sit back and lie there. I didn’t have to do anything at all…”