Brexit realities

It has emerged that the US has removed tariffs on EU steel and other goods, but the same tariffs have remained on UK goods.

This has been explained that the US prioritised the EU over the UK because of the value of trade with the EU being far larger than what is done with the UK.

Well.

This is "project fear" areas right there.

What with a deal with the US was ready and waiting two years ago, and still we wait for such a deal.

But the delay is also a warning to Johnson and co: your are threatening with the GFA so we will not remove tariffs.

In response, the UK trade enoy has suggested that the UK might retaliate.

Well.

A trade war with the US and the EU?

That is quite the Brexit bonus.

Meanwhile, that far left rag, The Daily Express is reporting how the EU's economy is surging ahead while Brexit Britain's is stalling, just 0.1% growth in October. And with import checks to be introduced in three weeks, it seems unlikely that that situation will improve, as only about 25% of businesses are anyway near ready.

This could get bumpy, very quickly.

But as Chris Grey reports, some hardline Brexiteers from business (a small group) are wanting liberalisation of EU migration to fix their labour shortage.

Sir Rocco, Chair of Rocco Forte Hotels, who in 2018 said: "concerns voiced by the big business lobby are little more than scaremongering, like the claim that any restriction on European freedom of movement will badly hurt recruitment by British firms. This is untrue. My family's hotel chain hired staff from all over the world, including Europe, long before the EU was even created. We will continue to do so after Brexit, especially because so many young people from Europe want to come here to learn English. Contrary to the hollow warnings from the pro-EU campaigners, migration controls will not mean an end to European migration.”

Now says: "It is obvious that there is no ready supply of labour available in the UK to fill vacancies”. Forte has the grace to note that “I am sure that some will say I should have been careful what I wished for in supporting Brexit. I would respond that the only issue determined in the referendum result was that the UK should decide its own immigration system. As a Brexit supporter, I wanted proper control over our borders, not their virtual closure”.

So, it seems, they wanted Brexit but not the consequences, or, as most Brexiteers will claim, this wasn't THEIR Brexit, or it wasn't done right, mainy thanks to the EU and/remoaners, but then if it could be so easily scuppered maybe Brexit just wasn't thought through enough.

Little is now made of the savings Brexit was supposed to bring, only that the magic element, sovereignty, was somehow worth the pain and shrinking of the economy we are seeing. That every small good news story is all down to Brexit, all the bad news is to be ignored or say that the benefits of Brexit will eb seen in 30, 40 or 100 years from now, so it is too early to draw conclusions. And anyway, the Government isn't measuring the impact of Brexit on the country and economy, so can be denied.

The damage is being done, has been done and will be done in the forthcoming weeks and months. Most of it cannot be reversed, we will be forever diminished.