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Britain ‘isolated’ from the EU? I wish it was so! Britain’s government surrenders billions of our money to the EU in return for… nothing much… and that has left the UK government ‘isolated’ because more was not surrendered.
The gall of the Gauls at insisting Britain’s taxpayers stump up even more when they are massively greater beneficiaries of the EU’s largess than the UK is breathtaking but far from surprising.
Britain is not even nearly isolated enough from the EU for my taste.
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Where is the surprise,the only people Tony Balony can con are the English.
Ah the EU. With all of our problems over here on the west side of the pond, it’s comforting to gaze across the waters and watch a true monstrosity in the throes of it’s birth strangling in it’s own entrails.
Remember, there is always a warm spot in our hearts for the mother country. We’ll leave the light on for you.
Indeed. It’s even less isolated from more subtle nastinesses such as the OECD.
Sigh, I suspect only in my fantasies.
John Steele,
Neither your largesse nor your condescension are required. We’re quite capable of looking after ourselves thank you very much.
Paul,
“We’re capable of looking after ourselves” …. is that a joke? We are certainly not doing a very good job of it at present and with the new plank as Conservative leader I don’t hold out much hope. And Ken EU Clarke planning democracy? HELP!
Paul,
“We’re capable of looking after ourselves” …. is that a joke? We are certainly not doing a very good job of it at present and with the new plank as Conservative leader I don’t hold out much hope. And Ken EU Clarke planning democracy? HELP!
An interesting situation has developed, it’s a shame that we can only guess what’s happening behind the scenes.
Blair just went on a tour of our new eastern friends, and then announced a unilateral cave-in on the rebate. As an observer, I assumed that he must have stitched up some sort of deal with Poland, Hungary etc., to isolate Shirac, but now it appears we are isolated.
Does anyone have any idea how this will play out. Surely Blair can’t afford to give in, but what’s his alternative?
…but what’s his alternative?
Stalling so nothing gets done. That is how the CAP and the rebate have lasted so long already.
Paul writes:
“Neither your largesse nor your condescension are required. We’re quite capable of looking after ourselves thank you very much.”
That was unnecessarily snotty. John Steele’s comment was rather touching and, I don’t doubt, well intentioned.
John East – Of course Blair will give in. He always does. He will give away any amount of British property and money to avoid rocking the boat. Don’t forget, Blair and his fat, repulsive, greedy wife are commie tranzis.
And Blair thinks he’s going to be the first (unelected) president of the EUSSR. It is blatantly obvious that Chirac will double cross him, of course, but the Bliar is so full of himself that he just can’t imagine it. Which will make it that much for entertaining when it happens. Thanks to the internet and TV, we will have a front row seat. I can’t wait.
Can i have gordon’s job when Bliar leaves?
EU “Where is our £umpteen-billion contribution?”
Chancellor Mollusc “We paid it in last week!”
EU “No, you didn’t!”
Chancellor Mollusc “Yes we did! We paid the next 3 years contribution as well! Ask your accountants.”
EU “Oh noes! Our accounts are all to arses for the last 11 years!”
Chancellor Mollusc “Oh, bad luck there!”
Yes, G Cooper, I thought that response was ungracious and coarse, too. John East’s thought was indeed touching and kindly meant.
Apologies, John Steele. That was your gracious thought.
“Blair and his fat, repulsive, greedy wife are commie tranzis.”
Verity you don’t think much of them do you. Personnally I reserve my worst adjectives for Gordon Brown.
Yes, I’d at least see some logic in Blair surrendering all if ascending to the presidential throne was his objective. His current rolling presidency is coming to an end, and he’s achieved nothing other than to upset Chirac. A Blair climb down does seem the most likely option.
Of course, Blair might have a cunning plan, so brilliant and devious that none of us can see it coming, but I doubt it.
I doubt it too, John East. The problem is, he doesn’t have anyone masterminding this for him. Blair is not a thinker. He can say his lines, but someone else has to write the lines and give him stage directions. (And he’s more comfortable if he can wear a costume. And lots of make-up.
His failed presidency of the EU is the result of letting him loose to do his own thinking and say his own words. Mandelson’s set for life and doesn’t need Bliar any more. I would have thought Chris Patten would have enjoyed being his eminence grise but evidently not. Alastair Campbell doesn’t know how Brussels works (I mean, in detail – but then, neither does Blair) and is, in any event, an insular politician.
This is what happens when Blair is allowed out by himself.
What makes you think I don’t like the grabby, grasping “human rights” lawyer greedy Cherie with her trailer park trash name?
“Of course, Blair might have a cunning plan, so brilliant and devious that none of us can see it coming,”
Tony Baldric?
The concept of nations a s friends is also amusing,”new Eastern friends.”
Blair isolate Chirac,Jacques is a real crook,Toni is merely an actor manager playing the role of a crook.
John Steele most gracious,we’ll leave Paul running the resistance.
Peter, GCooper:
Airstrip One.
That’s where you live. You appear to like it. Shame about the plane noise I guess.
“Paul running the resistance.”
Well someone’s got to run the anarcho-capitalist revolution. Everyone else is too busy ranting at the tele.
You folks are all writing as if Blair had already given up the rebate. I don’t know if his plan is cunning or not, but it’s not that hard to figure out.
He wants CAP reform; the French refuse. So instead he says the total budget must be reduced, which will hurt the new accession countries most. This drives a double wedge between them and the French, and (contrary to the doppy Independent) isolates Chirac and his new best friend Merkel, not Blair.
The new accession countries want CAP reform too you know… under CAP their farmers get less than French farmers, even though their farmers are poorer.
What would happen if the UK simply refused to spend one more pound on the CAP and the rest of the EU nonsense? Or none at all.
What would the EU do, kick the UK out?
Since the UK is the fourth largest economy in the world and the largest importer of the continental countries goods it would appear that London, not Brussels has the whip hand. Or would be if there was a real man in number ten, but alas the last real man in number ten was Mrs. T.
Paul writes:
“Airstrip One.
That’s where you live. You appear to like it. Shame about the plane noise I guess.”
You are Harold Pinter and I claim my free Nobel Prize goodie bag.
Cubanbob wrote:
“What would happen if the UK simply refused to spend one more pound on the CAP and the rest of the EU nonsense? Or none at all.
What would the EU do, kick the UK out?”
It would be easy if the problem was as simple as that. It isn’t. British farmers are just as addicted to CAP as any other farmer in Europe. Part of the reason for existence of the Countryside Alliance is to ensure a high level of subsidy.
British politicians have never addressed this. The right-wing press don’t address this. It’s the big hidden secret in British politics.
Instead, everyone blames the French. Easy scapegoat.
Paul, I guess it’s tough to please some folks.
John East
“His current rolling presidency is coming to an end, and he’s achieved nothing other than to upset Chirac.” Upsetting Chirac, while not very difficult, does seem like a productive result in any event.
I am at a loss to understand why Blair has taken this step on the rebate. Unless he really is a Euro at heart. It seems to an outside observe that one would keep that as the ‘hole card’ in driving the budget train, not toss it on the pile quite so readily.
i wish it *were* so
What makes you think I don’t like the grabby, grasping “human rights” lawyer greedy Cherie with her trailer park trash name?
Not fair Verity. She can’t be blamed for her name.
She can, however, be blamed for her trailer trash mentality.
Someone needs to step in and pull the Brits out of Brussells and declare the EU illegitamte based on the failure of the constitution. The constitutional mandate from which it draws it’s legitimacy no longer exists. The UK neither accepts monies from nor donates monies to the EU. Find England’s John Bolton to be the face this policy. I have relatives of various EU citizenships living in England and would like a hopeful future for them.
Paul wrote:
“Cubanbob wrote:
“What would happen if the UK simply refused to spend one more pound on the CAP and the rest of the EU nonsense? Or none at all.
What would the EU do, kick the UK out?”
It would be easy if the problem was as simple as that. It isn’t. British farmers are just as addicted to CAP as any other farmer in Europe. Part of the reason for existence of the Countryside Alliance is to ensure a high level of subsidy.
British politicians have never addressed this. The right-wing press don’t address this. It’s the big hidden secret in British politics.
Instead, everyone blames the French. Easy scapegoat.”
True but besides the point. farm subsidies are the bane of every country in the world to one degree or another. that is another debate for another time. I take as a given that the UK taxpayer will be squeezed to subsidize British farmers. I fail to see what benefit British taxpayers get for giving cash subsidies to foreign farmers. Particularly if the UK pays a lot more in than she nets back. I can understand foreign aid to poor African countries, but to France?
The Blair plan (if there was one) was to rely on our “Eastern European friends”.
This touching (really touched) faith in “enlargement” as a way of stopping the building of an ever bigger central government in the E.U. (“widerning rather than deeperning”) goes back to John Major and his band of supporters.
Some new members of the E.U. did indeed look free market.
For example, Estonia had a flat rate income tax, no corporation tax, no farm subisdies – and was much less regulated than the nations of the E.U.
But (of course) going into the E.U. meant that E.U. subsides and regualtions had to be applied. And the politicians of Estonia also noticed that the E.U. might mean nice jobs for them in the administration and (also) lots of E.U. money for projects back home.
So the plan was nonsense from the start.
Having more members simply meant a big boost for people who said “with all these new members we need to stream line decision making at the centre – less national vetos” (“widerning” being used as an excuse for “deeperning”).
Certainly we have not yet got such things as income tax harmonization (indeed Estonia is cutting its income tax rate in order to stay competitive with other flat rate nations). However, the “defeated” E.U. Constitution is comming via the back door – bit by bit.
As Americans should know, whatever the offical constitutional documents may say central governments find ways to increase their powers.
Indeed, given the explosion of Fed spending and regulations over the last many decades, I find it odd that Americans still think they can smile at the antics of the E.U.
There is still a gap in statism levels between the United States and Western Europe – but it is not a huge gap.
Oh, John Steele – I am at a loss to understand why Blair has taken this step on the rebate. Unless he really is a Euro at heart.
Oh, no! You think? I am shocked. Shocked!