“Brexit Brief” – ISSUE 85, 20th September 2019

No respect for the law, no respect for anyone

“Grüss Gott!” from Carinthia (via Styria and Vienna) where I’m on a Veterinary Public Health Association (VPHA) study tour and enjoying quality time with colleagues. Back in the UK, there are less than six weeks until we are due to relinquish our EU membership. And the level of uncertainty – coupled with a growing sense of impending doom - has never been higher. What we know for sure is that Boris Johnson was never going to be a fit and proper Prime Minister – and never will be.

Yesterday the world saw a barrister for Sir John Major, who succeeded Margaret Thatcher, accuse Johnson of lying about his “true reasons” for suspending Parliament for five weeks in the run-up to Brexit.  Addressing the UK Supreme Court, Lord Garnier told the 11 Justices that Johnson’s advice to Her Majesty the Queen – who has constitutional responsibility for “proroguing” Parliament – “was plainly to mislead.” He was speaking as the three-day emergency hearing into whether the Prime Minister acted “unlawfully” drew to a conclusion. Most informed outside observers believe he did.

The verdict is due early next week and, should it go against Johnson, his opponents will demand that MPs and peers return to Westminster immediately. But given that any recall is in the gift of the serving Prime Minister and Johnson has not shown any willingness to lift the suspension, the UK could shortly be heading towards a full-blown constitutional crisis – which will be all be of Johnson’s making. My next “Brexit Made Simple” will summarise the Supreme Court’s conclusions and sketch out the various scenarios for what might happen next. 

However, after another week of Johnson and his Ministerial chums insisting that they are prepared to drag the UK out of the EU without a deal - despite Parliament passing a law which makes this illegal - anything is possible. And that is why increasing numbers of people are so concerned about what this rotten Johnson administration has in store for us. This dark-souled cabal has no respect for the law, and certainly no interest in the wellbeing of those whose futures it is now putting at such grave risk.    

EU says “non” to non-papers

I mentioned last week that I would be taking part in Saturday’s ‘Stop the Brexit Coup’ march before addressing a mass rally. It was one of the more surreal experiences of my life and, as I told the packed crowd in front of Leeds Town Hall, I could barely believe I was there at all. I was a Conservative Party member for almost 25 years and held senior positions at local, regional and national levels. Before Brexit, I never expected to leave. But its lurch to the far-right followed by the ludicrous and grossly irresponsible decision of Tory members to elect Boris Johnson as their Leader made my departure inevitable. So, there I was sharing a platform with Labour MPs, Liberal Democrats, Greens and an assortment of others including the magnificent Jordan Byrne, Chair of Young Conservatives for a People’s Vote, demanding that a way be found to extricate our great country from the Brexit nightmare. And was the Prime Minister listening? Of course he wasn’t, but many others were and that is why I remain optimistic that good old British common sense and grit will ultimately prevail.

In recent days, Johnson has been ridiculed by the Prime Minister of Luxembourg for dodging a joint news conference because a few disgruntled UK expats were a little bit shouty. And then, during a staged hospital visit, he was caught by television cameras denying that there were any television cameras present to show him being caring. Yesterday, following demands from the EU27 that he produced papers outlining his supposed big ideas in pursuit of a new Brexit deal, the UK Government submitted documents that they described as “non-papers” which did not represent its negotiating position. In other words, they weren’t worth the non-paper they were written on (they were sent by email). 

The EU’s disgruntlement was confirmed this morning by Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney who was rightly resolute in his determination not to accept the deletion of the Irish backstop from any Brexit deal in the absence of a practical alternative. “There are serious problems that arise because of the change in approach by the British Prime Minister," he said. "Asking to remove a very significant section within the Withdrawal Agreement that solves many of the Irish issues without any serious proposals on how you solve those problems is not going to be the basis for an agreement." And with that, another week has been wasted by Boris Johnson as the clock ticks on.

Meanwhile in America…

A new storm has broken over Donald Trump’s coiffured head because of what a number of news outlets are reporting as a “promise” Trump made to “an unnamed foreign Leader.” A whistle-blower has filed a complaint which the US Intelligence Community Inspector General has called a “serious or flagrant problem, abuse or violation of the law.” The Washington Post and New York Times say that at least part of the claim relates to Ukraine.  As it happens, earlier this month Congress launched an investigation into Trump and his lawyer Rudy Giuliani’s dealings with Ukraine. Three senior Democrats allege that Trump and Giuliani attempted to pressure the Ukrainian Government into investigating former Vice-President Joe Biden, together with Biden’s son who served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company. Joe Biden is Trump’s likely Democratic opponent in next year’s US Presidential election. But that might just be a coincidence.

Have a splendid weekend!

Jason

Dr Jason Aldiss BEM

Managing Director, Eville & Jones

You can follow me on Twitter @JasonAldiss