[MartynSinclair]

sounds like a spring clean MrMichael.. 🙂

[Charles-P]

The view here in Belgium among my neighbours (a mixture of Belgian, French and one German) is surprisingly relaxed. The Belgians are probably the most pro EU country in Europe but even they now see the need for change. My French neighbour (a retired racing driver with business interests in the UK) thinks that ultimately the EU will become a much simple trading agreement with the ever deep political integration now unlikely to ever happen. He expects no effect on his business. My German neighbour works for NATO but says the security implications are zero as the UK is so vital to NATO (and NATO to it) there will never be a split. My Belgian wife put it well when she said this morning,

“Probably years and years of discussion followed by everything carrying on more or less as before”

[alainboy56]

Bath_VIP — Your first post is absolutely spot on.
Cameron screwed up by making the vote so defined – he should have said to himself ‘how would Maggie have addressed this problem’? OK I will ‘hold’ all contributions to to the greedy EU and their ‘POT’ until they sort all the bureaucratic nonsense and stupid rules/regs that are produced unnecessarily every day by the un-elected mandarins in Bruxelles. They will show me audited accounts for at least one of the last few years accounts of the EU to show where our 55 million quid/day went exactly, and until you solve this problem, go to hell !! – But alas he didnt and he strangely could not feel the way the wind was blowing. He committed political suicide by taking the REAMAIN side instaed of that aggressive middle way – this would have won him maybe an 85% vote but no – he failed and he will suffer the consequences.
So, as we are, or were, after all, the 2nd largest contributor to this folly, so now lets see who will be more damaged – but wait a few months for the dust to settle. For me this is not about UK, we will always survive, this is about the Franco-German ‘Dream’ that is fast becoming a ‘Nightmare’. Holland will be next to leave, Greece and Italy will return to the Drachma and Lire to re-invent their economies and this BREXIT could well be the trigger that disintegrates the whole EU idea. Only time will tell.

[Bath_VIP]

I am inclined to think that the next exit referendums will come from the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden. Norway and now Britain are out. What do those 5 nations have in common?

1. They are all monarchies.
2. They have strong independent trading histories.
3. They have similar politics in terms of their conservative/social democrat parties.
4. They all speak excellent English.
5. They have the North Sea with its fish and oil in common.

Personally, I can see the attraction of a potential United Kingdoms of Europe…

[Charles-P]

Bath VIP – as I believe all of the respective monarchs are related we could move toward the elimination of all slime-ball politicians altogether and adopt a ‘Council of Family’ who would rule by the Divine Right of God.

I propose HMQ as the head (of course). King of Norway for Finance and Energy policy, King of Netherlands for social welfare and party planning, Queen of Denmark for Foreign office (she once told an American ambassador to “go boil your head” ) and the King of Sweden for Legal issues.

[MrMichael]

Charles-P, any job for the King of Spain?

[Charles-P]

‘MrMichael’ – No Catholics – sorry.

[Bath_VIP]

Also far away from the North Sea and not quite the same standard of English.

[alainboy56]

Sometimes, I just love the humorous banter here – God bless you all

[AnthonyDunn]

@ alainboy56 – 24/06/2016 14:05 BST

Can you remind me and everyone else just how many elected mandarins there are in the UK?

I write as someone who served as a Civil Servant within the so-called “mandarin class” in Whitehall and I cannot for the life of me ever recall being subjected to any kind of vote or popular election.

You also clearly have a problem with numbers and dissembling. The UK has been the third largest contributor (in absolute terms) to the EU (after Germany and France) and when expressed in a per capita basis, the UK is much further down the ranking. Having been one of the bag carriers to the Chief of Defence Procurement in explaining yet another glorious year of achievement (sic) in defence procurement before the Public Accounts Committee, I know all about the fact that the accounts of most UK government departments are as “qualified” each year as are those of the European Union. And for decades, but the Torygraph et al have never been minded to make such a point year after year.

Personally, when commenting on grown-up matters like the EU, I do find it helps not to have one’s reading matter consist almost entirely of the Express and the DailyGetsMuchWorse. But since when has brute ignorance ever been a bar on offering a comment?

In stark contrast:

@Bath_VIP – 24/06/2016 12:47 BST

Whilst I disagree deeply and fundamentally with your view of the EU, I appreciate a very considered analysis and concur entirely with your thoughts on the Labour vote. When they are prepared to engage brain and think long and hard about it, maybe the Labour party will start addressing some of the issues.

Incidentally, whilst being one of those who enjoys the freedom of movement hitherto afforded to UK passport holders, watching a recent BBC TV documentary on the experience of “white flight” from the East End (incidentally, owing not to EU but to Moslem Asian inward migration) brought home to me the reality as seen by many white working class communities. Seeing that, I “got it” about the concerns around immigration. Before anyone accuses me of being a slow-learning member of the “élite”, living in an ethnic-minority majority borough (where most communities and ethnicities pretty much rub along together), this would appear to be far from the norm. Together with a break up of the UK, I am anticipating a two-way full blown visa system for EU citizens and UK travellers to the EU. It is what the likes of Dominic Raab has hinted at.

[Charles-P]

Of course if the head of the House of Hohenzollern Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia asks nicely we might consider a Teutonic element, this new alliance will need beer and sausages.

[Swissdiver]

Regulation 261 is in force in Switzerland (voluntarily by Swiss or by law, I am not sure). So the UK might well maintain this.

[EU_Flyer]

It was voluntary for the Swiss, as I understand it.

I’m sure the lobbyists for the airlines will have something to say.

[MrMichael]

Never really been a fan of EU261. I think at times it is disproportionate to that of a reasonable loss. If I buy a £9.95 fare from X to Y on a loco I don’t see a four hour delay is worth some 25 times the price of the ticket. I think an element of EU261 should be kept but is made more proportionate

[PeterCoultas]

Bath-VIP & stevescoots: both bang on the money with your comments – could not be put better

[Author]

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