Writing About Brexit: the Boris Border disappears

This was first posted on Facebook on 1st October 2019, with support from my Ko-Fi network.Oh, apparently the “we won’t have a border, we’ll have customs clearing stations EITHER SIDE of the border” has been and gone.

Boris Johnson says this plan was a non-plan.

Writing About Brexit: Boris Johnson avoids PMQs

This was first posted on Facebook on 1st October 2019, with support from my Ko-Fi network.Tomorrow is Boris Johnson’s first PMQ since he unlawfully attempted to prorogue Parliament.

However, rather than handle PMQ himself, Boris Johnson has told off Dominic Raab, the former Brexit Secretary, now the Foreign Secretary, to take PMQ for him: Johnson plans to enjoy the last day of the Tory conference and give the closing speech, not be bothered with questions from Jeremy Corbyn and Ian Blackford.

When Boris Johnson was Mayor of London, he appointed multiple deputy Mayors to do his work for him. This looks like more of the same.

Writing About Brexit: a rebel Prime Minister

This was first posted on Facebook on 26th September 2019, with support from my Ko-Fi network.

I didn’t get home from work in time to listen to Boris Johnson in the Commons. At the point when I switched on Parliamentlive TV, Boris Johnson had walked out a few minutes earlier: Anna Soubry was making her point of order.

Boris Johnson lied in his speech – he claimed that the EU were open to negotiating an alternative to the Northern Ireland backstop, and so a withdrawal deal could therefore be negotiated. As several Brussel-based journalists are reporting this morning, EU-27 don’t expect anything from the UK that offers a viable alternative to the backstop in keeping the Irish border transparent/preserving the Good Friday Agreement. They haven’t received anything, and they don’t expect to. But lies about Brexit and EU negotiation are normal from Tory ministers.

Boris Johnson also said, explicitly, he thought the Supreme Court were wrong to rule his prorogation of Parliament unlawful.

Writing About Brexit: No Deal Brexit Made Unlawful

This was first posted on Facebook on 4th September 2019, with support from my Ko-Fi network.

Unless the House of Lords filibusters the Bill, the Prime Minister of the UK will not be allowed to take the UK out of the EU in no-deal Brexit. (I shan’t feel quite secure til it gets Royal Assent.)

On 17th October, the PM attends a EU summit. Boris Johnson has been claiming all along he will come back from that summit with a good, fantastic, totally super deal. If he can do that, and this good, fantastic, totally super deal, is ratified by an awed House of Commons, then the UK exits the EU there and then with a deal.

If the PM cannot negotiate a deal, or cannot have that deal ratified by the Commons, he must have a Commons vote on No Deal Brexit.