MAY TRIES AGAIN, CORBYN SIMPLY OBSTRUCTS.

As Theresa May sets off to have further, probably fruitless, talks with the bully boys of the European Union, Jeremy Corbyn, while pretending that he might support the Prime Minister, has set down what are referred to as Labour's '5 Demands'. 

That Corbyn's demands fly in the face of the expectations of those who voted for Brexit seems to have been forgotten. Effectively, they 'demand' that the UK remains so close to the EU as to not really leave, remaining in a customs' union and closely aligned with the 'single market', thus making an independent trade policy a non-starter. Additionally, Corbyn wants the rules applying to workers to remain tied to those of the EU, apparently regardless of how insane they are or whether the UK might prefer to be even more generous. His other demands are probably less contentious, wanting the UK to continue to participate in certain EU agencies and continuing to play a role in the EU's security arrangements.

Being a lifelong Eurosceptic, Corbyn is clearly playing a political game designed to keep his own party onboard an, at the same time, make life as difficult as possible for the Prime Minister while appearing to be reasonable and cooperative. He has only one aim in mind and it isn't achieving the best outcome for the UK, it's gaining power.

Listening to the various pundits who have been 'analysing' every word, phrase, nuance, cough, smile, frown and even sneeze, one could be forgiven for believing that Mrs May is about to betray Brexit and betray Remain, both at the same time, while the EU will remain utterly intransigent, is on the point of caving in or is preparing for anything in between. There's been a suggestion that yesterday's disgraceful outburst form Donald Tusk was a smokescreen and precursor to EU concessions; who knows ?

Given the way in which the representatives of the EU have acted over recent months and how intransigent, rude and bullying they've been, let's not forget that Tusk's outburst follows on from Juncker's comments about Theresa May being 'nebulous', I'm almost coming round to the view that a second referendum might not be a bad idea, although the demands for this seem to have abated. If such a vote was called, the Leave side would surely need to do no more than broadcast clips of the various EU bureaucrats, as well as national leaders such as Macron or Merkel, being their usual unpleasant selves. Leave would win in a landslide.

So much for fantasy. Whatever will Theresa May achieve from this latest visit to the superpower that is Belgium ?

BREXIT : WHO ARE THE EU'S NEGOTIATORS ?

As 'Brexit' negotiations grind on, one has to wonder just who is doing the negotiating on behalf of the European Union. Time and again, some Euro-crat or Euro-politician pops up in the media demanding this or that or being rather derogatory about the UK's position on various issues. Yawn !!!

While the UK has 2 principals in the discussions, Theresa May and David Davis, the EU appears to have an unlimited number in opposition, Michel Barnier, Jean Claude Juncker and Donald Tusk seem to head the list but, for good measure, assorted others appear to be determined to have their say too. Angela Merckel, on behalf of Germany and Emmanuel Macron on behalf of France both have their own axes to grind and the leaders of other European countries occasionally pop their heads above the parapet as well.

Then there are the various heads of organisations such as the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the OECD, and even an assortment of real minnows, such as the so-called 'ratings agencies', Moody's amongst them, who feel compelled to stick their oars in, almost always with dire warnings about the dangers associated with the UK's exit from the EU, just as they voiced dire warnings about our exit from the ERM and failure to join the Euro. Their record of forecasting success is pretty poor and yet they still have credence; one wonders why.

There are, of course, other voices within Britain that sometimes ring out with a dull thud. Those determined to stop the whole process which was set in motion by a vote of the entire nation still want to reverse the decision and will use any nonsense to try to do it. A ragbag of has-beens, the likes of Tony Blair, Paddy Ashdown, Nick Clegg and Vince Cable - keep popping up with proposals to hold second referendums, dressed up in various ways to try to avoid the charge that they are simply trying to ignore the democratic will of the people when that is exactly what they are doing. These increasingly aging Europhiles just can't accept that the result of the referendum can be allowed to stand; the stupid people got it wrong and we have to save them from the error of their ways seems to be their message. 

Annoyingly, these trolls keep trying to put obstacles in the way of the government as it goes about its job of implementing the will of the people. They provide hope for those in Europe who also want the process halted and make it easier for them to be obstructive. If, instead, they supported Mrs May's government, the UK would be in a far stronger position to combat the salvoes of rhetoric from the other side and to set the agenda for the discussions. Sadly, this won't happen.

If ever there was a case for outright dictatorship, it is demonstrated by the Brexit. The people have spoken and it is the duty of our representatives to act upon our wishes, regardless of their own petty and largely selfish interests. These people are enemies of the people and of the State; they should be locked up.

EU DOOM-MONGERS STILL TRYING TO SCARE US.

With the UK's General Election campaigns beginning to get into their stride, one or two of the unelected bureaucrats of the European Union appear to be doing their best to scare British voters with various stories about the difficulties associated with Brexit.

Suggestions include that the negotiations will be far from easy, that the UK will not get a good deal and even that the 'bill' for leaving could be as much as €100bn. Political giants such as Jean-Claude Juncker and Michel Barnier have issued carefully worded statements while there have also been assorted leaks of supposed information, all aimed at telling British voters that leaving the EU is not a good idea. Presumably the hope is that it will encourage voters to think again about whether to support Theresa May.

In reality, continual interference by EU officials, however its done, will only serve to have the opposite effect. The British voted to leave the EU partly because that body is interfering and dictatorial, wastes money in truck loads and is a bureaucratic nightmare; the recent interventions demonstrate all of this, and more, and can only backfire on the doom-mongers who delivered the messages.

Ignore the nonsense and keep the faith.

EU SOFTENS ITS COLD HEART.

As we approach the triggering of 'Article 50' next week, it's interesting to note the way in which the tone of comments from officials of the European Union and other European political figures, has softened.

While an assorted rag-bag of yesterday's UK figures, including Blair, Major, Heseltine, Clegg and others, have continued to argue that the UK's exit from the EU can, and must, be prevented, it seems that EU leaders have finally realised that BREXIT is actually going to happen and that they'd better start thinking seriously about how to make it a success for all concerned. Previously hard-line figures such as Jean Claude Juncker have been at pains to say that there is no question of punishing the UK and that the eventual settlement must be realistic. Hooray !

Of course, all politicians are liable to be highly disingenuous and their words need to be taken with a pinch of salt. however, what can't be denied is that the tone of their statements has changed. Let's hope that this more sensible tone is translated into sensible negotiation.