Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

The prospect of no trade deal with the EU had made me quite chipper recently.  Since time to the exit deadline is running out, it will be necessary to put in place arrangements for WTO rules trade before March 2019 and get on with the business of actually leaving.  What exactly, I reasoned, could Parliament say if the Prime Minister came to the House next year and reported that our European friend still refused to negotiate with us?  They could shrug, say “nice try” now let’s get on with it.  Or they could say, “go back to Brussels and keep offering them money until they accept.”  Neither would be an easy political sell but I suspect that the former would be more acceptable, even to the waverers.

My reverie was shattered, however, when I realised that there may be a third option.  I shudder with the concept the “third way” in politics since it is invariably a convenient cover for politicians without principle or conviction. But suppose our European friends, sensing our difficulty, generously offered to change their rules and grant us an extension of say 3, 5, or even 10 years to find a negotiated compromise.  (Take as long as you like – we can wait for you to come to your senses).  Would that not be music to the ears of those whose intent it has always been to sabotage Brexit?  And all those principled MPs who mouthed “Brexit means Brexit,” but never really believed it, would be delighted to be taken off the spot in exchange for a long time in the long grass.  The Brexit team could be deputed to report back in, say 3 or 4 years, perhaps just after the scheduled General Election, to give the new Parliament plenty of time to fully consider the proposals before the following election, 5 years later, at which the intention would be for the people to decide on the terms, such as they are.  Come to think about it, that’s just the way the EU operates when things do not go its way – if your fickle electorates don’t get the “right” result first time, they must try, try, and try again until they do.

Iain Martin in the Times thinks that if a plan to scupper Brexit looks like it is coming to fruition then the response from cheated Leavers will be swift and furious.  I have never been on any sort of protest in my life but I think the Brexit cause would get my wholehearted support.  I would be in favour of pre-emptive action, to stop any embryo plans in their tracks and to ensure that the BBC remained impartial. Where do I sign up?  Crucially, however, who will lead us forward?

“The best lack all conviction, while the worst

Are full of passionate intensity.”

Or, perhaps, with today’s politicians, it should be the other way around?