Garry Nelson's teacher
Well-known member
Sigh .... One last time
1. A United Ireland is, as you point out, not going to happen.
2. A good deal including no border in Ireland but without a customs union. This is the 'ideal solution' that you were sold at the referendum, but has proven to be impossible to negotiate, deliver or even define. (Note: I have avoided the word 'fantasy').
3. No deal. This is possible but will take 10s of Billions of pounds in infrastructure costs, will take several years to implement and will entail putting a Border and customs between Northern Ireland and Ireland. Maybe if we had begun building customs posts, lorry parks, IT infrastructure, designing and building systems and recruiting and training staff straight after the referendum maybe we could be operationally ready by now, 3 years later (completely ignoring any economic or political impact). Personally, I think it would have taken longer than 3 years, but who knows ?
4. May's deal. (Don't forget, this doesn't do away with the seemingly unsolvable border issue, it simply defaults to Customs Union and renames it 'the backstop'). This doesn't seem to satisfy the Leave voters according to the most vocal Brexit supporters on here.
Of course a country can leave the EU.
But unless you can suggest another alternative, you have two options, neither of which Brexit supporters seem to be able to agree on, and each time I point this out to you, you simply become abusive
I think that what this shows is that even one of the more considered Brexiteers on the thread can find no easy (or even viable) answers. I don't necessarily blame him: it's well-nigh impossible to square this circle.
Simply: if we want a negotiated Brexit (i.e one with a deal) then we have to respect the views of the party with which we are negotiating. Especially as that party has more leverage than we do.