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The EU was foundered on four basic freedoms: Goods, People, Services and Capital. The intention was that these four factors should be inseparable in promoting and preserving a unity that would serve all member states. Jean-Pierre Raffarin – the chair of the 51 page inquiry report written by the French senate – has been clear about his views on Brexit Britain not being allowed to be completely positive.
We’ve already seen the “people” part of that agreement suffer as confidence in the UK dropped rapidly and EU nationals began to panic over getting Permanent Residence (PR). And that was just because Theresa May reneged on her promise to give it to them. Also, there’s been a significant drop in numbers of EU nurses applying to work in the dwindling NHS. So that’s services also being negatively affected.
The problem is that the Tories seem to have had to stretch this process out to accommodate the lies – sorry, “alternative facts”- that have been used. Theresa May didn’t originally plan to have to fight her place in the courts when challenged over her power to trigger Article 50 without a commons vote. Nor did she plan to lose. And nor did she expect to have to admit that Pre-Brexit Britain was always sovereign anyway.
But now the French have echoed the German’s, saying that Britain’s exit – or at the very least a smooth and beneficial exit – is going to be impossible, or at the very least very difficult.
Brexit Britain could cost a lot more than we think…
It’s fair to say that the UK is a very long way from clear about the exit plan and since we are two years away from the actual exit there is still a very long way to go. Brexit Britain will need to keep its European friends, whatever anyone claims, not just because we are geographically linked, financially and trade linked. I wonder if anyone has really considered the cultural and social inter-dependency we have, too.
The UK has long relationships through the arts, education, charity, humanitarian projects, leisure and tourism, and so much more. Of course no-one expects any of this to end, but if Brexit Britain becomes hard to negotiate and work with, or to travel to and from, are we not risking more than just economic and political positioning? Stand back and let the “suits” scratch each other’s eyeballs out and swing handbags at each other over political grandstanding. Think like a real person – I dare you – and consider what the everyday costs could be.
Having worked in education and theatre I can think of many reasons to be worried about the negative knock-on effects of Brexit Britain and the costs that it could incur. It’s alright thinking about if an individual EU national will need to show a passport on a flight, but what about when you’re trying to move a world class Orchestra on a European tour when all fifty musicians are a mixture UK and EU nationals? What about small amateur arts companies and projects that have relied on EU funding just to exist, let alone expand and tour?
What is going to happen to simple school pupil and staff exchange programmes with EU countries? Schools and parents could face significant price hikes even to countries like France, resulting in a further culturally stunted education system.
The main reason we can’t get an answer to these questions is when we ask questions we get one of two answers: either a lie or verbal laxative, where politicians slip around giving actual answer.
The real cost of Brexit Britain cannot be calculated by politicians because those who will be affected the most are those from who we listen to the least.
Ironic…in a supposed democracy.
