EU referendum, brexit and the aftermath

Presumably you'd need to fly into Austria with said test (do the test at the airport?), rather than drive through another country that would not let you in, or could you get a transit pass as it were?

Just thinking that our government allowed you to transit through places as long as you didn't "stop and mingle".

When we travelled to Austria in August there was a requirement for a test and we were permitted to fly via Munich and transit through. Then again Germany had no restrictions at the time.

The test has to be taken within the previous 4 days. I think there are airport tests available in Vienna but I reckon most people would not want the risk of being turned back after flying there if they test +.

The Austria web site is not exactly clear and contradicts itself a little but my understanding is that from early Jan a Covid test will be required from all non EU travellers (obvs including UK).

https://www.austria.info/en/service-and-facts/coronavirus-information/entry-regulations

I’m not particularly one for formality but dressing smartly for such an occasion is a given - Johnson looks like the unserious, disrespectful oaf that he is

Its got to be no deal now.

My thinking is no news of any movement on any of the key issues after last night meeting.

Also, if Boris wanted a deal he'd want him to be the one to get the credit for it and last night was his chance (last chance?) for that.

He keeps saying that there will be no further talks in 2021 too which is going to be hard to climb down from now, he's said it so many times.

Will he deliver no deal and then resign as PM and let the next person sort it out, and then carp from the sidelines like Farage.

So this is what we look like when ‘taking back control’ - two fat scruffs in ill-fitting suits. We are shamed!

Carrie must feel like a real winner.

I work for a large UK industrial manufacturing company and we have just had an email from our MD stating all of the measures they have taken to prepare for Jan 1st. A huge list of items including compliance, incoming parts supply, outgoing finished product supply, ensuring employees comply with working regulations etc etc.

It then goes on to state that UK – EU trade will incur tariffs some of which can be offset by some imports, but overall there will be a significant increase in tariffs which the company will absorb for the first part of 2021 before deciding what to do. That doesn’t fill me with hope. Must be loads of companies in the same position.

When I mentioned this to a Brexit voting colleague he said ‘at least we won’t have a German Luger pointing to our heads’. I said no, we have just taken it and shot ourselves in the head.

The trouble with no deal is that it isn’t a final destination. If we traded on WTO terms for a lengthy period, say 5 years, then huge parts of our economy would be impacted. A deal is a must, the only unknown is how long it will take for these fucking useless twats to negotiate one.

at least we won’t have a German Luger pointing to our heads

Christ; Brexiteers really are xenophobic morons.

Which is why for e.g. France is pretty sanguine about no deal as they see it more as a softening up period which will make us more amenable to EU conditions for a deal.

I happen to think that this misreads how the current government and right wing press will whip up the idiots - I suppose it depends on whether the problems will overwhelm the jingoistic rhetoric.

‘at least we won’t have a German Luger pointing to our heads’

Flip, when Fintan O'Toole wrote his column that Brexit is about the UKs past and part of that is how it saw itself in WW2 (Germany bad, UK good) he wasn't wrong.

I believe German build quality is good, better than trying to shoot yourself with something that only half shoots you :p

I guess your colleague is now well pissed off?

Yeah - the mental math with these morons is incredible. I think the denial of blame and passing the buck will go on for ever.

A guy on another forum (!) this week posted on a news article about Toyota ceasing UK production at the end of 2027 as having "absolutely nothing" to do with Brexit and that we'd all be better off now if everyone had been behind it from the beginning.

I wish these people would all fuck off and die.

They look like they should be shifting tat on pricedrop TV .

The trouble with no deal is that it isn’t a final destination.

Yeah, I totally agree, that's why its so odd that Boris is trying to paint himself into a corner, again!

Its not odd at all, he just says what will get him to the end of day and repeat!

Guess that's what you look like when you are too used to getting your cake and eating it 💁‍♂️

It's just hard to see where the posturing stops and the uk govt's actual red lines start.
I still see them backing out of no deal and just reframing whatever new negotiations/transition period or whatever is coming. Semantics and optics are all too important for the tories

I work for a multi national insurer in the UK, about 35% of our UK revenue is from products sold into the EU. All these products are now going to being to be written by our arm in ROI. They continue being serviced, for the most part in the UK for now. The company overall aren't going to loss out but COVID19 aside the uk will be 35% less profitable and the ROI it'll be bonuses all round.

I know you shouldn't be so superficial about these things, but politicians (well anyone, but particularly them and lawyers) in untidy, ill fitting suits is a pet hate of mine.

Dominic Cummings ?

To be perfectly honest, I’ve never had much regard for him. His manner, his attitude, his dress. You wouldn’t expect somebody to turn up at No 10 in bloody tracksuit bottoms and a T-shirt. What does that portray to the rest of the world?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/may/26/first-time-conservative-voters-react-to-cummings-controversy

I find this sort of stuff really interesting. On the one hand, I really agree that it looks shabby etc. But then on the other hand I detest how image-focused and trapped in 'tradition' UK politics is, and I wonder if we removed all the bollocks (grabbing a ceremonial mace to make a protest?), and treated them as normal people we might be able to focus on actual real issues. I once heard politics described as 'show-biz for ugly people', which is a bit harsh, but the current Govt seem to be not far off that with their conduct.

Cummings is a bad example for this in terms of what he did (continues to do?), but I was secretly hoping that he would make positive change whilst avoiding all the posturing of going along with some of the Politics theatre.

When I mentioned this to a Brexit voting colleague he said ‘at least we won’t have a German Luger pointing to our heads’.

Of which we didn’t had a German Luger pointing to our heads in the first fucking place.

There is clearly a level of superficiality at play in politics (not just UK, I would wager), but I think the bigger issue is around value and respect.

What does it say about the value one places on an important event (this EU supper), or on those they’ve been elected/paid to serve when appearing for such events looking like you’ve been dragged backwards through a bush?

Quite. It smacks 'can't be arsed to make the effort'. And while being able to tie a tie properly isn't an essential ingredient in being a skilled negotiator, it hardly instills confidence in someone if they're unable to perform such a simple task themselves.

No Tory Power Stance from Boris? #disappoint

Boris and Cummings inability to dress is to pretend to be approachable and not elite (lol)

I doubt it translates well to EU countries witnessing all this and wondering why Boris combs his hair with a balloon loaded with static electricity :)

I guess the analogy is more like the UK had been told that a German Luger existed in a drawer somewhere (although it probably wasn’t) so we preempted the pistol by blowing our brains out with a shotgun to ensure the Germans couldn’t do it.