Brexit: Only The First Week And The Madness Has Started

Only a week has gone by since the UK officially notified the EU that we wanted to leave. It is hard to believe how things have deteriorated so badly in that short time.

Only a week has gone by since the UK officially notified the EU that we wanted to leave. It is hard to believe how things have deteriorated so badly in that short time.

The Sunday Mail is calling at least one EU negotiator a 'monster' and includes a picture of his Nazi ancestor in the article - very rich considering the Mail's pre-war support for Oswald Mosley and his facist blackshirts and the paper's then owner and his admiration for Hitler.

Now we have had Michael Howard - former Tory Leader - referring to the Falklands war in reference to Spain's claim on Gibraltar - seen as many as a thinly disguised threat to go to war with Spain. This isn't even as a result of a direct threat from Spain but because of a stipulation by the EU saying that Spain will have a say on wether Gibraltar is included in any negotiated deal.

No sooner have we formally notified the Europeans that we want a divorce then we are being encouraged by the influential media to hate them and hearing thinly veiled threats of war. No doubt we will be encouraged to blame the Europeans for any outcomes from the negotiations we don't like - not a promising way to try and get a good deal from a difficult situation.

Leaving the EU is going to be far more complex a process, with far greater implications for all of us, than was ever suggested by the stupidly simplistic referendum debate.

It is not helped by our being led by a Prime Minister whose instincts are not to bring together a vastly diverse nation but to cause division in education and in religion and in between the very nations that make up the UK.

Even her attitude towards the 16 million who voted remain was to pretend they didn't exist and to pursue a hard Brexit.

It is not helped by a main opposition party being neutered by the absence of leadership - an absence of confidence that it's leader can even lead his own party - never mind bringing together the country as a potential Prime-Minister.

We hear the bluff and bluster of the Brexit leaders telling us that Brexit is going to be great for this country - whilst not producing any evidence of it beyond blind optimism.

They talked of £350 million going to the NHS - about getting sovereignty back - about reducing immigration but then quickly withdrew the promise of that money going to the NHS - admitted the UK Parliament was always sovereign and that immigration might in fact increase after we leave the EU.

Perhaps everything will be alright when we leave the EU - perhaps we will remain a wealthy, outward looking country, but then why go through all of this just to arrive back where we are?

There are certainly people in our Country who feel left behind and had nothing to lose by voting 'leave' to disrupt the status quo - but their predicament was never the fault of the EU and they may be left at the tender mercies of an unchallenged Conservative Party when this is all over. Did the EU insist the Conservatives cut benefits to this countries poorest people?

I think the problems lie in the origins of Brexit - it was about cynical and negative politics by individuals who decided that there are votes in encouraging divisions and resentment towards other countries - towards foreigners - towards members of our communities who were born somewhere else or about the vaguest of notions of sovereignty - a concept which will not but food on anyones table or help any of our poorest improve their lot.

We hear calls for 'unity' - when what they mean is they don't want any more debate - we hear judges being call 'enemies of the people'.

The enemies of the right wing media are being monstered by the nasty, cynical and bullying Brexit media who cannot tolerate anyone questioning their vision of our future.

The 'remainers' and 'remoaners', the enemies of the xenophibic media, need to stay angry and to use that anger to challenge this inward looking hard Brexit Government and the media who want us to be angry towards the EU.

No one should be angry towards fellow citizens who decided to vote for Brexit - they were invited to cast their vote, and they did - but angry towards the powerful politicians and bullying media who continue to pursue their own agendas. I expect that there are quite a few who voted for Brexit who would object to the talk of war and hate we are starting to hear.

We should ignore those who don't like (or understand) debate and democracy and keep pointing out - keep shouting - that it doesn't have to be the worst kind of Brexit.

We are going to leave the EU because the referendum vote said we should - but the nature of our leaving is still up for debate and we need to challenge this xenophobia which could easily damage the interests of this country.

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