Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
Explainer: Theresa May’s ‘New Brexit Deal’
Explainer: Theresa May’s ‘New Brexit Deal’
Nov 26, 2024 8:32 AM

Over the weekend, Theresa May’s cross-party Brexit negotiations collapsed, but their worst ideas live on.

At 4 p.m. London time, Prime Minister May unveiled the terms of what she calls a “bold” effort to pass her Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB). She condensed her “new Brexit deal” into 10 points:

Our NewBrexitDeal makes a 10-point offer to everyone in Parliament who wants to deliver the result of the referendum:

The government will seek to conclude alternative arrangements to replace the backstop by December 2020, so that it never needs to be mitment that, should the e into force, the government will ensure that Great Britain will stay aligned with Northern Ireland;The negotiating objectives and final treaties for our future relationship with the EU will have to be approved by MPs;A new workers’ rights bill that guarantees workers’ rights will be no less favorable than in the EU;There will be no change in the level of environmental protection when we leave the EU;The UK will seek as close to frictionless trade in goods with the EU as possible while outside the single market and ending free movement;We will keep up to date with EU rules for goods and agri-food products that are relevant to checks at border protecting the thousands of jobs that depend on just-in-time supply chains;The government will bring forward a promise for MPs to decide on to break the deadlock;There will be a vote for MPs on whether the deal should be subject to a referendum; andThere will be a legal duty to secure changes to the political declaration to reflect this new deal.

All of mitments will be guaranteed in law – so they will endure at least for this parliament.

May declared, “If MPs vote against the second reading of this bill, they are voting to stop Brexit.”

The biggest news is that May dropped her opposition to the possibility of a second referendum, which its supporters dub a “People’s Vote.” There is no majority in Parliament for a second referendum, and May has not promised a free vote. That has led Liberal Democrats to maintain their opposition.

The bill attempts to appeal to Labour Party members while foreclosing the possibility of a no-deal Brexit, favored by many members of her own Conservative Party. But Labour MPs, who favor a permanent customs union, reject May’s promise” offer of a vote on “a temporary customs union.”

The WAB still maintains the possibility that the entire UK will remain subject to EU rule from Brussels in perpetuity, if both sides can find no solution to the Irish border.

The requirement that MPs approve all future “negotiating objectives” in advance has been described as “May essentially trying to let Parliament tie her successor’s hands” by Mail on Sunday deputy political editor Harry Cole. Roughly two-thirds of current MPs voted Remain.

“There’s nothing new or bold about this bad buffet of non-Brexit options,” said former Conservative Party leader Ian Duncan Smith.

Most of the “bold, new” proposals had been offered before Jeremy Corbyn wrote the cross-party talks had “gone as far as they can” on Friday. He cited the government’s “weakness and instability,” as well as the possibility of “importing chlorinated chicken” from the U.S.

A significant change is May’s attempt to woo Labour MPs by promising to “keep up to date with EU rules” and that “workers’ rights will be no less favorable than in the EU.”

Beneath this laden language is the reality that the Conservative government agreed to trade all the potential benefits of Brexit: the ability to control its own regulatory environment to create a better and more dynamic economy. It cannot eliminate regulations and create a more attractive business environment, to Brussels’ and Corbyn’s delight. Nor can it choose a similar level of prised of different rules that better fit its unique domestic situation.

The UK leaving its historic role as a brake on EU centralization, just as Emmanuel Macron promises an “ambitious” agenda and Guy Verhofstadt dream of a new European empire, assures the red tape will multiply exponentially.

British subjects e rule-takers, unable to enjoy either the benefits of full membership or the independence to chart their own economic course.

This was always going to be the UK’s fate, under May’s plan, until the contentious issue of the Irish backstop gets settled. (Brussels and Belfast both understand that the matter is settled.) May’s genius came in selling the arrangement to Labour MPs as a way of locking in economic regimentation.

Her plan shipwrecked because from Corbyn’s vantage point on the far-Left, the EU’s statism looks like neoliberalism. Corbyn demanded a promise that UK labor legislation is more exacting than EU regulations. In her speech, May vowed “to assure that UK workers’ rights are always as good as, or better than, EU rules.” But the fourth point says that labor regulations “will be no less favorable” than the EU. It is unclear which language will be codified; Mayhas not promised to make the WAB’s full text available before the Whitsun recess. Parliament will vote on the bill during the week of June 3, causing the vote to coincide with President Donald Trump’s state visit for the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Short term, Corbyn wants the WAB to explicitly state the UK can hold to more stringent labor and welfare standards than the EU. Long term, he wants to move the UK further Left than the EU will allow and for May’s government to collapse. Backing out of the cross-party talks moves him closer to both ends.

Brexiteers including Jacob Rees-Mogg have signaled they will oppose the deal, both because of previous broken promises and the unspoken reality that the party will soon have a new leader. May agreed during her latest meeting with the 1922 Committee that she will set a timetable for stepping down as prime minister after the vote, win or lose. They hope for a more forthright advocate of Brexit to seize all the opportunities for growth, independence, and innovation it offers, including its ratification of the principle of subsidiarity. (Hence, the importance of binding her sucessor’s hands.)

At least 11 MPs who supported the bill during the third meaningful vote have changed their minds. One such Tory now predicts the bill will fail by 150 votes. At this point, the bill looks poised to fail by historic margins exceeded only by … itself.

The June vote looks like May’s D-Day.

Theresa May has tried every conceivable method of making this pottage palatable, short of improving its ingredients. She – and the UK – could have fared better by trusting the wisdom of UK voters, the capacity of the free market, and the promise of independence instead of deceptive negotiators abroad and faux bipartisanship at home.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
Acton Commentary: The Pope, the Rabbi, and the Moral Economy
In mentary, “The Pope, the Rabbi, and the Moral Economy,” Samuel pares recent statements by Britain’s Chief Rabbi, Lord Jonathan Sacks, and Pope Benedict XVI, on the market economy and other social questions. “Benedict and Sacks rigorously deny that markets are intrinsically flawed,” Gregg writes. “Each also maintains that there are fundamental limits to state power. They do, however, insist that morality’s ultimate e from neither state nor market.” Gregg demonstrates the parallels between Pope Benedict XVI’s Caritas in Veritate...
Caritas in Veritate: Benedict’s (non-partisan) Truth
At the time of his election in April 2005, Pope Benedict XVI was widely perceived to be a “conservative” in our modern political parlance. It should not surprise, then, that mentators have expressed either shock or joy, depending on their own affiliations, with last Tuesday’s publication of his encyclical letter Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth), the first extended statement on social and economic issues of his pontificate. Conservatives are dismayed by his calls for increased foreign aid, the redistribution...
More Thoughts from a Protestant on Caritas in Veritate
In an earlier post, I already set out my own attitude of humility before the pope’s encyclical. I recognize the respect due both his office and his tremendous personal learning. There is no question that what the pope has said about the nature of truth is stupendously good. In that post, I expressed a degree of unease with some of the economic thought, at least as I perceived it, in the encyclical. Looking it over again, here are the parts...
Should Europeans Work on Sundays?
Today’s Wall Street Journal Europe carries an editorial titled “Jamais on Sunday” approving of the French government’s attempt to allow some businesses to open on Sunday: Parliament is likely today to pass a bill that would scrap the 1906 law restricting Sunday work. The law’s original purpose was to keep Sundays sacred — France’s empty churches show how well that’s worked — and the Catholic Church remains a strong supporter. But it has e emblematic of the regulatory red tape...
Lord Griffiths on Caritas in Veritate: Pope is the man on the money
Commenting on how Pope Benedict XVI addressed the economic crisis and development challenges in “Caritas in Veritate” is Lord Brian Griffiths of Fforestfach, a member of the British House of Lords and Vice-Chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He has served in an advisory capacity to the Acton Institute and delivered published papers on globalization and Third World development at the Institute’s international conferences. Click here for the original article appearing in The Times. July 13, 2009 The Times Pope Benedict...
Caritas in Veritate: The United States, an Over-Consumer in Energy?
Energy has been a hot topic not just in the United States but throughout the world. From cap-and-trade legislation to the talks that occurred at the G8 Summit, energy is making headlines everywhere. Caritas in Veritate also addresses the issue of energy; however, it is in a different light from that which is occurring in the politics. In Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict calls for us to be more conscious of our use of energy, and for larger, more developed...
Why Caritas in Veritate Is Important For India and China
I recently spoke with journalist Antonio Gaspari of the the Zenit news agency about Caritas in Veritate. Here’s the interview that Zenit published: Kishore Jayabalan: Development Involves “Breathing Space” ROME, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- An Acton Institute director is explaining the importance of “Caritas in Veritate” for India and China, and is pointing out the innovative ideas of Benedict XVI’s latest encyclical. Kishore Jayabalan is the director of the Acton Institute’s Rome office. He is a former analyst for the...
Caritas in Veritate: Jayabalan and Gregg Radio Interviews
Kishore Jayabalan, director of Istituto Acton (the Acton Institute’s Rome office), was interviewed by Vatican Radio concerning the authentic human development concerns of the whole person, which is a topic discussed in Caritas in Veritate. Jayabalan discussed how development schemes throughout the world should look at the aspirations of each individual person. Furthermore, in Caritas in Veritate there is a mention of a “breathing space” used a few times in the encyclical. This breathing space aspect means developing a vibrant...
Health Care and Veterans
Ray Nothstine, Associate Editor at the Acton Institute, had his Acton Commentary, “Veterans First on Heath Care” republished by The Citizen, a newspaper in Fayetteville, Georgia. Nothstine explains in the article that the federal government needs to prove that it can provide adequate health care for 8 million veterans before we can trust them to provide health care reform for the entire United States. Nothstine points out flaws with medical system operated by the Veterans Administration. It is a timely...
Benedict Reflects on Caritas in Veritate
Joan Lewis, EWTN’s Rome bureau chief, covered Pope Benedict XVI’s general audience address on Wednesday, July 8 , during which the pontiff mented on his landmark social encyclical “Caritas in Veritate” the day after it was officially released by the Vatican. Below is a summary of Benedict’s address to visitors in Rome, including Lewis’s own translation. Yesterday, the Vatican released Pope Benedict’s third encyclical, “Caritas in veritate,” along with an official summary of the 144-page document that has six chapters...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved