The Answer to Brexit? – Don’t Negotiate with the EU

by Mark Angelides

The EU has proven itself to be hostile o Britain’s interests. As the President of the EU Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker has said “other countries will see what happens to the UK, and will want to stay in the EU” and “Deserters will not be welcomed with open arms”: A clear and direct threat against Britain’s exit. The EU will make life as hard as possible for the nation and the people. Already, Juncker is asking for a £50 Billion “divorce settlement”. What should Britain do?
The answer is not overly complex. We should have zero negotiations with the EU. Britain should ignore the EU and its institutions, commissions and presidents, and start working on reciprocal arrangements with nation states. If the EU is looking to threaten an bully and extort a sovereign nation, then they have sacrificed any legal right they have to be the sole instrument through which negotiation takes place. What are they? Bullies? Terrorists? Extorters? Either way, the UK should have no wish (nor actual obligation) to deal with them.
Brexit is not a Divorce…
The much used phases of “divorce settlement” and “amicable divorce” are not only misleading and inaccurate; they play into the hands of the EU negotiators. If the Brits believe it is a “divorce-style” situation, they will be more likely to accept that some kind of payment should be made in the name of fairness…and this is what the EU wants Britons to think.
Brexit is a closure of club membership. If you join a gym, you pay your fees and you follow the rules which allow you to use the facilities. When you leave, you are under no obligation to either continue following the rules or to pay continued membership dues. This is the position the UK government should be taking and portraying to the British people.
But if I were a Divorce…
If the UK were (for no good reason) to treat this separation as a divorce, then surely the EU should be paying the UK! The Uk was courted, romanced and eventually succumbed to the charms of the large and powerful EU bloc. In good faith, the UK allowed the EU to take care of things, have the power and speak on her behalf, all that was asked in return was to follow the rules the EU set down and to pay billions of pounds each year (and of course, his (the EU’s) bank accounts were not the UK’s, and in fact, he could not get his accounts signed off on for almost 20 years. And then the love affair was over. The UK was sick of being treated like a dog to be whipped and controlled. But when the UK tried to leave, he became aggressive and threatening. He told the UK that she couldn’t speak to other men (the EU forbids the UK from talking to other countries about trade deals until it gives the OK). He said that he would punish the UK and her children (the people) to stop future partners from ever leaving him. And here we are now…
If this were a divorce, who would really end up paying who? If the UK MUST pay the EU, where is the UK’s share of the assets? The EU owns many large building across the continent, where is the UK’s share?
 
The UK should not be playing the EU’s game. Go to the member countries and tell them what kind of deal they want and what they are willing to offer in return. If the nations say “non” or “nein” because the EU said it will do all the deals, then offer a helping hand to that nation in escaping from this brutal institution.