Consensus must be found before Brexit talks

Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of the East Kilbride News.

These remain uncertain times in the world of British politics – and for the United Kingdom as a whole.

Last Thursday’s General Election delivered a hung parliament which, it has to be said, was a result nobody was anticipating.

You can read more about the result locally on pages 4 and 5 of today’s paper.

In order to try and form a government, Prime Minister Theresa May is attempting to do a deal with the 10 Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MPs returned to Westminster. What was that about a coalition of chaos...

Labour exceeded expectations with their vote share and number of seats won – but a majority from a ‘rainbow coalition’ remains beyond them.

With Brexit negotiations kicking off next week, Britain finds itself in a position which is not strong and stable.

Where do we go from here? There are so many factors to consider but some items need to be further up the priority list than others. Firstly, any ‘agreement’ between the Tories and DUP at Westminster must pass the sniff test.

If it doesn’t smell right in terms of the Northern Irish peace process and the Good Friday Agreement, then Mrs May is playing a dangerous game.

Secondly, the Westminster government must reach out to the other political parties ahead of Brexit talks and find consensus going forward.

Thirdly, the rights of the three million EU citizens living in the UK and one million Brits living in the EU must be clarified. Finally, a hard border in Ireland must be avoided at all costs.

Certainty and stability can be provided if there is pragmatism and the political will for both.