Speaking Frankly

As the Brexit debacle gathers momentum with the face of Europe about to change for the foreseeable future, an event in recent history is perhaps worthy of recall.

The year was 1961 when the UK’S attempt to join the European Economic Community was effectively vetoed by the French President, Charles de Gaulle, in his famous speech. His view was that the UK would be an unreliable partner, characterised by the expression “Perfidious Albion”. If President De Gaulle is now watching, from above, the current infighting both in Brussels and within Westminster, it may be with a soupçon of schadenfreude, although he would probably prefer to use the term ‘joie maligne’.

Fortunately, his successor, President Georges Pompidou, was much more sympathetic to his British cousins and in 1973 the UK was finally welcomed into the European family of nations.

Were it possible to send our apologies to President Pompidou for the recent turn of events, it would be a small gesture of solidarity from his British friends.

While the British Government is emphatic that our relationships with our friends across the English Channel will be unaffected by the change of technical status, to paraphrase the words of our Prime Minister, a divorce is a divorce, with the consequences affecting every aspect of trade and commerce.

With the return of a blue passport, could there be a better example of Charles de Gaulle’s view of Great Britain as a nation apart?

ROBERT MITCHELL Matthews Drive, Newtongrange

Midlothian