The big Brexit shambles
Theresa May’s government is in meltdown as British politicians fail to agree on a way forward for Brexit
IT’S probably one of the last countries on Earth where you’d expect to see the wheels coming off. Reliable and dependable, with a government that runs like clockwork – that’s how the Brits like to see themselves.
But events that unfolded in Britain recently were pretty dramatic: five ministers resigned within a matter of days, including two high-profile cabinet members, businesses threatened to ditch the country in droves and the prime minister was at risk of being booted out of her own party. For South Africans this might sound like just another day in the Jacob Zuma years, but it’s left the poor Brits reeling. What’s going on? American president Donald Trump loves making over-the-top pronouncements about other countries but for once he hit the nail on the head when he described Britain as being in a state of turmoil. Pretty rich coming from him, but at least African and Arab nations could heave a sigh of relief that for once he wasn’t pointing a finger at them.
Meanwhile amid the storm UK prime minister Theresa May (61), in British stiff upperlip fashion, has been trying to convince everyone it’s business as usual – but no one’s buying it.
WHY ALL THE DRAMA?
In a nutshell, the Brexit chickens have come home to roost. In 2016 Britain stunned the world with the shock outcome of its referendum in which citizens voted in favour of splitting from the European Union (EU).
It’s now May’s job to make sure it happens. This entails going back to the drawing board and rewriting 45 years’ worth of EU treaties and agreements relating to things such as agricultural quotas and the landing rights of planes. What a bore! Little wonder MPs from her own Conservative Party – better known as the Tories – are rebelling.
MAKE OR BREAK
With the clock ticking ever closer to the 29 March 2019 deadline when Brexit swings into action, May recently told her cabinet to stop behaving like toddlers and get into line. She presented them with a Brexit blueprint which she demanded they support.
Hard-line Brexiteers weren’t having any of it and all hell broke loose, triggering a flood of resignations. Within days five ministers had quit, including David Davis (69), the secretary of state for exiting the EU, and foreign minister Boris Johnson.
Since 2016 it’s been Davis’ job to oversee Brexit so his resignation was disastrous. But Johnson’s was catastrophic. The former London mayor has been one
of the most outspoken advocates of Brexit – in fact, he headed the campaign to leave the EU, winning the hearts and minds of voters.
In a public letter explaining his resignation he said the Brexit dream was dying and suggested May’s strategy would see the UK relegated to the status of an EU colony.
Behind the scenes he was far less polite. Insiders say he slammed the deal and said trying to sell it to supporters would be like “polishing a turd”.
BREXIT: HARD OR SOFT?
That’s the problem – British voters gave the green light for Britain to exit the EU but didn’t spell out whether they wanted a “hard Brexit” – a clean break like the hard-line Brexiteers such as Johnson want – or a “soft Brexit”, which would allow Britain to enjoy a few of the perks of a close alliance with the EU, such as free trade.
For the past two years May has appeared to sit on the fence about whether she’ll deliver a hard or soft Brexit. But with negotiators set to go into talks with the EU to finalise the divorce details she was forced to stick her neck out and pick a side.
It seemed what ultimately swung her decision was a threat by major manufac- turers, including Airbus, BMW and Jaguar Land Rover, that they’d have to move their factories and investments out of the UK in the event of a hard Brexit because of all the red tape and new customs tariffs. This could sink Britain, the world’s fifth-largest economy.
Brexiteers too it badly and branded May a sellout. But she’s sticking to her guns – in a recent speech in parliament she said she was dealing with the practicality of Brexit rather than the dream.
MAYDAY, MAYDAY!
Ever since May took office Brexit has overshadowed everything she’s done, turning her into a bit of a lame duck.
Ironically she wasn’t even in favour of Brexit in the first place.
But while her predecessor, David Cameron (51), had the good sense to quit after the shock 2016 referendum result, saying he couldn’t negotiate the EU split when he didn’t believe in it, ambitious May was prepared to compromise on her principles in order to land the top job.
However hard she’s tried to buy into Brexit, she isn’t putting on a very convincing show. In fact, her critics have dubbed her “Maybot” because of her slightly robotic style when delivering speeches about it and other pressing issues.
They’ve also taken to referring to her snidely as “the zombie prime minster” because she refuses to roll over and admit defeat even though it’s clear she’s dead in the political water. SOURCES: GUARDIAN.CO.UK, REUTERS.COM, NEWYORKER.COM, INDEPENDENT.CO.UK, BBC.CO.UK, THEJOURNAL.IE