MP’s ‘blind hope’ for a good Brexit deal?
JAKE Berry briefly made the headlines over the weekend when he announced he’d been wrong to urge people to ‘remain’ in the Brexit referendum in 2016.
He described himself as a ‘reluctant remainer’ – I suspect there are few ‘remainers’ who’d described themselves as anything else.
There can’t be too many people who woke up of a morning and their first thought was ‘Hurrah, we’re members of the wonderful European Union, run out of Brussels.’
But it’s Mr Berry’s reason for his change of heart which is intriguing.
“Lancashire, which has always had a global facing economy, is benefiting from the decision to leave the European Union.
“We are making great progress in our negotiations with the EU.
“I am convinced Theresa May will secure a good deal for trade with the EU and the wider world which will be good news for Lancashire companies.”
Cue much praise from pro-Brexit colleagues in the Tory Party, and, I suspect, from many of the 66 per cent of people in Rossendale who voted for Brexit.
But the problem I see in Mr Berry’s conversion is that he isn’t sharing any evidence for his optimism. It appears to be blind hope more than anything that Theresa May will get a good deal.
As things stand today, we don’t have a deal with the EU in place at all. And it doesn’t appear the EU have actually conceded any points yet in the negotiations which have taken place.
Pro-Brexit, or antiBrexit, the lack of supporting evidence behind declaration of contrition and new-found confidence, should concern us all. Maybe Mr Berry can shed some more light on his newfound hope.