Tag: European Union

I have not yet read White Fragility, but, according to K Biswas (The Critics, 29 March) the book seems short on advice for us white progressives who, writes author, Robin DiAngelo, cause “most daily damage” to people of colour. “Predictable” suggests blanket prejudice on DiAngelo’s part. As for “argumentation”, since when has teaching been about accepting the teacher’s words in meek silence? Vera Lustig Walton-on-Thames, Surrey Calls for change The UK desperately needs a new constitutional settlement as Anthony Seldon asserts (“J’Accuse!”, 29 March). Brexit is a project of the right, for the right. We do need to unify around a common set of values, as Seldon claims. The second complaint was loss of sovereignty. However, that can be a trap, as one reads only what one agrees with, and mixes, through the media, only with likeminded people. I suspect there are many like me, so it is unfortunate that the New Statesman does not realise that not all its subscribers believe remaining in the EU is a good thing. Michael Conley Manchester Your correspondent thinks that Kim Moore’s poem “I Let a Man” (The Critics, 15 March) could lead to the “annihilation of men”.

Aa Aa Common ground? The British leader said a short extension of Article 50 is necessary in order for the UK to leave the EU "in a timely and orderly way". May offered to sit down with Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn in order to agree on a Brexit plan. In a statement from Corbyn, the leader said he "welcomes her willingness to compromise to resolve the Brexit deadlock.” Following the meeting, Downing Street said: "Today’s talks were constructive, with both sides showing flexibility and a commitment to bring the current Brexit uncertainty to a close. We have agreed a programme of work to ensure we deliver for the British people, protecting jobs and security." Chilling effect As the chaos in Westminster continues, Sweden takes Swexit off the menu for the first time since the country joined the European Union in 1995. In a meeting held in Norrkoping, Sweden, the Left Party voted by a nine-vote margin to pause a campaign for Sweden to leave the EU. Social skills European populist parties are dominating conversations on social media platforms leading up to European elections in May, according to new research. The report found 0.1 per cent of online users were creating 10 per cent of content about European elections over a one-month period. The posts were coming from countries including Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Poland.

A weary European media had three questions after Theresa May’s last-minute attempt to “break the Brexit logjam”: why did it take her so long; will it work; and should Europe even be bothering any more. “There is not a playwright living or dead who could have devised a drama to incite as much fury, exhaustion and resignation as Brexit,” wrote the Irish Independent in an exasperated editorial complaining of “near-total chaos” in Westminster. “The prime minister has at last woken up to the fact she must either step up, or step out … But hovering for too long in mid-air can only ever end in disaster; let’s hope this desperate last roll of the dice is not too little, too late.” 'Jezz the two of us': what the papers said about May's overture to Corbyn Read more With just 10 days to a no-deal Brexit, “May has completely changed her strategy,” despaired Germany’s Die Zeit after the prime minister announced her intention of seeking a compromise with Labour and a short further extension from the EU. “She has realised she cannot secure Brexit through her own party, because a third of Tory MPs are Brexit fundamentalists who dislike her deal and refuse all compromise. So she has to find another solution – and her gaze naturally falls on the opposition.” But May knows full well that any softening of Brexit risks a deep split in her party: “That is why she waited so long. She would never have taken this step if Britain was not about to crash out in a few days’ time. But now “everything is made far, far more difficult by the timetable – we need an agreement before 10 April, the day of the emergency EU summit. In the Netherlands, NRC Handelsblad said that after “nearly three years in their stranglehold, May has finally thrown off the hawks in her own party”. “To grant a brief postponement, Brussels will need a guarantee that Britain will exit before the European elections on 23 May,” the paper said. “That could prove difficult for London to provide before the agreement has been ratified in parliament.” Le Monde was equally sceptical.

A key ally of the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, has called for EU leaders to reject Theresa May’s appeal for a further short delay to Brexit, in a sign of the dangers of the prime minister’s strategy. Theresa May calls for talks with Jeremy Corbyn in attempt to save Brexit Read more The EU’s heads of state and government had agreed at their last summit that the UK could stay in the bloc until 22 May but only on the basis that the withdrawal agreement was ratified by 29 March. An unconditional extension to that date was firmly rejected during the leaders’ discussions in Brussels due to the danger that it risked a full-blown crisis before the elections, offering up ammunition for Eurosceptic parties. EU should insist on long extension with participation in EU elections.” The EU could not impose a long extension on the British government as any decision would need to be endorsed by all 28 member states. It could, however, present a long extension on a take-it-or-leave-it basis, leaving the British government with the option of leaving on 12 April without a deal – or signing up to a delay to Brexit of at least nine months and, more likely, a year or longer. Denmark’s prime minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, tweeted: “Since we could agree to postpone Brexit to right before EP [European parliament] election given the approval of May’s agreement, we should also be patient if there suddenly is a cross-party way forward in UK. There is a risk by being ambiguous you create a crisis on the UK side.” EU diplomats were quick to point to the legal text in last month’s decision on extension agreed by May and the 27 leaders. It states that the UK would be “under obligation” to hold elections if still a member state on 23 May. One EU diplomat said the prime minister had created “a darkest hour moment” that could help her agree the withdrawal agreement and a revised political declaration by 22 May. But it could also end in no deal, the diplomat said.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has said it should not be taken for granted that the EU would grant the UK a long extension on its departure from the bloc. Welcoming Ireland’s Leo Varadkar to Paris for talks at the Élysée on Tuesday, Macron said that as the clock ticked down and a no-deal Brexit became more likely, it was far from evident that the EU would agree to a British request for a further article 50 extension. “A long extension, implying the UK takes part in European elections and European institutions, has nothing easy or automatic about it,” Macron said. “I say that again very strongly. Our priority must be the good functioning of the EU and the single market. The EU can’t be held hostage long-term by the resolution of a political crisis in the UK.” No-deal Brexit more likely by the day, says Michel Barnier Read more He continued: “The three times rejection of the withdrawal agreement by the House of Commons and the rejection of all alternative plans now puts us on the path of a UK exit without a deal. “As the European council decided in March, it’s now up to the UK to present a credible alternative plan backed by a majority before 10 April in order to avoid that. Publicly, he has positioned France as the toughest-talking nation in the Brexit saga, stressing the need for the UK to present a way forward. Macron said the EU’s priority was protecting its workings and the single market: “We have a future to build together in the EU and a future relationship to build with the UK, which will be an ally, but we can’t spend the next months still trying to fix the rules of our divorce and looking to the past.” Macron met Varadkar, the Irish taoiseach, to discuss no-deal plans for the Irish border as well as how to handle any extension request from Theresa May. Macron said the EU had total “unity and solidarity” with Ireland.

The effort is being led by Yvette Cooper, a senior Labour MP, and Sir Oliver Letwin, a Tory former minister, who want to get their one-line bill through the House of Commons in just one day on Wednesday. Where next for Brexit? 1 April MPs rejected all indicative votes 3 April More indicative votes Another meaningful vote Cooper (business motion) Clear result Passes Passes Rejected Commons debate Possible runoff with May’s deal Passes Lords debate MPs’ choice wins May’s deal wins Passes Government goes back to Brussels May makes plan for article 50 extension Passes 10 April Possible extension Leave after short extension Brussels approves at EU summit 12 April No-deal exit Revoke article 50 Extend article 50 23 May UK takes part in EU elections Second referendum Renegotiate with EU General election 1 April MPs rejected all indicative votes 3 April More indicative votes Another meaningfulvote Cooper (Business motion) Passes Clear result Passes Rejected Commons debate Passes Possible runoff with May’s deal Lords debate MPs’ choice wins Passes May’s deal wins May makes plan for article 50 extension Government goes back to Brussels Passes 10 April Leave after short extension Brussels approves at EU summit Possible extension 12 April No-deal exit Revoke article 50 Extend article 50 23 May UK takes part in EU elections Second referendum Renegotiate with EU General election Guardian graphic An amendment passed by MPs last week gives them the power to take control of the order paper on certain dates, which they are hoping will give parliament time to debate and pass the bill before May attends an EU summit in Brussels next Wednesday. This is the natural point at which the prime minister would have to request an extension to article 50 in order to stop the UK crashing out without a deal on April 12. Cooper said the government could decide how long an extension to propose. 3 April 2019 Parliament debates again Parliament may decide to have another set of indicative votes - possibly on the paper will be a compromise option that combines a customs union with a confirmatory public vote. 4 April 2019 Another meaningful vote? EU leaders would decide how long at a summit on this date. However, if Brexit has been further delayed, the UK would hold European elections on the Thursday. Cooper and Letwin brought forward their legislation against no deal after MPs failed to alight on a consensus for an alternative to May’s Brexit deal in indicative votes on Monday. A source close to the Independent Group said there was a real risk that a win for a customs union in the House of Commons could have scuppered the chances of a new poll and that referendum supporters had already compromised by supporting the indicative votes process, which put their preferred option at risk.

Theresa May and her cabinet are looking for ways to bring her EU withdrawal agreement back to the Commons for a fourth attempt at winning MPs' backing. EU leaders plan for no deal as other options dissolve Friday's defeat was the third time MPs have rejected her withdrawal agreement - the first vote was lost by 230 votes, the second by 149. Government position 'clear' MPs will hold another set of non-binding votes on various Brexit options in the Commons on Monday. None of MPs' eight proposed Brexit options secured a majority in the last round of "indicative votes" on 27 March, but the options which received the most votes were a customs union with the EU or a referendum on any deal. He said staying in a customs union with the EU would go against the result of the referendum and the Conservatives' election manifesto. The aspiration, strange as it sounds, for some time now has been to prove to MPs that the deal is the least worst of all the options... Read Laura's thoughts in full Earlier this month, EU leaders gave the PM until 12 April to come up with a Brexit solution; if her deal had made it through Parliament on Friday that date would have been pushed back to 22 May to allow time to pass the necessary legislation. Since the deal was rejected, Mrs May now has until 12 April to seek a longer extension to avoid the UK leaving without a deal. Mrs May said it was "almost certain" there would have to be an extended delay to Brexit to allow the UK to take part in the European elections at the end of May if her deal does not go through. Monday, 1 April: MPs hold another set of votes on various Brexit options to see if they can agree on a way forward Wednesday, 3 April: Potentially another round of so-called "indicative votes" Wednesday, 10 April: Emergency summit of EU leaders to consider any UK request for further extension Friday, 12 April: Brexit day, if UK does not seek/EU does not grant further delay 23-26 May: European Parliamentary elections Meanwhile, Leave voters registered their anger at the latest vote rejection with a protest at Westminster. Will European leaders accept a longer delay to Brexit?

The politics around Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to France were far from auspicious. Beijing has several reasons to dislike the China policy of Emmanuel Macron: This, in the language of Chinese foreign policy, amounts to a lack of “strategic trust”. These commercial deals reflect mutual corporate interests but also a Chinese effort to build trust on this state visit to France. French President Emmanuel Macron has been reluctant to sign a memorandum of understanding to take part in China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”. Xi Jinping’s Paris visit showed how hard it is for China and Europe to go beyond principled statements on critical issues such as the global reduction of carbon emissions. Photo: EPA-EFE Today, the issue that dominates Europe-China political discussions is the architecture of global governance. It is unnatural for a Chinese leader to hold an exchange with the German chancellor and the president of the European Commission during a state visit to France. In sum, Xi’s state visit to France ended on a positive note despite the quasi impossibility to agree on an international agenda of cooperation. Chinese diplomacy took Europe as it is, working in Rome with a divided and weakened Italy, in Paris with a Franco-German-EU coalition, treating the latter slightly better from the perspective of commercial deals. This clearly does not solve the problem of a lack of a political engine for Europe-China cooperation, not does it solve the numerous divergences between China and Europe on political values, governance models and the state of international affairs.

Decisive rejection of the UK-EU withdrawal agreement in the House of Commons for a third time, following hot on the heels of the House’s rejection of eight alternative approaches, raises uncomfortable questions about the quality of the UK’s decision-making process. But why is this system so apparently helpless, and can anything be done to resolve the UK’s ambitions for a new relationship with the EU? The constitution First, reliance on an “unwritten” constitution is an impressive achievement – if it can be pulled off. It could spell out the currently ambiguous relationship between government and parliament. The opposition “opposes”, biding its time until the mercurial electoral system brings it back to power. But it can be corrosive when (as in Northern Ireland from 1921 to 1972) there is no such alternation, or when (as in the case of Brexit) the stakes are very high. Geopolitical perspectives Third, the criticism that many leading Brexiteers are insufficiently familiar with EU structures and procedures carries weight, but it may be that they also misperceive Britain’s place in the contemporary world. Put differently, when negotiators on behalf of the EU27 face their British counterparts, they speak for a bloc that is six to seven times more substantial than the UK in these areas. Recognising that there is nothing sacrosanct about a consultative referendum, that government and opposition need not be deadly enemies and that the UK is by far the weaker player in the Brexit negotiations may be a big cultural challenge. Might it not also facilitate a more productive outcome to the UK’s negotiations with the EU?