Tag Archives: France
Fṛm ɖ Obzrvr │ Even Macron still hopes Brexit Britain will come to its senses
Īvn Macron stl hops Brexit Britn wl cm t its snsz
(Transcription of an Observer article of 28 November 2021)
Līvñ ɖ YY hz hd a teṛbl impact on ol partiz. W mst grasp ɖt it z a poḷsi ɖt canot b md t wrc
Wiłm Cīgn, Súnde 28 Nvmbr 2021
“Xcz m, sr, bt ẃ r y wẹrñ a popi? Rmembṛns De wz on Ʈrzde.” Ɖ spīcr wz a Spaniś jntlṃn. Ɖ sīn: ɖ brecfstrūm v a hotel in Valladolid, an aur’z trenrîd norʈ-wst v Mdrid, on Saṭde, ɖ 13ʈ v ɖs munʈ. I wz struġlñ wɖ ɖ tostr. Y nǒ hǎ it z ẃn wn arîvz at a slfsrvis brecfstrūm.
I rplaid ɖt I olwz wòr a popi untl Rmembṛns Súnde, ẃn ɖr wz ɖ tṛdiśnl Seṇtaf p’red in Lundn. “Ā,” h sd. “Fgiv m, bt ẃ on rʈ dd yr cuntri vot ɖ we it dd?”
It trnd ǎt ɖt mî inṭloktr wz a hisṭripṛfesr at Mdrid Yṇvrṣti. H pṛsidd t por hiz hart ǎt abt ɖ traɉdi v Brexit, n ɖ apōlñ impact it z hvñ on Britn’z rleśnz wɖ ɖ cuntriz ɖt Boris Jonsn rfŕz t – aftr ol ɖ ićnomic n dipḷmatic carnij hiz Brexitrz r inflictñ – az “ǎr Yṛpiyn partnrz.”
Viẓtñ Spen aftr olmst tū yirz v absns fṛm ɖ continnt wz an olmst yforic xpirịns. Yṛp! A fîn historic Spaniś siti, nn ɖ wrs fr biyñ reḷtivli uņoun – xpt, phps, fr its ftbōltīm – t ɖ Brits hu fevr ɖ Costa del Brexit. Ẃt a trīt t b rīviẓtñ ɖ Yṛpiyn Yńn w bcem part v undr mor inlîtnd Cnsrṿtiv līdrz ɖn ɖ preznt śǎr.
Tru, t vizit ǎr dōtr – hu tīćz Ñgliś in Valladolid – ɖr wz an ōfl lot v fṛstretñ Brexit byrocṛsi. Ɖs wz on top v ɖ tîrsm, f hoļi unḍstanḍbl, pepr, cmpytr n smartfon wrc nseṣtetd bî Covid pricōśnz. Bt ẃt a rlif it wz t si ɖt, unlîc in Jonsn’z Ñgḷnd, mascs wr biyñ wòrn evrẃr: sm cnx́n, śrli, wɖ ɖ lo Covid caźltiret in Spen.
I hd jst réd, in an inṭvy wɖ ɖ Ny Yṛpiyn, ɖt gret Yṛpiyn Ceniʈ Clārc obzrvñ ɖt undr Jonsn, huz Brexit-inflictd damij cn no longr b cnfyzd wɖ ɖ impact v Covid, “w r nǎ gtñ denjṛsli clos t ɖ ‘ilectd dictetrśp’ ɖt Lord Hêlśm, ɖ formr lord ćanslr, wornd s abt haf a snć̣ri ago”.
Bt ɖr z hop. Ɖ wd-bi dictetr z biyñ faund ǎt. I hv bn rīrīdñ Ánṭni Pǎl’z Dans t ɖ Ḿzic v Tîm. Ɖr z a gret pasij: “Hvr, lîc most untruswrɖi prsnz, Uncl Jîlz hd ɖ gift v inspîrñ confidns in a gret mni ppl wɖ hūm h cem in contact. Īvn ɖoz hu, t ɖer cost, hd noun him fr yirz, smtmz faund dificlti in esṭmetñ ɖ leñʈs t ẃć h cd cari hiz lac v rlạbiḷti – n indd śir inćpaṣti – in matrz v biznis.” Dz ɖs rmînd y v enwn?
Ɖ gd nyz z ɖt nt onli r hiz parḷmntri colīgz n ɖoz hŭdwnct “red wōl” votrz bginñ t rumbl Jonsn: it lcs az ɖo ɖ līdr v ɖ opziśn, Sr Cir Starmr, hz fîṇli dscuvrd, in ɖ spirit v hiz gret prīdisesr Haṛld Wilsn, ɖt riḍkl z a fîn dbetñtūl.
Amñ ɖ Jonsn apôntīz hu srtnli dzrv t b riḍkld z hiz so-cōld “ngośietr”, Devid Frost. Unforćṇtli, Starmr canot gt at him d’recli bcz Jonsn caṭpultd Frost intu ɖ Hǎs v Lordz. Bt I gaɖr Lord Adonis hz a gd g at him ɖr. Frost z on record bfr ɖ reḟrendm az pôntñ t ɖ cnsidṛbl advantjz v membrśp v ɖ custmzyńn n sngl marcit, ẃć h ɖen pt at p t 8% v GDP, or £1,500 a yir p’ prsn on aṿrij incm.
H śd hv stuc t hiz gunz n nt sold hiz soul t ɖ Brexit devl. Ẃć brñz s bac t Starmr, hu wz rît t opoz Brexit, n śd olso most srtnli hv stuc t hiz gunz. Ɖ dzastr v Brexit z an opn gol fr ɖ opziśn. It z no gd ispǎzñ a poḷsi v “mcñ Brexit wrc”. Ɖ fact v ɖ matr z ɖt Brexit z’nt wrcñ n canot wrc.
Dspt ol ɖ iṛteśn Brexit hz inflictd on ǎr partnrz in Yṛp, ɖe r awer ɖt ɖ snṣbl ʈñ fr s wd b t priper ɖ we bac, olbiit wɖ ǎr teil btwn ǎr legz. Ɖ cuntriz v Yṛp nǒ ɖt ɖe beṇfitd fṛm Britiś membrśp – nt līst fṛm ɖ sngl marcit ɖt ɖ YC ćampịnd bfr luzñ its snsz.
In hiz ny bc Yṛp Bynd ɖ Yro, Ćarlz Īnoc v St Anṭni’z Colij, Oxḟd, qots Imańl Macron az seyñ: “In a fy yirz’ tîm, ɖ YC wl b ebl t fînd its ples, f it wśz” in ɖ YY – a YY ɖt wd b “rīfoc̣st on uncompṛmîzñ valyz n an ifctiv marcit.”
Mnẃl, cn enwn tel m f ɖr z eni presidnt fr ɖs dgri v naśnl slfharm?
***
Fṛm ɖ Gardịn │ Johnson’s foreign quarrels can’t conceal the truth about Brexit
Jonsn’z foṛn qoṛlz c’nt cnsil ɖ truʈ abt Brexit
(Transcription of a Guardian article of 31 October 2021)
Fiśñrǎz ntwɖstandñ, mć v Yṛp lcs on at ɖ YC’z plît wɖ astoniśmnt – n īvn, stl, simṗʈi
Wiłm Cīgn, 31 Octobr 2021
At ɖ rīsnt seḷbreśn v ɖ lîf n aćivmnts v mî frend n felo Rmenr Jon l’Care, I wz asct bî a līdñ acdemic ẃɖr I wz abṣlutli srtn ɖt w cd rījôn ɖ Yṛpiyn Yńn.
Ɖ ansr z ɖt I am nt. Bt az ɖ evidns v ɖ damij v ɖt fūliś reḟrendm dsiźn acruz, it z bcmñ mor n mor srtn ɖt w śd trî. At ɖ vri līst, w śd b rperñ fnsz n atmtñ t riistabliś az clos a rleśnśp az poṣbl – a cōz ćampịnd bî Lebr’z impresiv śadoćanslr, Rećl Rīvz.
V cors ɖr z an obvịs denjr ɖt an apḷceśn wd b gvn śort śrift bî Yṛpiynz, huz peśns wɖ, n simṗʈi fr, ɖ YC mst b clos t xōsćn – nt līst az a rzult v ɖ bizar n rɖr sinistr bhevyr v ǎr so-cōld ngośietr, Lord Frost. Bt ɖ ćansz r ɖt ǎr felo Yṛpiynz – w stl śer ɖ sem continnt – wd rgard it az in ɖer inṭrest, az wel az ǎrz, ɖt a grīṿs err śd b reṃdid.
It me sīm od t b seyñ ɖs in ɖ mdst v a fiśñ dspyt wɖ Frans, bt ɖs vri dspyt z a d’rect consiqns v Brexit, n ɖr r obvịs cnsrnz ɖt ɖ Jonsn/Frost aproć z t esc̣let ʈñz fr śort-trm p’liticl advantij. Ɖs guvnmnt jst luvz t “bizi gidi mîndz wɖ foṛn qoṛlz” (Hnri IV Part 2).
Yṛpiynz’ unḍstandñ v ɖ houl ẃć ɖs cuntri hz dug fr itslf wz iḷstretd rīsntli bî tū coments, fṛm a Bruslz cmiśnr n a rtîrd Deniś ftbōlr. Thierry Breton, ɖ cmiśnr fr ɖ intrnl marcit, sd: “Lc at ẃt z haṗnñ on ɖ sūṗmarcit ślvz. Lc at ẃt z haṗnñ at ɖ petṛlpumps. Lc at ẃt z haṗnñ wɖ ɖ śortij v nrsz n doctrz. Lc at ẃt z haṗnñ wɖ ɖ śortij v trucdrîvrz. Lc at ẃt z haṗnñ in ɖ cnstrux́nsectr.”
Brexit, sz Breton, hz bn “a ctastṛfi” fr ɖ YC. N Pītr Schmeichel – ɖ formr Manćestr Ynîtd pleyr n faɖr v Kasper, ɖ Lstr golcīpr – ẃn asct hiz vy v Brexit bî a membr v ɖ ōdịns jrñ an inṭvy ɖt wz mnt t b abt ftbōl, rplaid s’xñtli: “Ẃt on rʈ wr y ol ʈncñ v?”
Ɖz r jst sm xamplz v frendli obẓveśnz fṛm ppl ǎr prim̦inistr oceźṇli cōlz “ǎr Yṛpiyn frendz”. Closr t hom, a rīdr raili informz m ɖt ɖr z an eria v Wŭsṭśr ẃr “ɖe hv no aplpicrz, n, īvn f ɖe hd, ɖr r no trucs t dlivr ɖm t ɖ sūṗmarcit.”
Ɖ guvnmnt trîz t hîd bhnd Covid n ɖ fact ɖt ɖr r s’plîćen probḷmz arnd ɖ wrld. Bt ɖe r nʈñ lîc ɖ Brexit-magṇfaid s’plîćen iśuz hir. Funi hǎ Jrṃni, ẃć admitd a miłn imigṛnts instd v rpelñ ɖm, z nt suḟrñ ɖ śorṭjz v lebr ɖt w r.
Jrñ hiz bujitspīć, ɖ unrīcnstructd Brexitr Ćanslr Sŭnac wz screpñ ɖ botm v ɖ globl baṛl ẃn trayñ t fînd Brexit diṿdndz. Ɖ frīdm t ngośiet treḑīlz? Sori, ɖ pziśn ɖ guvnmnt fîndz itslf in z ɖt it hz gvn p fnomiṇli pṛductiv treḑīlz injoid az a YY membr n hz bn trōlñ arnd, cap in hand, lcñ fr a hanfl v far wrs dīlz, at gret xpns. Morovr, it hz nt iscept obzrvrz ɖt muvñ ɖ emḟsis on tred awe fṛm ɖ YY hz a neġtiv impact on ɖ YC’z targits fr rdysñ carbn imiśnz.
Agn, wn v ɖ mni beṇfits v YY lejsleśn ɖt w tc fr grantd wz its bnefisnt ifct on ɖ clenlinis v ǎr rivrz n bīćz. W r nǎ plúmñ ɖ depʈs, at a tîm ẃn Britiś wōtrcumṗniz sīm t b mor in ɖ nyz ɖn evr fr p’lūtñ ɖ wōtrz.
Ẃt Sŭnac wz nn tù cīn t emḟsîz last wīc wz ɖ Ofis fr Bujit Rsponsbiḷti’z calkleśn ɖt Brexit hz pṛdyst a prṃnnt hit v 4% t ɖs cuntri’s prodctivti, or GDP p’ capita. I cd hardli b’liv it – or phps I cd – ẃn Jorj Ysṭs, ɖ invîrnmntsecṛtri, dsmist ɖs on ɖ Tde program az “an old figr.” Sori, Mr Ysṭs, bt it z a figr ɖt rmenz vri mć wɖ s, n mcs a nonsns v ol ɖ guvnmnt’s clemz ɖt Brexit friz ɖ icoṇmi t incris its prodctivti.
Morovr, 4% me b a cnsrṿtiv esṭmet. Uɖr indipndnt bodiz, sć az Ɖ YC in a Ćenjñ Yṛp, pt ɖ rdux́n at nirr 6%. Hvr, w cn rlî on Prîṿt Î t levn ɖ glūm. I jst luvd its rīsnt hedlîn: “Brexit nt ɖ fōlt v Brexit.”
***