Bolitics The New Condem Government

[peterms]

Tory MP calls eurosceptics swivel-eyed, here.

 

The report also mentions Paxo confirming that he has heard senior tories using that term about other tories.

 

Cameron was reported by the FT a while ago to have used the term about anyone on his own side who wants to talk to him about Europe.

 

Why don't tory activists believe Feldman's denials, and Cameron's reassuring e-mail about the enormous respect he has for the pavement-pounders?  Simply because it is a common term in the tory party, often used about eurosceptics, and in fact has been in use in that way since the 1980s.  The reports are believed, and Cameron disbelieved, because the sneering use of this term about their own members has been common currency for decades.

 

In situations like this, often more damage is done by the repeated lies to cover it up, than would be done by facing up to it honestly.

 

[dont_do_it_doug.]

Dave's been awfully quiet of late.

I've been busy mate.

[CarewsEyebrowDesigner]

Crufts?

[dont_do_it_doug.]

Don't mind if I do.

[bickster]

I'm finding the Tory Party the best sitcom going at the moment

The traditional party of the business world seemingly wants to eat itself over two issues

Europe, most of the dimwitted swivel eyes want out because they can't see past the end of their noses, want Britain to return to some 1950's idyll that never existed all because that Vagina named man appeals to their idiotic base instincts. Businesses however have started screaming about it and there's only one eventual winner there imo and that's business. It won't take long for the workforce to catch on either, they might not trust the boss all the time but they'd trust him more than a politician when he says we need to be in Europe or jobs will have to go, hell the company might go completely. Business wants and needs to be in Europe, especially as the EU is about to get a free trade agreement with the USA for the first time. But the no square tomato brigade would give that up because they fear straight bananas! Its hilarious that the party of business seems to be alienating business by attempting to deny it a market place to sell in… you really can't make that up

Gay marriage - why the hell these people care what other people do is beyond me. Tebbit's comments yesterday should see doctors question his sanity, all reason when out of the window.

It seems to me there's two halves to this Tory Party and one lot is on the verge of buggering off to join vagina man in UKIP, which completely splits the right side of British politics and could see them locked out for another decade whilst they regroup.

I almost feel sorry for Dave, well not almost at all, just a tinge though as he's caught between a rock and a hard place. Half his MPs are shithouses who listen to the blue rinse brigade far too much but then again if that party hadn't been responsible for alienating the youth of the last 30 years from politics, it might not be happening

Trouble is, that lets Labour in…

Where's Private Fraser when you need him.

[tonyh29]

Business wants and needs to be in Europe,

 

More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU

 

 

 

 

 especially as the EU is about to get a free trade agreement with the USA for the first time.

 

 

 Morocco has a free trade agreement with the USA , so I'm sure we could rustle something up without the EU !!

 

afore mentioned EU  Free trade agreement is rumoured to be worth .5 % of Europes GDP .. better than nothing but it's hardly going to save Europe from it's current woes

Edited May 21, 2013 by tonyh29

[bickster]

Business wants and needs to be in Europe,

 

More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU

 

 

 

 

especially as the EU is about to get a free trade agreement with the USA for the first time.

 

 

 Morocco has a free trade agreement with the USA , so I'm sure we could rustle something up without the EU !!

 

afore mentioned EU  Free trade agreement is rumoured to be worth .5 % of Europes GDP .. better than nothing but it's hardly going to save Europe from it's current woes

You are the new Alex Salmond, I claim my five pounds!

[bickster]

Anyway, it won't matter, if this carries on (see what I did there) any longer there will be no referendum as the only electable party will be pro european.

Welcome to the new one party state!

[drat01]

"More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU"

 

That is one of the stats that bugs me because it's blatantly not true. A lot of companies depend on EU trade and the benefits that go with it as part of their overall business models. Companies of a certain size (typically those that generate the most monies and subsequent jobs) will rarely trade solely outside of the EU. The benefits that they gain and that the UK gain by being able to influence is far too much to throw away and depend solely on these markets that UKIP etc claim will fill such a void.

 

When organisations like the CBI etc are claiming that the EU is good for UK business you have to wonder why they make such a statement, I suspect it's not because they are all Lib Dems?

[tonyh29]

"More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU"

 

That is one of the stats that bugs me because it's blatantly not true.

 

 

well there are plenty of websites on this there interweb that you could link to prove that is so

[tonyh29]

 

 

Business wants and needs to be in Europe,

 

More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU

 

 

 

 

especially as the EU is about to get a free trade agreement with the USA for the first time.

 

 

 Morocco has a free trade agreement with the USA , so I'm sure we could rustle something up without the EU !!

 

afore mentioned EU  Free trade agreement is rumoured to be worth .5 % of Europes GDP .. better than nothing but it's hardly going to save Europe from it's current woes

 

You are the new Alex Salmond, I claim my five pounds!

 

 

here you go

 

[peterms]

 

"More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU"

 

That is one of the stats that bugs me because it's blatantly not true.

 

 

well there are plenty of websites on this there interweb that you could link to prove that is so

 

 

Before getting to whether it's true or not, I'm still wondering what it actually means.

 

90% of trade within the UK economy does not take place directly with other EU countries?

 

90% of economic activity does not involve goods sourced from the EU?

 

90% of exports from the UK go to countries other than the EU?

 

90% of statistics relating to the EU are incapable of definition?

 

What?

[drat01]

 

"More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU"

 

That is one of the stats that bugs me because it's blatantly not true.

 

 

well there are plenty of websites on this there interweb that you could link to prove that is so

 

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/us-britain-europe-trade-idUSBRE94F0I420130516

 

 

phrases like "About half of Britain's goods exports and over a third of its services exports go to the EU, about 234 billion pounds ($356 billion) in 2011. Imports were 261 billion pounds."

 

As said many many companies depend on EU trade and the benefits they gain in order that they can trade outside of the EU also.

[chrisp65]

I don't think we're seeing enough of John Redwood in all this.

 

Surely the nation needs to know where John Redwood stands on gayers and foreignors and all that. Whilst we're at it, we need more quotes from Mellor, Jacob Rees Mogg and Nadine Dorries. I don't think we can have too much of these people on the box.

[blandy]

"More than 90% of the UK economy is not involved in trade with the EU"

 

That is one of the stats that bugs me because it's blatantly not true.

 

well there are plenty of websites on this there interweb that you could link to prove that is so

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/us-britain-europe-trade-idUSBRE94F0I420130516

 

 

phrases like "About half of Britain's goods exports and over a third of its services exports go to the EU, about 234 billion pounds ($356 billion) in 2011. Imports were 261 billion pounds."

 

As said many many companies depend on EU trade and the benefits they gain in order that they can trade outside of the EU also.

I guess in any country, especially an Island nation with it's own currency, but anywhere, really, you'd expect most economic activity to be internal - Australians buying Australian produce/products/services from other Australians. Same for England or the UK.

So surely most trade would be internal? All the meals and train journeys and newspapers and financial products and phone bills and houses and so on that are bought and sold - it'll surely be the biggest bit of all the economic activity in any country?

But in terms of exports of goods and services, we definitely do a whole load of trade with the EU - so why would you make it harder to trade with an area, for all your businesses, by leaving the thing that brought much of that trade within easier reach? Because they have straight bananas that don't taste bendy enough? What could be less swively eyed than that?

[Risso]

I assume all those EU countries that supply the UK with £261bn worth of things would be keen to carry on doing so though?

[bickster]

I assume all those EU countries that supply the UK with £261bn worth of things would be keen to carry on doing so though?

Yeah like the wine we'd all be drinking with added import duty

[tonyh29]

I assume all those EU countries that supply the UK with £261bn worth of things would be keen to carry on doing so though?

Yeah like the wine we'd all be drinking with added import duty

Surely the pretentious wine drinkers would be happy to pay more for wine just so they can tell everyone how expensive the bottle of French muck they are drinking is

[chrisp65]

I assume all those EU countries that supply the UK with £261bn worth of things would be keen to carry on doing so though?

 

I assume they would still be keen to supply, and the spec would still be to a minimum of EU regulations and standards. Just the same as anything we sell to them will still have to meet the EU standards.

 

I don't imagine they will produce a small per centage of stuff to a different set of lesser guidelines for us and I don't believe they'll be happy taking stuff off us in inches, pounds or groats or to lesser safety standards.

 

So it's difficult to see what would change other than we won't even be a voice at the next shouting match. I suppose we'll be able to import ropey Chinese milk and spikey toys if we want to without some Belgian poking his nose in.

[tonyh29]

I assume all those EU countries that supply the UK with £261bn worth of things would be keen to carry on doing so though?

The history of our balance of trade with Europe is sufficient to tell anyone that it would be foolhardy for Europeans to accept any form of trade obstacles between the UK and member states - Europeans export more goods to us than we export to them. There are many ways in which noses can be cut off to spite UK and European faces, but this is one of the more obvious and would be folly on all sides. Hence the raft of free trade agreements that have been and, most likely, will be drawn up to protect each party's interests.