The Brexit Blog

The Brexit Blog
News and comment on the Brexit process, as Britain tries to leave the EU.

Tuesday 23 February 2021

EU's Chickens Come Home To Roost

 

Friday 19 February 2021

EU Reaps What it Has Sown


 

Just weeks ago, the European Union was clamoring for AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine. Now, fewer than one-tenth of the doses delivered to Germany have been administered in the initial days of the roll-out, and some health-care workers say they’re concerned about side effects.

Germany isn’t alone: Some French health workers are also pushing to get shots from Moderna Inc., Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE instead.

The EU vaccine campaign is already far behind that of the U.S. and U.K., and catching up will be impossible in the near term unless people are willing to take the 300 million shots the bloc ordered from AstraZeneca. 

Badmouthing the AZ vaccine, in order to cover up the incompetence of Commission, has now come back to bite the EU on the arse.

Thursday 18 February 2021

Frost Joins Cabinet To Take Charge of UK/EU Relationship

 

Lord Frost, as from 1 March, will be in the Cabinet and be responsible for UK/EU relations. 

Some people are whining that he is not elected. However, as they well know, no members of the Cabinet are elected, they are appointed by the PM.

His appointment is entirely rational, as he was responsible for negotiating the Brexit deal.

Monday 15 February 2021

Data Sharing To Continue

 

Friday 12 February 2021

When Elephants Fight, Ants Get Squashed!

 

Dublin is becoming increasingly concerned that it will become squashed in the fallout from this, now that it realises that the EU doesn't give a monkey's about it.


Thursday 4 February 2021

Ursula von der Leyen Summoned To Appear Before Parliament

 

Bet she doesn't turn up!

Article 16 - The Sequel

 


This thread is a helpful explainer as to what Article 16 is all about.

 

It would seem that the UK are now pushing to invoke it. However, unlike the EU which invoked it without exhausting (or even following) the agreed consultation process, the UK will at first try consultation and negotiation.

Tuesday 2 February 2021

BBC Eviscerates EU - #VaccineGate

EU in Full Blown Panic Deflection Mode

 

Monday 1 February 2021

Ursula von der Leyen - A Case Study in Rewarding Failure

 


The last few days have been somewhat of a clusterfuck for the EU Commission under the "leadership" of Ursula von der Leyen.

Not content with libelling AstraZenca and publishing the confidential contract whilst leaving in links to the sensitive redacted parts of the contract, VDL and her team then blocked exports of covid vaccine and imposed a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland without even telling the Irish and British that they were going to do it.

Unsurprisingly that action brought down a firestorm of criticism from around the world and, within a few hours, VDL was forced to about face and rescind the hard border and promise that vaccine supplies to the UK would not be blockaded.

Should this clusterfuck come as a surprise?

No!

VDL's career has been riddled with screw ups and allegations of corruption eg:

- during her time as German defence minister the Bundeswehr's condition was described a "catastrophic" by a former defence minister

- none of the German submarine fleet was seaworthy

- German soldiers took part in a multinational exercise with broom handles for guns

- VDL faced an investigation for corruption and wrongdoing wrt using outside consultants

- VDL has even faced allegations of plagiarism for a thesis she wrote whilst studying medicine

It is therefore not surprising that she was promoted to EC President, as that was the most effective and least embarrassing means of removing her from German politics.

However, as #VaccineGate has shown she is now in a position where she can wreak even more havoc.

Will she resign?

No, of course not, she is already taking credit for AstraZeneca's promise to increase vaccine shipments to the EU bu 9 million to 40 million during Q1.

This is all very well and nice, except that is the very same deal that she rejected only a few days earlier!

Given her talent for clustefucks, it is likely that in order to get rid of her she will have to be promoted to another high office in the very near future.

Goodness knows what/where that will be!