Andrew Brook

Sorry, I know this isn’t your statement but it is illegible, being black on green. And that is why alt text is so useful.

There were some very good SNP MPs and Westminster is all the poorer for their absence.

I was referring to Andrew, who wants the UK to stick together whilst he lives somewhere sunny in Europe :-)

It had a lot more influence in 2023 than it does now. We heard from SNP MPs regularly on politics and news programmes in England. Now they are never on.

I believe it is different in each country. It’s not within EU competence. I do think you have to do so in France and Spain, but there are so many nuances that I could be mistaken.

My partner is Scottish and he feels just the same. Sorry if you are offended, but that is the nature of a union.

Certainly two years ago.

In sorry, I meant to say “Scottish Independence” parties.

The UK government disenfranchised British people who had lived in other EU countries for more than 15 years so they had no say in the collective decision, yet - obviously - had to be bound by it. That was as poor on the part of my government as not allowing WU citizens residing in the UK to vote.

This is true but whose single market would you want to be in, the one with (by far) your biggest trading partner or the EU one (because you can’t have both) and where would the hard border for trade be? And would you wish to remain part of the Common Travel Area?

Although ironically you don’t live in the country that you want to stick together, for your own nostalgic reasons.

But surely that is the same everywhere? It’s not exactly riveting stuff. I bet there is no more understanding amongst the general public in the EU of the workings of the single market and customs union than there is in the UK.

Nope, The Times supported Remain but the Sunday Times supported Brexit.

I mean, it is true, isn’t it? I feel that Scotland is as much mine as yours, and that England is as much yours as mine. I fully appreciate those who do not feel that way, but that is the nature of the union. It is not a federation.

Well yes, but that has already been legislated for and NI is wholly exceptional for reasons we all understand.

That and his vegetable patch.

You have to give your ID / passport number to buy a train ticket in Spain.

Spain is quite police-statey, to be fair. The guardia civil had a lovely time policing lockdown. Went for it hell for leather.

Now, now. Some of them, stupidly, did. But not all Brits abroad live down to the stereotype.

And, crucially, if they had lived in the EU for more than 15 years they were denied a vote in the referendum.

That normally involves a certain fluency in language rather than in Una cerveca por favor. Not something which many of my compatriots are good at.

It is ironic that the racists focus all their attention on the small number of people who arrive by boat, whilst ignoring the almost 1m who we welcomed legally in the last year of the Tory govt. I am pro migration but even I think that is too much. Labour has halved it already,but you’d never know.

I don’t blame those who are working illegally. They don’t have any option. We should g allow them to work, force contractors to employ and tax all gig workers and then enforce fines on those who don’t.

Companies have a legal duty to ensure that their employees have the right to work in this country. Companies who use self-employed workers do not have that duty. Hence the govt giving them the address of asylum hotels and asking them nicely to do some performative outing of a few workers. It stinks.

Or they might get trampled over by cohorts of tiny Asian youngsters who have decided that Soho is their playground.

It was also interesting that The Sunday Times reported that in a broadly positive manner, given that it supported Brexit and promotes right of centre politics.

To what does this refer? Who has said such a disgusting thing?

I wasn’t suggesting that it would propel us back towards the EU. I am fairly sure that my country should avoid any more referendums as they are far too traumatic. I’d be more than happy with SM/CU/FofM and close cooperation on defence and security, outwith the EU.

Let’s hope that continues to be true.

And for unionists what’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine. I consider Scotland to be every bit as much my country as it is yours. And vice versa for you.

We are a union, not a federation. It would be ridiculous for Wales to have as much influence as England. Unless you broke England down to 8 regions and gave them all equal influence with the three smaller nations. That would be ok.

But you wouldn’t find that fair, either.