David Henig

Otherwise we follow the lead of the abysmal Remain campaign of 2016, life is terrible unless we reform which we probably can't so vote to stay in the EU...

Choice right now is between tech bro fuelled nationalist populists against flawed democracy just about delivering and I know which side I'm on.

At some point politicians and commentators in Europe might want to start defending our system as really not too bad and far better than any realistic alternative notwithstanding frustration that we aren't all richer.

Why don't you add the Jersey model as something else that won't happen?

Thanks

I feared the England cricket team weren't quite as good as the hype suggested, plenty of 'on their day' players, not enough 'every day' ones

Neither. Not a chance this will be uncapped. And the EU know that very well.

Not nearly as good as think they are outside of England

Life hack - actually we all worry about the same things while pretending to be super confident adults. And those that don't are the ones to avoid...

I think best option is quickly losing the English reserve and saying I think we've met before but remind me... maybe easier to do with advancing age

Various replies and quotes of this are your weekend reassurance that in fact most of us have no real memory for many of the people we've met at some point or other... but we all have to pretend a bit.

...and even worse the UK doesn't ever go public with asks so is more vulnerable to internal splits than 27 member states. Which has always been one of the most remarkable failures of UK negotiations with the EU and others.

The UK by contrast has little leverage and even less idea how to deploy any it finds

Occurs to me also - given the EU is also about to make demands of the UK with regard to steel and apparently some other things, there is a reason to emphasise very high asks now to bargain them away and claim balance...

No, this is a hostile briefing

It is a hostile briefing two weeks into negotiations.

Though also quite amusing considering UK negotiators are still expressing confidence of a quick outcome - probably never a wise approach but a remarkably consistent one since 2017.

NB there's no particularly good reason for the EU to be so hostile to the UK, but there's a protectionist mood with pretty much everyone, made worse by the realisation that they have little power to stand up against the US. Welcome to the new world...

But Labour's EU reset is going to be in deep trouble unless they can find a way to push back against an EU in aggressively maximalist mood. Negotiating trade deals isn't meant to be easy. The UK needs to grow up fast, otherwise both sides will end up disappointed.

What's the EU game with the hostile briefing against the UK? Arguably taking advantage of a publicly timid UK to reset negotiating parameters further to their advantage even when some asks they know to be almost impossible.

EU demands no cap on youth mobility scheme with UK Draft text also calls for ‘home’ fees for European students at UK universities

Normal for two sides of a negotiation to have different views. Unless the EU expects to get everything it asks of the UK. I suspect not, and is using aggressive briefing to cover up obviously split Member States. Plus they know a naive UK won't handle this well. www.ft.com/content/773b...

Bit disappointed not to receive the FIFA peace prize tbh

Anyone know what I have to do next time?

Oh, non-league football has seen a lot worse. Such as one of London's highest placed clubs being managed by the leader of a feared drug-dealing gang, or the player arrested on the pitch just before a game as he was actually on the run at the time...

Single market probably easier for UK to negotiate than a Customs Union. But EU demands would still be high, and we'd be in full rule-taking without a say mode, which I think would prove pretty difficult for domestic politics. bsky.app/profile/rent...

This is a good piece and I agree with all of it. But I'd add that a lot of Americans on encountering Actually Existing England come down with a version of "Paris Syndrome" - a widely recognised phenomenon described as....

Lot of folk saying UK proponents of an EU Customs Union are at least showing positive intent. I'd argue the precise opposite, that they are perpetuating the long-standing issue of UK demands on trade that seem like cakeism to the EU.

Doing for UK dreams of EU relations what you do for EU rail connections...

Nobody has a chance to vote for a Customs Union next week. They could once again declare themselves in favour of a fantasy UK-EU relationship. bsky.app/profile/edda...

Ten years on the UK is still mostly talking to itself about EU relations (from NS Morning Call).

Let me know when any politicians start talking about far greater mobility / freedom of movement, because that will show them thinking about the other side.

Just wanted to say how much I love the illustrations on the FT's book reviews, which are by Cat O'Neil (www.catoneil.com) - pictures of Sami people and their reindeer.