RayC

Good to have finally reached agreement on something, but I'm a little surprised that you might have thought otherwise? Why should the bureaucrats in Brussels be elected? They are employees, the same as UK civil servants.????

Any sympathy for the Brexit supporting pensioners who can't enjoy their winter retreats in Spain?

Fortunately, I can survive in the UK but I don't feel any more 'free' than I did in 2019. In fact, on my recent trips to mainland Europe, having to wait in the 'All Passports' queue and then have my passport stamped reminded me that I am now - in some respects - less free than I was.

It's not a celebration, it's acknowledging that a problem exists and asking why it does. In many cases, the answer is Brexit.

Europe is paying the price for its' dependence on Russia for its' energy, but energy-related decisions were made by the individual member states. Nordstream is a privately financed venture between two sovereign nations, Germany and Russia. The EU has no direct involvement in it. The EU has managed to get to get (most of) the member states to agree to reductions in their use of Russian gas (and oil). Italy is suffering economically like most other nations. Italy is an independent, sovereign nation, and the government in Rome - not Brussels - is responsible for managing the country's economic affairs. The decision to reduce livestock numbers in the Netherlands was made by the Dutch government, not the EU. On the one hand, Brexiters complain that the 'unelected bureaucrats in Brussels' interfere in the affairs of sovereign states, but on the other, you now complain when the 'unelected bureaucrats in Brussels' don't interfere in the affairs of the individual member states! You can't have it both ways. The establishment and ongoing management of the Single Market and Customs Unions are two pretty significant and powerful symbols which contribute to the actual well-being of the EU's members.

Great to finally agree on something. Actually I know a Nigerian Prince who is a billionaire. He's keen to help but needs to grease a few palms to get his hands on his money (you know how it is). Easiest way is if you PM me login details for your banking app, then the Prince and me can take you - I mean it - from there. Viva la revolution! Freedom!!!!!

It seems that you might be happier if your (presumably Northern?) city/ town/ hamlet was divorced from the South. I'm happy to contribute if you decide to start an independence movement.

There you go again. Introducing completely a completely different matter into the discussion. In any event, if I have not yet joined the debate, how do you know what my view is? As usual, your conclusion is irrational.

Why did you need to watch the debate? There was more than enough evidence to reach that conclusion before yesterday evening.

Again, a completely irrelevant response to my post. It's also irrelevant which posts I choose to reply to; it's an open forum. If you want to have a private conversation use PM.

???? You are trying to be ironic, right??? If so, chapeau ????

In this instance that may be the case but, as I mentioned previously, delays are being experienced throughout Europe. Yes other factors such as staff shortages contribute to the delay, but don't you agree that the processing time for the 'All passports' queue is longer than it is for the 'EU' line? I'd call that a Brexit related delay.

The UK government decided that the UK would be a third country. The delays - especially for UK leisure travelers - are (largely) as a result of that decision, but the 27 EU member states - delays are happening throughout the EU - are the ones who are meant to fix the problem.

Why don't you post a coherent counter argument rather than simply stick your head in the sand, and pretend that something which doesn't fit your narrative doesn't exist (when it is clearly plain to see)? I do not use Latin very often.

Assuming that there are the same number of resources as previously, if it takes an extra 5 mins then the delay will pretty soon become significant as the additional delay is cumulative. An extra 5 mins for the first in the queue is nothing, an extra 50 mins for the 10th starts to become irritating. For those further back, damaging.

More anti-Brexit propaganda from that left-wing, socialist organ: The Financial Times https://www.ft.com/content/f41e3350-c870-41a7-b350-80d3a483ef8d

Because processes and procedures need to be developed. What works for the EU single market might not be applicable elsewhere.

ASEAN, CAFTA, Mercosur, SADU are all trying to reduce trade barriers within their respective blocs. I would be along in that if that were the case.

Most see the benefit of a Single Market and would replicate it if they could.

But it is a lot more time-consuming now and that is, at least partly, due to the UK being out of the EU.

Agreed. It was (is) complicated. Why then did Johnson rush through the signing when clearly there were still major issues to resolve? No matter how many times you restate this, it is still incorrect. The EU cannot be left out of discussions while the UK remains out of the Single Market and customs union and the RoI remains within it. The EU is mainly concerned with ensuring the integrity of the single market. Why should it have to potentially enter into a time-consuming revision of its' Treaties to satisfy the demands of a state which left the organisation of its' own accord? It did but what real choice did it have? Imagine the outcry from Brexiters if the EU had turned round and said that they wouldn't sign the Agreement because they didn't think that it could work? "The EU won't let us leave!""The EU is interfering in the UK's domestic politics (in Northern Ireland), etc. The problems are entirely of the UK government's making. They need to be accountable for it.

27 states in Europe don't!

That's exactly the point. Traveling within the EU is much easier for EU nationals than UK nationals now that we have left the EU.

A barrier to the free movement of labour is a benefit?

See your comment above and your first few lines below: Pot, kettle, black comes to mind. How did I work around anything? I took your comment at face value and made a counter argument. Some examples of these improvements would help. Fortunately, my life is pretty good (and has been for the best part of my existence). You are the one claiming there have been improvements, you supply the list. We are discussing Brexit related issues. Look back over the various threads and you will see examples of the numerous problems that this has caused. One generic example being the problem of implementing the Irish Protocol. What the hell does "socialist guff" mean? If you want to have a discussion about the relative merits (and disadvantages) of free market capitalism and centrally planned ("socialist") economies, start another thread and I'll willingly contribute. I assume that you didn't re-read that before you pressed the 'Submit' button? Uncle, Aunt, testicles. Btw: I have no affiliation to the Labour Party