Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Explain this to me. I found a cheap ticket with Lufthansa, London to Seoul with a stopover in Germany (Munich (?), Frankfurt (?) --I cannot remember). When I tried to buy it, the stopover came with a "*": you have to pick up your luggage, pass passport/customs exit and re-check in.

But UK ain't in EU, I should land in an "international transit" area. Should we demand to kick us out of the EU properly?

I booked the flight with Asiana, lots of fresh air, they fly with the doors open.....

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

I don't think anyone was saying that, Old Boy. JLR has the bulk of its operations here so it made sense for its battery supplier to be in this country too as that keeps transport costs down. Having Spain in its back pocket as an option was sensible and likely helped ensure such a generous subsidy.

What is becoming clear is that international motor manufacturers looking to locate new car plants in Europe are giving Brexit Britain the cold shoulder. Witness Tesla and BYD who ruled out the UK due to Brexit. That's not naysayers making predictions, that's the car manufacturers themselves.
https://carnewschina.com/2023/03/13/...due-to-brexit/

On travel, the EU and non-EU queues were of equal length when I visited Porto last month. But we did have to wait whilst our passports were stamped whilst those in the EU queue just walked through. But at least the passport machines worked better than those in Gatwick.

I think things will get slower for UK visitors with the new visa system but I think I heard this might be postponed until after the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Some cheap tickets don't include luggage connections. Nothing to do with EU.

Just curious - are both flights with Lufthansa but with Asiana flight numbers?

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Just Lufthansa. Asiana flies direct.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Artistic licence, who said

The day after we leave, we hold all the cards

There will be no downsides, only considerable upsides

Leaving will be quick and easy, the UK holds most of the cards


and I don't think it particularly fair that you've called a large chunk of the voting public brain less, it's not their fault they were lied to and deceived and it's not remainer nonsense to want politicians held accountable for what they've promised, not sure why you'd think differently tbh

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

It just confirms that populists not only repeatedly lie but are also deeply incompetent.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

We win some, we lose some. There’s nothing new in that.

---------- Post added at 17:11 ---------- Previous post was at 17:09 ----------

By both sides. It happens at elections all the time and it is magnified at referendums.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Of course you are right. The country was promised no downside and too many believed their lies. However, it is the disingenuity of the true zealots that is the most despicable part. Now that everyone can see the effects of the catastrophe, you have the same people who literally said there was no downside, now saying it was going to be like this all along.

The dishonestly is off the chart.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Come off it, Ian, both sides lied.

And it has not been a catastrophe. True, the review of EU laws and so on has taken longer to get under way, but Covid lost us some valuable time. It's picking up now, with the first EU laws being extinguished and replaced within months and the remainder to follow. The Pacific trade deal is agreed and will provide a real fillip to our economy, particularly as it will cover favourable conditions for the service sector, our biggest earner.

Germany's economy is doing worse than ours, and yet you don't take into account these facts, preferring to concentrate on negative comparisons. It's a bit of an obsession, isn't it?

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

When will "the remainder follow"?

Also under what benchmark is the German economy doing worse than ours? As far as I can tell the living standards are higher, the beer is cheaper and the car manufacturers don't need to revisit the Brexit deal.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Perhaps he needs to read this instead of coming out with his usual gaslighting exceptionalism.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...-b2344039.html

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Perhaps you should read this…

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-forecast.html

[EXTRACT]

The German economy suffered an unexpected dip in the first quarter of the year, formally putting the country into a recession, new figures show. Germany's gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.3 per cent in the period from January to March, data released on Thursday by the Federal Statistical Office shows.

And this….

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...-bind-britain/

[EXTRACT]

…the German economy actually shrank in the final quarter of last year, unlike the UK, which merely stagnated.

Nor is the mood music in Germany around the current quarter at all good either. The manufacturing PMIs are down, and although the latest Ifo index reading suggests that things may now be picking up a bit, the second consecutive drop in Ifo's so-called "current assessment" points to another quarter of economic contraction yet to come.

This would push Germany into the technical definition of a recession (two consecutive quarters of declining growth). But for the unseasonably warm weather and a large dollop of fiscal stimulus, which protected German consumers and industry from the full impact of surging energy prices, it could have been a great deal worse. A mild recession would have become a deep one.

As it is, German GDP has already slipped back down below its pre-pandemic level, and looks set to fall further. The same fate awaits Italy, according to forecasts by Moody’s Investors Service. Japan too looks to be in the danger zone.

Things hardly look brilliant in Britain either, with the full force of rising energy bills and mortgage rates still to be felt. Even so, we seem to be on an improving trend, and no longer in such a bad way relative to others as we were.

This is the very reverse of what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was forecasting only as recently as last month. In an update to its World Economic Outlook, the IMF said it expected the UK to contract this year, but for the rest of the G7 to show some growth.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Nice try but given these 2 newspapers are propagandist newspapers for the government l would not trust a word that is written in these compliant daily rags.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Of course you would say that. Your mind is closed to arguments that go against your mindset and prove you wrong.

Instead of slagging off the sources of information provided to you to back up statements people make, why not actually look at what the articles say? Then if you disagree, let’s hear why.

If you are telling me that the facts here are wrong, let’s see some back up for your assertion.

My real point is that any twerp can find negative stories to back up their claims. But true thinkers look at both sides of the argument and come up with a reasoned opinion.

All we hear from remainers are the negative stories. All the positive ones are ignored. That is what makes contributing to this debate on here so tiresome.

Re: Britain outside the EU
 

Hang on, OB. Is that real GDP or nominal GDP? And what does growth look like when you adjust for inflation?