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Originally Posted by Osem
I'm not arguing about the reasons why, merely the fact that Germany dominates the EU. Do you seriously think that any significant change in EU policy would get through without Germany's agreement?
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No, but then any significant change in EU policy wouldn't get through without our agreement either.
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Thatcher was the last UK politician who took it to Europe and I'd agree that we ought to have done a lot more of that but we didn't and we can't now. The proof of the UK's 'influence' was Cameron's utter humiliation at the hands of Merkel prior to the referendum that's undeniable.
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I think they made a mistake not giving Cameron more but it would have been more realistic had we spent years cultivating better relationships, promoting various policies, making a concessions in one thing in return for something else and so. Diplomacy. Instead we tended to parachute in, make a bunch of demands, get nowhere then sulk away for a few years before parachuting in again, making demands, and sulking away.