[Sephiroth]

I think that Boris has got this right.

The pompous EU will try to dictate the negotiation agenda and if it doesn’t suit as, we’ll not comply.

If we are to be an independent nation, we must not be a rule-taker. If they want to export to us, then they’ll have to obey our rules. We can certainly go for equivalence on a whole range of matters - we’ll be reasonable; will they?

Fishing is very important to them - so important that Macron has gobbled about 25 years. As pointed out by others, it’s a small fraction of our GDP but it’s totemic and indeed symbolic of what’s wrong with the EU. Sure give them a year, even r years in return for something concrete. But we are a sovereign nation and we must apply and preserve that sovereignty.

I remember the old days when all no -seasonal fruit came from outside Europe. We must develop that so we can import food from the rest of the world and not buy from the EU if they give us too much gyp.

Then there’s the level playing field. They seem to be terrified of our ability to compete; very much so. That’s not just a card for us to play; it’s a strength we should develop and beat them into the ground on world markets. Would they dare sacrifice their exports to us? They are sufficiently up themselves for that to be a possibility unless their industries put the politicians under pressure.

When someone as big as the UK leaves a club like the EU, something must be fundamentally wrong with the EU. They are so far up themselves as not to see it. Macron pretends to understand by saying that the EU needs to change (and by the way France will be tough on trade negotiations) - all in the same breath. Quite how it can change is not easy to define unless the whole move to federalism is unpicked and they go back to being the EEC.

The ever close union project is a sort of reverse salami slicing process; but by bit taking more and more powers to Brussels so that eventually the EU Parliament will be supreme over national parliaments. Leavers said “no” to that; Remainers, presumably, were OK with federalism. None of the Remainers in this thread have ever said they support federalism - but they would be hypocrites if they didn’t.

My position has always been that I’m happy to leave and happy to remain provided that in the latter case, we could keep sticking it to them. But the deed is done and we are sovereign and should go forward from this point.