'Leave it on the shelf' blog!

So here we are in 2021, and soo... much has happened!!

We are at last more free from the clutches of the EU commission, but I fear there is still a long way to go before we can rest on our laurels.

We have been putting as much interesting comment on the news from  Europe page to give all readers an idea of the attitudes of the EU countries.   Unfortunately reading thorugh local and regional newspapers, there remains lots of anger towards the UK...it is almost on the basis of the nasty divorce..

The comment from many readers in the EU newspapers, always seem to harp on about 'How the brits still think they have an empire!!!   I have taken to signing up to some of these forums in European newspapers to counter some of the nonsense from readers.  Unfortunately the journalists tend to always write the British as the bad guys!!    Always being difficult in the EU parliament etc.  Then also cherry picking what we wanted....as if all the EU nations do not cherry pick what is best for them!

I shall keep checking what is coming out of the EU countries...particularly the important ones that are the main contributers to the EU budget...ie: Germany, Austria, Holland,etc.

What is the dispute between the UK and the EU over fishing?

Many colleagues in Europe have no comprehension of the problems we Britsih have with the EU...they simply see us as the ones aslways blocking the EU parliament but they still want the access to our Treasure island ( as most regard it because of the Trade surplus they have with us)

I come from the West country so understand our inherited problems.

British fishing communities have felt that they were sacrificed at the time of the British negotiations to join the European Economic Community 50 years ago.

Only a few hours after accession talks had begun on 30 June 1970, the UK government was told that a common fisheries policy had been agreed by the original six members of the community. It was a fait accompli.#

The UK had to hand over equal access to its waters and the catch quotas for each country were fixed on the basis of the recorded catches of the various national fleets between 1973 and 1978. It led to some very unpalatable outcomes, including those in the Channel, where the UK’s share of the cod quota stands at 9%, whereas France’s share is 84%.

Today, EU fishing fleets catch 675,000 tonnes of fish in UK waters – 60% of the total caught in the UK sector. British fishermen catch just 88,000 tonnes, or 16% of the fish taken in EU waters.

I was very surprised the other day to find that the main newspapers such as Express and the Mail, promoting Buying British products....it has only taken them 4 years to get around to championing our own country.

So, remember when you are in the supermarket doing the Christmas shopping try your best to buy only british and leave EU produce on the shelves.

I have left any blogging until we got nearest to some sort of agreemnt with the so called friends in Brussels!

But the process just seems to drag on, as if it is a stage play that needs to run to the end of it's theatre contract!!

So, we feel it is best that from here on in, we concentrate on removing as much of our spending from EU produce as possible...and that includes cars!!  Only in this way can we as individuals show our anger at the EU.

So, as a reminder if everyone who voted to leave transferred at least £20 per week from purchasing anything from the EU and spent it on more UK  produce...ie: 17.4 million people...that amounts to £348 million per week!!  so after 52 weeks it would be almost £20 billion that stays in the UK, creating more jobs and wealth in our country!!   Think about it?!  

Well, compared to last week, when all went quiet...it now seems that the EU have lots to say...particularly insults.

Checking out some of the European newspapers, even they seem to feel that the fish issue is understandable from the British point of view, and this is also reflected in the comments sections...with most readers saying that France and spain are depleting the fish stocks....and there are comments about another Cod War!!

The coronavirus has made talks ‘more difficult’ but an agreement is now ‘even more urgent,’ says German foreign minister Heiko Mass..

The pandemic has made the talks with London "even more difficult" but it "has also made an agreement even more urgent," Maas said after meeting the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier in Berlin. “With today’s health and economic challenges, people on both sides of the channel have enough to shoulder, so it would be totally irresponsible to burden them in this position with additional problems through a no-deal.”

It reamisn interesting to see what the EU commission have to say at some pont this week?

Repoert from Der Spiegl - German paper:

Great Britain's prime minister rages, threatens and breaks international law. And the EU? Leaves Boris Johnson going nowhere as if nothing had happened.

In June 2018, almost exactly two years after the Brexit referendum, the then British Foreign Secretary appeared at the venerable Institute of Directors in London. It was a confidential event, but a tape recording soon found its way to the public.

"Imagine if Donald Trump had to manage Brexit," said Boris Johnson. The US president, whom he "increasingly admires", would go "damn hard" into the negotiations: "There would be countless breakdowns, a lot of chaos. Everyone would think he was crazy. But that would probably get you there . " He is now convinced, says Johnson, "that there is a method behind Trump's madness."

Is Boris going down this road??

Interestingly I checked quite a few of the European newspapers, and there was very little reporting about the shannigans of last week and NO reporting of Barniers threat to cut of food supplies to Northern Ireland!!

Once again the remainer politicians with help from the EU are trying to create unrest in the UK...what else can it be when Barnier threatens to cut of food to Northern Ireland!!

It is interesting to note that, all the shannigans are not reported in European newspapers....I wonder why?

So...we are fast approaching June and this will be the last month to either do a deal with EU or trade on WTO terms.

The newspapaers are full of all the latest shinnigans, so we have no need to repeat them here.

I felt it best to give an indication of the attitudes in some EU countries...and the best way I found was to look at the comments sections in the Newspapers of a country.

Here are a few, from an Austrian paper, which we have translated from the German:

This was from the week19th May 20:

1. Great Britain does not require anything that other third countries have not already received. This is the opposite of "exceptions"

That may be true.
But it makes a difference what rights I grant to a trading partner who is 5000 km away or only 50.
In addition, GB is not entitled to any content or an agreement at all.
If the agreement is good for all 26 EU members, there will be one, otherwise there will be a hard brexit.  - Green Flags

2.   I bet you're singing in Brussels now
F**k Britannia
F**k her all the way!

The Austrian megalomania at the time of the K&K monarchy was not exactly small. But the British beat us by a long way.

Sorry, but from my point of view, a hard Brexit is both the deserved and the expected outcome. If you want to play as part of a club as a guest or a member, you have to stick to the rules and out!

The demonstrative megalomania is sweet, but counterproductive!

Green flags!

3.The problem is that the EU demands more from the British than from Canada or Japan. The negotiations are therefore stalling.

E.g. the court's own ECJ (of course "objective", lol) should rule on certain issues. Which is actually a bad joke. No country in the world can accept that and has not been asked for either Canada or Japan.  Red flags!

4. "Brussels must recognize London as an independent, equal partner"
You are equivalent (more or less) when you are in the EU.
When they're out, they're a third country, and as such, with a population of 60 million, they can't be equivalent to the EU, which has 10x more residents.
A little out of touch with the whole thing and another confirmation that the British don't really know what they want.  Green Flags