General Election - 8thJune

[Hermann]

"The Party" certainly would, the MPs, not so much.

Why not the MPs?

 

[Jason H]

Is Jeremy Hunt in with a chance of replacing May? He seems to relish a scrap (with student doctors for instance) and recently changed his mind about Brexit, saying he was now in favour, which I thought may have been quite a calculated move...

*Lets slip which senior cabinet member he met at a do recently*

While it isn't necessarily a case of having "changed his mind", he admitted he was now very comfortable with Brexit. Like May, I'm not sure whether he'd vote Leave were the referendum to be re-run, mind.

Up close he came across really well, but I think his lack of popularity nationwide would count against him.

 

[Jason H]

Why not the MPs?

He is very unpopular with them. Not sure how many would vote for him in their initial ballot. It's just possible he could scrape through, but as it stands I doubt it.

 

[Mr Jinx]

Got a feeling that May will fall on her sword when talks with the EU break down, which they surely will. Hopefully that will bring about another general election, whereupon the public will opt for a radical socialist Jeremy Corbyn led government, unfettered by tiresome EU rules which would probably have made most of his policies illegal had we not voted to free ourselves from their grasp.

But if Brexit talks break down and then Corbyn becomes PM, surely he'll still have to comply by EU rules? Don't tell me that Corbyn will succeed in taking us out of the EU where the Tories have failed.

Is Jeremy Hunt in with a chance of replacing May? He seems to relish a scrap (with student doctors for instance) and recently changed his mind about Brexit, saying he was now in favour, which I thought may have been quite a calculated move...

Hunt is more damaged than Hammond. Him coming out for Brexit could be calculated but I think more to do with him seeing where the wind is now blowing with May so damaged.

 

[edindevon]

But if Brexit talks break down and then Corbyn becomes PM, surely he'll still have to comply by EU rules? Don't tell me that Corbyn will succeed in taking us out of the EU where the Tories have failed.

But Brexit will still happen in March 2019, regardless of who is in power and whether we get a deal or not. Then Corbyn, should he get elected, can get down to the important business of nationalising everything up to and including Marks and Spencer while sending the liberal elite to re-education camps, or something

On a wider point, I can't help wondering if the ridiculous posturing and hardline position adopted by the EU's chief 'negotiator' Michel Barnier - who manages to achieve the almost impossible feat of making David Davis look reasonable - is actually making some remainers sway towards Brexit instead. That seemed to be the point Jeremy Hunt was making when he said he was now in favour of leaving the EU.

 

[Alistair20000]

If we're bringing back the spirit of Asquith then, at the risk of Al labelling me a hypocrite, Helena Bonham Carter would certainly get my vote

Before I throw the H word at you I would like to consider your workings

 

[Hermann]

But Brexit will still happen in March 2019, regardless of who is in power and whether we get a deal or not. Then Corbyn, should he get elected, can get down to the important business of nationalising everything up to and including Marks and Spencer while sending the liberal elite to re-education camps, or something

On a wider point, I can't help wondering if the ridiculous posturing and hardline position adopted by the EU's chief 'negotiator' Michel Barnier - who manages to achieve the almost impossible feat of making David Davis look reasonable - is actually making some remainers sway towards Brexit instead. That seemed to be the point Jeremy Hunt was making when he said he was now in favour of leaving the EU.

Can't see that Barnier's "hardline" position is anything other than what we were promised before the vote. It's not like the difficulty of the negotiations is a surprise to anyone, least of all those who voted remain. (Hint: this is one of the reasons we voted that way). Barnier would be a pretty rubbish negotiator if he gave us everything we wanted.

 

[RaeUK]

... Barnier would be a pretty rubbish negotiator if he gave us everything we wanted.

Quite so and vice versa.

 

[edindevon]

Can't see that Barnier's "hardline" position is anything other than what we were promised before the vote. It's not like the difficulty of the negotiations is a surprise to anyone, least of all those who voted remain. (Hint: this is one of the reasons we voted that way). Barnier would be a pretty rubbish negotiator if he gave us everything we wanted.

Voting to remain on the basis that it would be too difficult to negotiate an exit from the EU seems flawed to me. A bit like somebody staying with a religious cult because they've invested everything in it, making leaving too hard to even contemplate.

 

[Hermann]

Voting to remain on the basis that it would be too difficult to negotiate an exit from the EU seems flawed to me. A bit like somebody staying with a religious cult because they've invested everything in it, making leaving too hard to even contemplate.

That would depend on your opinion of the EU of course.
What I mean is that we are now so intrinsically and deeply linked with the EU at all levels is that a simple exit would be virtually impossible. At least not without negatively impacting our economic stability for decades.