Doubling down on madness

Theresa May has doubled down on her Chequers insanity in what is probably the most breathtaking speech thus far. She has dismissed any EU version of a Northern Ireland backstop while once again closing down the EEA avenue. "Here, the EU is still only offering us two options". said May.

"The first option would involve the UK staying in the European Economic Area and a customs union with the EU. In plain English, this would mean we’d still have to abide by all the EU rules, uncontrolled immigration from the EU would continue and we couldn’t do the trade deals we want with other countries.

That would make a mockery of the referendum we had two years ago. The second option would be a basic free trade agreement for Great Britain that would introduce checks at the Great Britain/EU border. But even worse, Northern Ireland would effectively remain in the Customs Union and parts of the Single Market, permanently separated economically from the rest of the UK by a border down the Irish Sea.

Hitherto now May has been content to trot our mealy mouthed rejections of the EEA but this week has gone all out to smear the option and has joined the ranks of her ultras in lying about it in totality. It is, therefore, a dead option under this prime minister. The second remark eliminates all known legal solutions for a backstop which takes us further away from concluding a deal. 

The core dishonesty here though is knocking the ball back into the EU's court. It was always for the UK to present a workable proposal and despite having been warned on a number of occasions that the single market is indivisible May has time and ignored what she is told. She is washing her hands of any responsibility. 

In one spectacularly ill-judged statement Theresa May has destroyed anything we might consider progress and the goodwill that goes with it. If we were nowhere yesterday then we really are nowhere today. Barring a miracle fudge in the final hour it now looks less likely than ever that we will leave with a deal. Theresa May is going down in history as the PM who wrecked Britain.