Once British Prime Minister Theresa May lost her majority in the House of Commons, her hard approach to Brexit became little more than rhetoric.
Mrs. May is the closest thing to a nationalist that Great Britain has seen in quite some time, and most conservatives believe her when she says that she is fully committed to taking back Britain’s borders, money and laws. However, her advisors, it seems, are telling her to push back her goals of taking back Great Britain fully until 2022. In order to fully escape the horrors of the European Union, a transitional deal may need to be struck between Great Britain and Brussels.
Philip Hammond, the British Chancellor who was at odds with Mrs. May over many issues, came into more power after the British elections. Mr. Hammond pushed for a transition deal, or a bridge between a new deal from the European Union and a March 2019 Brexit. In the meantime, Great Britain would continue in the European Union with terms similar to its existing membership terms.
Many other top British officials have commented that Mrs. May is losing control over her own government. Sir Craig Oliver, David Cameron’s head of communications made this observation news when he publicly stated that Mrs. May needed to assert her authority or risk being treated like a spectator in the government that she is supposed to be running.
Mr. Hammond and other less radical forces within the British government have combined their influence with Brexit officials such as Sec. David Davis. This contingent of officials are pushing for a slower exit from the European Union, stating that a quick exit will wreck the economy.
The Labour party as a whole is using this slowdown in the process to pressure the British prime minister to keep the country in the customs union and single market for four years after March 2019. Conservatives are now also under pressure to endorse a transition that adheres to more of the “status quo.” It remains to be seen whether Mrs. May will have the fortitude to push ahead with her fast-moving exit strategy, or leave remnants of the European Union agreements in place until 2022.
For the time being, Great Britain has had to play by the rules of the European Union. The current negotiating guidelines say that any transition that takes place must take place for the interests of the European Union. This means that Great Britain will continue to contribute its part of the budget to the EU. Great Britain must also accept the decisions of European courts and the notion of free movement inside of European Union states.
Understandably, hardcore Brexiteers are losing patience with May and her government. The negotiation will be harsh, especially because Great Britain seems to be giving up all of its representation and voting rights in European Union institutions. Basically, the European Union is punishing Great Britain for wanting to leave, and there is nothing the country can do about it except leave. Unfortunately, the government does not seem ready to do this.
In this quandary, strong conservatives are stepping up to ensure that Great Britain retains as much of its independence as possible while the government decides on its final position. There are issues of free movement of EU workers, the €10bn , and if Britain will still play some role in the European Court of Justice. It is the conservative contingent within the British government that is reducing the overall pain of leaving the European Union, ensuring that British businesses will only have to deal with one big event during the final trade deal assignments. If this was left up to Cameron-type Conservatives,, numerous temporary deals would likly be negotiated until 2019, creating incredibly unstable shockwaves through the British markets.
Perhaps the most important aspect of these negotiations is the imposition of a proper interim period. This would keep British companies from having to adjust multiple times to a new regime. The markets would remain as stable as possible, and there would be less fallout in the United States and across the world. However, strong-minded conservatives face a great deal of opposition in Parliament and in the indecision of the Prime Minister, Mrs. May.
~ Conservative Zone
