Hope springs eternal
One definition of chutzpah is of the boy who murders his parents and then throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan. Which brings me to the Northern Ireland Protocol again, apparently the Government is shocked, shocked you hear, to find that the NIP undermines the Good Friday Agreement and apparently this is the fault of the EU.
It now “hopes” that if it tore up the NIP the EU would be nice enough not to take any action in return. Basing your actions on such flimsy hopes is politically naive in the extreme, to such an extent that it is hard to believe that it is a serious consideration at all. But the fantasies of the Brexiteers come in many forms and sizes, this is just the latest in a long line.
Some Brexiteers are perfectly happy to maintain this fantasy, it suits their real aim which is to leave the EU without a deal at all.
The danger is that the government gives them what they want by mistake, totally misreading the EU’s position and somehow believing that it can tear up international treaties at will with no consequences. Funnily enough the bursting of previous fantasies never seems to dilute faith in the next Brexit fantasy.
But if the government goes ahead and tears up the NIP we will all discover that “hopes” are not the basis for negotiations.
https://jonty.substack.com/