New party needs to focus on England and Wales’ return to EU

This is urgent for the economy of UK. Its current government have done nothing but cheer themselves for doing nothing. Free movement of Labour will rapidly become urgent for large employers. Bureaucracy will become impossible for importers and exporters. European cross-border scholarship for indigenous universities nonexistent.

Benefits and pensions for them here and us there will be lost in translation.

I will join any political party which says its number one priority is for England and Wales to rejoin the EU. 
Ramon Prasad

The devil is always in the detail and, as we begin to find out both the anticipated and unanticipated realities of our new trading relationship with the EU, I wait to hear of anything that is now better for our businesses than it was before.

Speaking on Radio 4’s The World This Weekend a businessman and conservative councillor told us of the new challenges that Brexit was having on his business. Asked about any positives he said: “I think possibly in five or ten years time, I’m hoping that we can look back and go ‘you know it actually wasn’t that bad and it was worth doing’. Britain has always been fantastic at developing stuff over the years and we’re great innovators, and we always have been. And I think that is the probably positive thing about going out of Europe is that it will make, hopefully make, the youngsters, and everybody else, just say ‘right, okay, we can do this, lets make more products, develop more things, there is a positive side’”.

As a classicist, I wonder if the PM has been inspired in his treatment of businesses by ancient Sparta, where young boys and men were constantly tested by hunger, hardships and punishments to produce strong, capable and conformist soldiers to serve in the army.

In years to come, I fear that, the Brexit referendum result will come to be seen as a modern day pyrrhic victory, sadly it is all of us, and particularly the young, who pay the price and suffer the consequences of this victory.
Nick Roberts
Selly Oak, Birmingham

It seems clear that the UK economy is going to suffer severely by not being a member of the single market or the customs union. In the short term this may go unnoticed by some and ignored by much of the media. The hurt is concentrated in small and medium sized businesses involved in hitherto profitable trade buying from and selling to the EU. Although I am now retired, my own small business importing from the EU would have been impossible with the current arrangements.

I completely agree with David Daniel’s letter (TNE #228) that our first aim should be should be to become members ASAP of these two organisations. This still respects the outcome of the referendum, and is what countless Brexit politicians promised us.
Bill Todd
Bromley

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