How to solve a problem like Brexit - the speech Mrs May could make

IN 2016 British voters took an historic decision; a majority of voters asked us, their Government, to execute their wish to leave the European Union.

It was unprecedented, it was a shock but it was also something this Government had simply not prepared for. For that, as your Prime Minister, I am sorry.

We didn’t recognise the anger you felt, the frustration with not getting a GP’s appointment, the inability to get on the housing ladder or your opinions on immigration.

We let those who promised you the earth and delivered little dominate the discussion while we offered nothing but scare tactics.

We called for unity to deliver Brexit but didn’t recognise the anger felt by those who wish to remain.

We didn’t listen, but we will learn.

The past two years has been riven with arguments, fall outs and scenes which have done little to re-establish trust in Parliament and elected MPs.

We now stand on the cliff edge, it is clear we will struggle to achieve a deal which will achieve what those who voted for us to leave wanted - a clean break with the European Union.

As Prime Minister I believe anything short of this would betray all those who voted in the
referendum, it would not deliver what Leave voters wanted and would never be accepted by remain supporters.

Therefore, as we asked for the people’s opinion on our relationship with the European Union we should now ask whether we should leave with no deal or remain.

I will ask Parliament to legislate for a vote this autumn; should it be approved then the choice will be simple, to leave or remain.

If your wish is to leave, your Government will exit the European Union on March 29 next year with no deal for the reasons I have stated above.

We will achieve the aims of a majority of voters who asked us to leave the European Union but we risk a period of economic uncertainty as we attempt to forge a new path in the world.

We will use the remaining months of our membership to put steps in place to ensure on day one of Britain’s Brexit, our banks will open, our supermarkets will be stocked and our flights will take off.

However, should you vote to remain, I give you my assurance it will not lead to further integration such as Schengen and there will be no debate or referendum on joining the Euro.

We will seek to reform the EU from within, proposing legislation to retain freedom of movement both in and out of our country but ensuring each of the member states can control immigration to benefit their individual economies.

We will seek to deliver better outcomes for our farmers, our fishermen and all those who find their daily work burdened by EU red tape.

We will oppose further attempts at integration with the threat of a further referendum. One which will be unambiguous, legally binding and require a super majority of 55-45 per cent.

Should it be needed, this result will be definitive and mean any further Conservative Government will not make the mistakes of the past and will deliver the clean break requested.

Let me be clear, a vote to remain would not be a continuation of the status-quo but an invitation to reform a deeply flawed institution.

Brexit has divided this nation for two years, it has put further strain on an already fractious union and has all but paralysed your Government.

The time for talking is over, now it is time to make that leap one way or another.

Britain deserves better, let us deliver together.

Criticise Blair all you want, he's just become leader of the opposition...

IT'S INCREDIBLE that 10 years after leaving Downing Street, Anthony Charles Lynton Blair still provokes as much bile and vitriol as we have seen today.

His 'crime' this time? To dare to suggest the British people voted to leave without knowing Brexit's terms and conditions and opine that a space existed where he and other people could persuade voters to change their minds.

Basically the former PM is suggesting the sort of insurgency which has brought the likes of Farage, Nuttall, Le Pen and President Trump to the fore except this time in reverse.

His speech has predictably been ripped to shreds by the Brexiteers and the media who whip out their favourite 'affront to democracy' lines when anyone dares suggest Brexit isn't full of milk and honey.

However on this Blair is spot on. The British people did vote leave without knowing the terms and conditions of an exit and a space does exist to change people's minds....it's called the Her Majesty's official opposition.

In a single speech, Blair has done more to oppose Brexit than Jeremy Corbyn has since June 23, 2016 and shown a clear, decisive approach to what is a thorny issue for the Labour Party.

Let's remember the current 'opposition' to the Government have pretty much waived Brexit through the House of Commons, yes amendments were tabled but they failed and many Labour MPs still voted in favour apart from a hardy few who stuck to their principles.

The Liberal Democrats have been principled opponents as have the SNP but the overwhelming narrative is Brexit MUST happen. No, the ATMs must have money, our hospitals must have doctors and nurses and our schools must have teachers.

Against this backdrop, a tissue of lies and half-truths and hypocrisy has been allowed to be 'the norm' and to go unchallenged for fear of being labelled 'unpatriotic'.

It was wonderful to see the Foreign Secretary tear into Mr Blair....Because we all know Boris led the Leave campaign with facts, not with lies such as buses promising £350million extra for the NHS .....

This would be understandable had our nation voted overwhelmingly to leave, such as the 10 percentage point result of the Scottish referendum result. But Brexit was decided by less than the three percentage point margin of error used in all opinion polls.

It was also decided by a margin previously described by Nigel Farage as 'unfinished business' had it been the opposite way around......but shhh we aren't allowed to talk about that.

It's therefore right for someone to squeeze into the gap and pose the awkward questions, because Brexit should only mean Brexit if we can negotiate an exit which ensures our wonderful isle can continue to prosper.

That should be the message from the Labour Party but while Her Majesty's official opposition continues its breakdown, running scared of UKIP while taking even further away from its core voters, then the space exists for someone to exploit.

Ask yourselves this, if not Blair, then who?

Why I'll be voting Remain

WHEN I vote tomorrow, it will be to remain part of the European Union. Firstly I totally accept it's not perfect, it needs real reform and some of the more bonkers ideas need trashing straight away.

But equally, the United Kingdom is just a small island floating in the Atlantic Ocean. Forget this delusion of empire, without the EU we are just what we appear on any globe. A small island.

This campaign has been truly vile, in what our politicians have stooped to to get our votes and the colour it has brought out in some people who simply haven't listened to the 'other side' of the argument.

While the Prime Minister's stupid comments on World War Three were beyond reproach, I'm also not amused by the Leave trio of Boris Johnson - a man who was extolling the virtues of the European Union just months before changing his position, Michael Gove – a man who single-handedly annoyed every teacher when he was Education Secretary and Iain Duncan Smith – who presided over cuts and the attempted to distance himself from it.

I believe if we stay we can build a better future for us all, keeping trade high and yes tackling immigration. Remember this works both ways, how many ex-pats are living in the EU now using a country's healthcare system with many not contributing to the GDP of that country?

Immigration is not a dirty word, it's happened for years, it's not a new problem. Should we leave the EU, how will we stop people coming to our country? We are an island with no borders unlike many of our friends in Europe, if you think its uncontrolled now then I have news for you, it's going to be even harder to police should we leave!

The Tories have been working hard to ensure our doors are open but for those who want to work, not sponge off the state. And that goes to the nub of the argument for me, it's so easy to look at Johnny Foreigner coming here to 'sponge off the state' but what about British kids who leave school with no qualifications and go straight to the benefits office?

Doesn't happen? Go and walk past a job centre in your town, all the voices you hear won't just be foreign.

Those pushing the immigration line simply want to ignore the problems we have in this country, where benefits have become a salaried way of life for some young Britons, some of whom won't even contemplate working for a living.

The possibility of Turkey joining the EU is a long way off and besides, EVERY country in the EU can veto any accession so it's far from a done deal. Britain will not have to join the Euro, by staying in we can constantly hold the fear of leaving over Merkel et al should they force us to scrap the pound.

A European Army? Seems daft and not sure the rest of the EU will go for it, particularly the French who traditionally stay out of any conflict but would be looked upon to provide some of the manpower. And besides, none of us ever worried when British soldiers were called upon by the UN did we?

"We can make this country great again!” – apart from the general annoyance that something from the Donald Trump playbook has been used, when haven't we been Great?

We have wonderful countryside, we have a rich history which pulls in millions of tourists every year, we do make things (albeit not as much as we used to), we are tolerant, we embrace white, black, brown, straight, gay, lesbian or transgender. We aren't afraid to speak our mind, to be there for each other, to come together in celebration or in suffering.

We live in a time where the nation has many problems – from the threats posed by global terrorism, a wonky economy and a disenfranchised electorate to planning problems and the need for more housing.

At this time we ought to be tethered to our friends rather than cast off into the unknown. Because for me that is what a Leave vote would represent.

All I ask is this, on Friday can we PLEASE go back to normal!!!!!!