The Brexit White Paper: An exercise in giving away control brxcen.com/2Jile71 via @BrexitCentral
.@HughRBennett on the Irish backstop + what wd happen if the UK diverged from the common rulebook: "The fact that the govt has already accepted the EU’s flawed logic on the issue indicates they are taking the position that it is imposs to keep the border open if the UK diverges.
"Indeed, the early signs from Brussels are that, despite the monumental concessions already made by the UK, the EU will still try to force some sort of backstop protocol into the deal.
"If the UK tried to diverge, this would kick in and either force Northern Ireland to be separated from the rest of the UK or force regulatory harmonisation on the whole UK – right back where we started. It is a textbook example of a catch-22."
