Thread by @Usherwood

So, while I was on holiday and not thinking about Brexit, I was thinking about Brexit.

But in a broader way:

1/

A big part of the difficulty of doing this (apart from the distraction of ice-cream, the beach, and sleep) is that Brexit seems like a really big thing.

Which it is

You look at it, and there it is, a big lump.

That's a bit daunting, which is why a lot of people either find something else to do/think about, or look for simple, 'silver bullet'-type answers

3/

However, that's not very helpful, because it fails to recognise that 'Brexit' covers a whole lot of things

And if we start to break down those things, then they start to look a bit more manageable/resolveable

4/

So let's try to do that.

5/

Most fundamentally, 'Brexit' contains two big things, and one smaller thing.

Most importantly, it's about ending one form of the EU-UK relationship and starting a new one.

Secondarily, it's about getting from one to the other

6/

The EU wants to sort out the end of the old relationship w.in Art.50 process, and leave new one to after

7/

The UK thinks you need to think about the new relationship to work out how to settle the old one, but has basically accepted this division of work

8/

This means that when we talk about getting a deal by March, it's very much about settling the old relationship, and putting in place the structures to get to the new one

9/

So much of heat in UK about Customs models is misplaced: that's part of the new relationship, not the old one

10/

But even this breaking-down of 'Brexit' is a bit big, so let's break down each element to another level

11/

Again, you can see that each contains sub-areas, which have a bit more focus, even as they form part of a whole

12/

And, guess what, you can keep on doing this

13/

The point here is that thinking about 'Brexit' isn't very helpful or productive.

Instead, we have to think about the different elements within it

14/

That's not only more manageable, but it also avoids some of the brain-ache involved from following what's going on.

15/

As you listen/read/watch people sell their ideas, think about what part of the puzzle they're addressing (if any), and what they're leaving

16/

Of course (there's always an 'of course'), the elements do interact and connect

But that doesn't mean any of them should be ignored

17/

And that's about it.

Hope it's of use

/end