Strikes me that you could make a case that neither Greenslade *nor* Fox should have their roles
*or*
that bygones are bygones and they both keep them (neither have apologised for or changed their earlier views)
You might additionally argue that Fox's role as a member of one of the Houses of Parliament, a position she now holds for life, ought to actually mean *higher* standards for her than for Greenslade
There's a word for the hack calling for one to resign, and staying strangely silent on the other: hypocrisy
After all the wrangling in December about the European Parliament and Provisional Application of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement... everything has gone weirdly quiet.
Where *is* the vigorous scrutiny of the TCA that was promised?
Rapporteurs @KatiPiri@CHansenEU when is scrutiny in Committees? When is the Plenary vote? Late March mini plenary, or end of April?
The European Parliament is the *only* body well placed to scrutinise the TCA (and the interplay between it and the NI Protocol) right now - so the absence of any meaningful public communication about all of this?
I'm worried. It strikes me that if ERG, Foster, Gove and Frost stick to their current approach (demanding NI Protocol abolished or Art 16 triggered) *and* the work to do the required checks in NI from 1 April doesn't happen... it's a matter of time before UK Govt triggers Art 16
It won't happen before end of April, because triggering it before the European Parliament has even ratified the TCA is too dangerous (even for the political geniuses in 70 Whitehall), but once that's done... what's going to stop them?
Labour wants Brexit problems to go away. It's not going to mount a defence of the NI Protocol nor demand the work on the ground gets done
So discontent will grow, accusations of bad faith will be flung at the EU - with no-one UK side to balance them
It's the sheer brazenness of the Gove (backed by Foster) approach to "grace periods", & asking for them to continue until 2023...
As if it's self evident that UK is not going to be ready anytime soon... to do what it agreed to do when it signed TCA just 2 months ago!
Really, what has *changed*?
Unionists *that the 2020 WA and NI Protocol sold down the river* are annoyed? Consider me shocked.
That the EU actually thinks what's in a Treaty ought to be complied with? Can't be having that!
Or that vdL's faux pas on Article 16 and vaccines means the EU now has to change its approach to the texts it has agreed with the EU? Come on, that's not serious
Conclusion from the complete absence of reaction to this - on Twitter and directly on my blog - is that serious pieces like this on UK-EU relations, if not written by a think tank, now just sink without trace
Maybe I should pitch things like this to an organisation like @UKandEU - but then editorial processes and timetables come into play, but I guess I need to stomach that
And I am pretty sure I am not the right sort of person to work for a think tank, and founding my own makes no sense (we don't need more EU think tanks anyway)
Frost replacing Gove to front 🇬🇧 Govt's relations with 🇪🇺 has provoked a lot of debate about leadership, accountability and coordination of #Brexit in Whitehall
But similar questions need urgent answers 🇪🇺 side too