With apols for R/T, there were obv many other things I could not have foretold (proroguing parliament; downplaying impact on GFA, now threatening to invoke Art 16 etc ) but if there was one other big factor which still astounds me, it was the threat to leave with no deal...
https://twitter.com/alexhallhall/status/1466097196156264467
It's simply mind boggling to recall that two years ago there was a serious prospect of No Deal happening; and that to prepare for that, 1000s of staff across Whitehall were deployed on an emergency basis to handle potential fallout
The risk of No Deal forced us to adopt the kind of crisis posture that typically occurs in response to a major terrorist incident, or natural disaster. But this was an entirely self-imposed situation.
I myself twice helped to set up & staff an emergency unit in Washington, as No Deal deadlines neared - with colleagues from across the embassy on a standby roster, in crisis mode, producing regular sitreps and reports to London. A core group of us were in it full time.
Most other embassy work was put on hold. As is well documented, similar scenario on even larger scale played out in Whitehall. It calls to mind the scene from Blazing Saddles where the Mayor threatens to shoot himself, since what we were doing was threatening to harm ourselves
But it was deadly serious - and the more accurate description of the threat was in my colleague @rfhaviland's resignation letter after the first "No Deal" crisis, in which he writes "Had any of this been orchestrated by a foreign power, it would be seen as an act of war."
Two years on, this scenario still gives me chills. Its immensely stressful just writing about it again today.....so I am now going to focus on a more positive activity, putting up some Xmas decorations! But we should never forget the extreme lengths this govt was prepared to go.
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