Brexit by Rudolf G. Adam

Author:Rudolf G. Adam
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9783030222253
Publisher: Springer International Publishing

3.8 Brexit Takes Shape (2018)

3.8.1 In Quest of a New Course

Ignoranti quem portum petat, nullus suus ventus est

The wind is never favourable to those who do not know where they are going

Seneca the Younger

After the breakthrough in March, there was little movement on either side. The Civil Service in Whitehall was desperate to make sense of the contradictory instructions they were receiving from their political masters: how to combine strict separation from the EU, (including the Customs Union, Single Market, free movement and CJEU jurisdiction) with the other demand of keeping access to the Single Market open, keeping regulatory frameworks in harmony and ensuring undiminished operations of British financial services on the continent. Above all, a practical, pragmatic, endurable and workable arrangement had to be found for the Northern Irish border. How could one reconcile a hard Brexit with a soft border? How could there be a sharply controlled border between the United Kingdom and the EU, but not between north and south of Ireland? How could movement of people be controlled without interfering with the movement of goods? Confusion was growing in Whitehall. May increasingly put her trust in Oliver Robbins. He had been her Permanent Secretary at the Home Office. He now moved up to become her personal advisor in all Brexit questions—just as, if not more, powerful than Nick Timothy had been.

Several ideas were brought into play: a fully automated border and electronic surveillance modelled on traffic controls in London. Some wanted to turn Northern Ireland into a bridge between two worlds as a member both of the UK and of the EU.43 British negotiators called on the EU to show greater flexibility. Some insinuated that the EU wanted to punish the UK in order to set a warning example to others.44 The EU, on the other hand, pointed out that, as it was the United Kingdom that wanted change, it had to develop a clear concept how that change could be achieved. It was the UK that wanted to leave something that was tried and functioning. So it was the United Kingdom that had to present something so far untried but capable of functioning. The EU left no doubt that its internal structures and procedures were not up for negotiations. The EU made clear it did not want to put any obstacle to Britain finding its own way, but at the same time there was no need to adapt complex structures that had formed over decades simply to make life easier for a party that wanted to break free. It was up to the UK to develop models that achieved what it wanted while fully respecting the EU and its political and economic principles. An official in Michel Barnier’s team called out in frustration: “I am concerned because the pre-condition for fruitful discussions has to be that the UK accepts the consequences of its own choices … I have the impression that the UK thinks everything has to change on the EU’s side so that everything can stay the same for the UK.

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