Brexit.

[yellowcard]

How long will it be before an increasingly discontented horde of pro Brexit English voters get seriously peeved with the Irish issue preventing them from the Brexit that they voted for. Previous polls suggested they would be prepared to ditch the north if they got a more favorable Brexit for mainland UK. A lot of them probably aren't even aware of the level of finances needed to prop up the north's economy.

If this becomes a major topic of discussion then it could steer the discussion towards a border poll sooner than we think.

[Oraisteach]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

[johnnycool]

Smokin' Joe- are the DUP taking any notice of industry groups at all?

Nope Rois, not at all.  I felt like Ian Jr was trying to put words into my mouth "I was speaking to a NI manufacturer and exporter who said he would be happy to trade on WTO terms" etc.  This was after I told him that we already exported lots to the rest of the world.

Look, I can understand why they wouldn't go for the backstop, but I have no clue how it ends up in a position that they can support any sort of Brexit deal.  And I'm not sure they do either.

Smoking Joe,
     Not sure what you export, but the company I work for also export outside the EU (electronic goods) to Africa, the Middle East and Asia and whilst you are trading on WTO terms WRT regulations they all want to see the EU certifications for the products as they're recognised world wide and by and large accept them as written. They also request proof of Country of Origin and Made in the EU is more than suffice.
The UK will either need to ape these standards when leaving the EU for the time being or come up with their own standards acceptable to these countries or trade will cease.  Trading into the EU will still require their regulatory approvals.

The US will only accept UL approved kit, Canada, their IC mark and India are now putting in place their own BIS standards, heck even China are getting in on the act with their CCC standards.

The BS kite marks may need to make a comeback, but compliance is a minefield and growing industry.

[seafoid]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

[Milltown Row2]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

Well lets hope the South doesnt need a bail out, oh wait 

[Rossfan]

"The South" got loans which are being repaid with interest.
Same as the "UK" got back round 1975.
The "UK' Government debt has trebled since 2010 I believe?

A "bail out" suggests a load of free money. Repayable loans aren't free money.

[johnnycool]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

Well lets hope the South doesnt need a bail out, oh wait 

We need a bail out every year MR2.

The DUP are proud of that fact.

[Milltown Row2]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

Well lets hope the South doesnt need a bail out, oh wait 

We need a bail out every year MR2.

The DUP are proud of that fact.

But we are worth it 

There are a lot of areas in England Wales and Scotland could be doing with bail outs and in truth there has been a lot of industries in the mainland that have got contracts and bail outs over the years by the government, the banks being the last one of note

[An Watcher]

Mainland.....please

[Walter Cronc]

Jeez MR2 

[johnnycool]

Jeez MR2 

He's moved out of the wild west into the South East Antrim suburbs, forgotten his roots that lad.

[seafoid]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

Here is Blanche Dodds from the Telegraph

She doesn't want realism. She wants magic.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/12/11/theresa-may-actually-listening-would-know-backstop-assurances/
If Theresa May was actually listening, she would know that backstop 'assurances' are not enough
•   
Nigel Dodds
11 December 2018 • 6:00am
We take no pleasure from this position. We want an orderly exit from the European Union and we want stable government for the United Kingdom. Yesterday, however, summed up the chaos which has been the hallmark of this Prime Minister.
Despite our warnings, she trundled along towards an historic defeat on the Withdrawal Agreement. Then at the last minute she backed away from a vote.
Wednesday 14 November was arguably the high-water mark for the Withdrawal Agreement when the Prime Minister received the backing of Cabinet for the deal. That support, however, only came after a five-hour marathon meeting.
Since then there have been Cabinet resignations and an almost daily series of MPs announcing that they cannot back the deal. It has been clear for several weeks now that the Withdrawal Agreement did not have the support of the House of Commons and clear for many days that it was facing heavy defeat.
Some of us used the last two weeks to argue that the Prime Minister needed to look beyond the current Withdrawal Agreement and seek a better deal. We were ignored by Downing Street.
The Prime Minister did not listen. That time has now been wasted. Instead, the Government roadshow toured the country and online adverts were pumped out telling us the only choice was between the Prime Minister's deal or a so-called "no deal". That was a foolish strategy.
The Attorney General's advice on this legally binding text laid bare that the backstop would not be temporary and how the Withdrawal Agreement failed the Prime Minister's own previous commitments. Still we were told the Withdrawal Agreement was as good as it gets.
Those arguments by the Prime Minister now lie in tatters.
Yesterday the Prime Minister told us that she would return to Brussels to seek reassurances about the backstop but at the same time told us that this was a good deal for the United Kingdom. We don't need more reassurances.
No reassurance will prevent, as the Attorney General said, Great Britain being "essentially treated as a third country by Northern Ireland for goods passing from GB into NI."
The Prime Minister should have known before the Withdrawal Agreement was signed that it would not work.
Last December, we advised her not to sign up to the Joint Report, which contained a commitment to introduce backstop arrangements which could create barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. She was aware of why there was an insistence by the Democratic Unionist Party that Paragraph 50 should be inserted into the Joint Report. That paragraph, however, and its impact were not translated across to the Withdrawal Agreement.
The focus on the dangerous backstop continued despite statements from all sides that no-one would erect the so-called "hard border" on the island of Ireland. London, Dublin and Brussels all agree that they will not build a border in any circumstance.
If the Prime Minister was actually listening, she would realise that the problem is with the legally binding Withdrawal Agreement.
Mrs May will go to Brussels without having held the meaningful vote in Parliament. She cannot return to Parliament having secured only meaningless assurances from the European Union.
If the Prime Minister uses this deferment to simply repackage the Withdrawal Agreement, she will suffer more trouble on her return.
The backstop is just as unacceptable now as it was last December. It is not a continued defence of the Withdrawal Agreement that is required, but substantive change of this legally binding text.
That can be the concrete proof that Parliament and the public need to show that the Prime Minister really is listening.

Nigel Dodds MP is the Westminster leader of the Democratic Unionist Party

[Jeepers Creepers]

Jeez MR2 

He's moved out of the wild west into the South East Antrim suburbs, forgotten his roots that lad.

He's obviously referring to being on Rathlin....

[seafoid]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

Well lets hope the South doesnt need a bail out, oh wait 

We need a bail out every year MR2.

The DUP are proud of that fact.

When did the UK start funding NI ie when was NI no longer able to fund itself?
It hadquite a strong economy 100 years ago.

[johnnycool]

And, seafoid, like Blanche DuBois, the North has "always depended on the kindness of strangers" 🇬🇧

You said it, Oraisteach

Well lets hope the South doesnt need a bail out, oh wait 

We need a bail out every year MR2.

The DUP are proud of that fact.

When did the UK start funding NI ie when was NI no longer able to fund itself?
It hadquite a strong economy 100 years ago.

In the 1930's allegedly, I'll try to hoke out some evidence on that.