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UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

bbc.com

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Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#11

Post by adnam »

djaychela wrote: post #2

I sincerely hope that today (and obviously the day it actually happens) isn't something that I look back on with sadness in the future. I live in the UK, and am really saddened by the way that politics is 'progressing' - in fact, regressing to a time where nationalism seems to be the voice, and one which I think will inevitably lead to conflict. Combined with the Trump situation in the USA, I am extremely pessimistic…

We had plenty of conflict while part of the EU: the Falklands, Iraq, the IRA, Bosnia for example.

It wasn't nationalism which caused conflicts in Europe, it was a lack of democracy.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#12

Post by s_kilk »

dijit wrote: post #7
dijit wrote: post #4

I'm British but live in the EU. I've been watching this from the outside and it makes me so very sad and despondent. Forgetting any inconvenience on my part (of which there are very few -I likely have access to an EU passport.). It's fucking stupid. No ifs, no buts, no apologies and respecting of alternate opinions. Just fucking stupid. Every single reason for leaving (other than "leave so the EU can get on without U…

It's rather notable that the UK has the option of aborting this process during the 2 years. (According to an EU official who's name I forget), it's incredibly unlikely that anyone will go back on this though. The uncertainty of having this option available is bad for the UK though. Markets hate uncertainty.

Does it?

I thought Article 50 was very much a 'hand grenade', once the pin is out there's no going back. If the two years run out without an agreement being reached, doesn't the UK just get chucked out and revert to WTO rules?

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#13

Post by ealexhudson »

dijit wrote: post #7
dijit wrote: post #4

I'm British but live in the EU. I've been watching this from the outside and it makes me so very sad and despondent. Forgetting any inconvenience on my part (of which there are very few -I likely have access to an EU passport.). It's fucking stupid. No ifs, no buts, no apologies and respecting of alternate opinions. Just fucking stupid. Every single reason for leaving (other than "leave so the EU can get on without U…

It's rather notable that the UK has the option of aborting this process during the 2 years. (According to an EU official who's name I forget), it's incredibly unlikely that anyone will go back on this though. The uncertainty of having this option available is bad for the UK though. Markets hate uncertainty.

It doesn't have the option per se: it can ask to abort it, and it can do so with the agreement of the 27. Also, the 27 can agree to a date far off in the future (it doesn't have to be two years).

It seems staggeringly unlikely that they would allow us to abort without a major change in relationship, though, and politically things would need to get extremely difficult for the UK for that to become palatable. All the exceptions and discounts we get right now would absolutely cease.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#14

Post by gambiting »

Two9A wrote: post #5

Are British HN'ers taking any mitigating steps due to this whole situation? I'm currently in the process of incorporating in the Netherlands, and it turns out setting up a Ltd is a lot more expensive over there than in the UK. I just don't feel that the UK will make good use of my tax receipts any more, so I'm almost obligated to take my work elsewhere.

I'm not British but I live in the UK - I have based my entire life here, family, house, job, car, everything - and a year ago, I would have never considered leaving, this is my home. But right now, I'm weighting my options. I'm a huge believer in the European Union, so why would I want to live in a country that's not in it? And increasingly, I think the answer is - I wouldn't. So although I haven't started packing yet, if, for example, it turns out I have to get a visa to stay in the country that I consider my home, then I will most likely pack everything and leave to a different EU country that is more welcoming.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#15

Post by HenryBemis »

Two9A wrote: post #5

Are British HN'ers taking any mitigating steps due to this whole situation? I'm currently in the process of incorporating in the Netherlands, and it turns out setting up a Ltd is a lot more expensive over there than in the UK. I just don't feel that the UK will make good use of my tax receipts any more, so I'm almost obligated to take my work elsewhere.

EU Citizen here, living in the UK or "wherever I may roam".

I have my Ltd in the UK. I am sticking to the UK for the time being, and will keep a close eye at:

1) Tax scheme/calculations for dividends.

2) Ability to transfer money in & out and at what cost (in the extreme case of Capital Controls or limiting transfers abroad).

3) Exchange Rate of GBP against EUR, USD, and a couple more so I make sure that my payments are not losing 10% on the get-go.

All the above are extreme situations. If I feel that my income/finances are threatened, then I will act, otherwise I will continue to support UK economy as UK has been "supporting" me (not really), these years.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#18

Post by havondale »

dijit wrote: post #4

I'm British but live in the EU. I've been watching this from the outside and it makes me so very sad and despondent. Forgetting any inconvenience on my part (of which there are very few -I likely have access to an EU passport.). It's fucking stupid. No ifs, no buts, no apologies and respecting of alternate opinions. Just fucking stupid. Every single reason for leaving (other than "leave so the EU can get on without U…

Perhaps people didn't want 'ever closer integration' to a very undemocratic system of government. Unpopular opinion, but the economy isn't everything. I'd much rather live somewhere with a smaller economy where there's actually a mechanism to remove those in power.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#19

Post by DrNuke »

Corbyn for Labour Party: "There are Conservatives who want to use Brexit to turn this country into a low-wage tax haven." Well, full automation = no wages at all, ehehe. I am not sure how it is going to end and it is not my strict business anyway but there is a chance, not a slim chance imho, we may well see some sort of sci-fi dystopian UK emerging from this process. Interesting times ahead. Disclaimer: spent five years in the UK on the cusp of the 2007-8 financial crash and could see this was going to happen somehow someday, all starting from there and from perverse globalisation enhancing inequalities imho.

Re: UK triggers the official Brexit process in a letter to EU

#20

Post by Sharlin »

redsummer wrote: post #8

Great news. Of the four happiest countries in the world, three are European countries outside the EU. Autonomy is crucial to happiness.

A wonderful example of an argument that isn't even wrong. For reference, see cherry-picking, confirmation bias, cum hoc ergo propter hoc.
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