00:00There is no doubt that leaving the EU from a trade point of view, if nothing else, and
00:06I know the Brexit vote back in June 2016, almost 10 years ago, it's hard to believe
00:12a decade has passed since then, but nonetheless, economically we are poorer, the economy has
00:18declined, it's the largest trading block in the world, and so the fact that we've made
00:23it much more difficult for us to get our goods in there, in effect, and of course we've heard
00:28a lot about tariffs, that's what's happened, we've imposed sanctions upon ourselves by our
00:33very action, and I know people will say, well that's the EU being bitter and twisted about
00:38what's happened, but hey, it's a sort of trading club, and if you don't like the rules, then
00:43you don't have to adhere to them.
00:44The single market is one of the European Union's main economic frameworks, it's built around
00:49the three movements of goods, services, capital and people, with common rules designed to reduce
00:55barriers between member states, when the UK left the EU, it also left that system.
01:01Since then, businesses trading with Europe have faced extra paperwork, checks and regulatory
01:07hurdles.
01:08But of course, there are so many, many stories of sort of manufacturers, both large and small,
01:12who find it much more bureaucratically difficult to get their goods into Europe, and that has
01:17an impact in terms of the economy, in jobs, the tax take, and so on and so forth.
01:21So, undoubtedly, something which of course I would not have recommended, and I voted to
01:28remain on the basis that we were going to sort of be poorer.
01:31But hey, you know, we were supposed to sort of have lots of new routes for trade to open
01:35up, and that has not happened.
01:37Maybe it will do in the future, but I am a bit sceptical about that.
01:40One of the key ideas under discussion is dynamic alignment.
01:43In practice, that means the UK would keep some domestic rules in step with changes made by
01:49the EU in agreed areas. Supporters say that would cut friction, support trade and help
01:54with prices if businesses face fewer barriers. Critics argue it could mean ministers updating
01:59parts of the rulebook through secondary legislation, with less room for MPs to amend what is proposed.
02:06That is where the political and constitutional argument is now centred.
02:11So, there is a sort of really good economic imperative to rejoin in some shape or form.
02:18And of course, therein lies the difficulty, because as soon as you do that, you open up
02:22the sort of the difficulty of what will the EU want in return.
02:26And indeed, there is a sort of an incentive for the current Labour government to do this,
02:31because of course the economy is declining, and a consequence of less money in the economy,
02:36it makes it very difficult to do all the things that they need to do.
02:39And of course, all the toxicity that happened 10 years ago, before, during, and of course,
02:45in the years afterwards until we actually got the vote through Parliament.
02:49So, Keir Starmer will be well aware that once you sort of go down this route,
02:54it's not going to be easy, and he's going to get a lot of opposition.
02:56And indeed, any sort of view that we may rejoin the EU, I don't think that's even on the cars.
03:02For a start-off, why would the EU want us back?
03:05Because, of course, knowing full well that in three years' time,
03:07it's highly likely, given the opinion polls, that Labour will no longer be in power,
03:11and could indeed, if we sort of regard the opinion polls that sort of come out with three years to
03:16go,
03:17we could be looking at a reformed government.
03:19And of course, the first thing they would do is say, we're going to leave again.
03:22So, it's the in and out, the hokey-cokey, if you will.
03:26That's not in anyone's interest, least of all the EU, who sort of,
03:30it took a lot of their time and effort.
03:32So, where does it all take us?
03:34Well, we are sort of an island, and not an insignificant one,
03:38but we're an island off the sort of the coast of Europe.
03:41There was always this view, we were the bridge between America and the EU.
03:45We have links with the EU or sort of Europe, that's for sure.
03:50But, of course, much more difficult as the consequences of Brexit.
03:53But, hey, we look at sort of America, which, of course, is going to be the sort of the new
03:57frontier,
03:57and I don't see any links opening up there in the very near future, if ever.
04:01So, you know, we have sort of isolated ourselves and made it very difficult economically, culturally.
04:08Travel is also a problem.
04:09And, of course, let's face it, people who have been abroad in recent years will know
04:12you have to pay sort of more for your phone unless you sort of have it built into your trap.
04:17That's not automatic, but most particularly what we're hearing in sort of recent sort of days
04:22is people sort of getting to the airport to come home in particular,
04:25and because of the biometric sort of security tests and giving fingerprints,
04:30huge queues building up to the extent where people miss their planes.
04:33All of that, of course, would not happen if we had passports, which were sort of part of the EU.
04:38But, hey, as I say, that's not going to happen in the sort of the foreseeable future.
04:42The European Union remains a major market for UK trade,
04:47so even targeted changes to regulation can have wider effects for businesses and consumers.
04:54Ministers insist this is about making trade easier, not rejoining the single market.
04:59Opponents say the detail will matter, especially over scrutiny and control.
05:04The next step will be whether legislation is introduced,
05:08what sectors are covered and how Parliament is asked to approve any future changes.
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