UK Edition
Buried in the faux outrage of the rump Remainers regarding Boris Johnson’s apparent determination to see Britain truly free of the shackles of the EU lies an important matter of Britain’s reputation in the world stage.
The Remain brigade, the usual suspects of vested interests and those who owe fealty to foreign powers, argue that the proposed domestic legislation, which cuts across aspects of the Withdrawal Treaty, would cause us to breach international law and thus undermine the UK’s reputation on the world stage.
They claim that counter parties would no longer trust us, that the sky will fall, in warnings on a par with the plague of frogs and rain for a hundred years that they claimed would accompany a vote to leave the EU.
The realpolitik is something else.
Since the end of Pax Britannica, Britain has been playing cricket while the EU and most of the rest of the world have been playing dodgeball. When British values prevailed globally, it was certainly in our interests to ensure the rule of law. In fact, it was the financial and martial dominance of Britain which enabled us to enforce an end to the slave trade, at cost in blood and treasure, in the early 19th Century. We used it for good, as well as profit.
For a hundred years there was adherence to the gold standard, the vast majority of trade contracts, and insurances, even between third parties, were processed through London. English law was the global law of the land and of the ocean.
But Pax Britannica ceased to be long ago, and now nations and associations regularly contravene international norms and agreements.
China ignores WTO rules and manipulates its currency. The same is true of the EU, to the benefit of Germany and France in particular. Russia and China flout political borders, just look at Crimea and Hong Kong. Even the United States ignores norms when it suits, take Guantanamo Bay and the defunding of the WTO and WHO. The EU have also flagrantly ignored the provisions of the Withdrawal Treaty, not negotiated in good faith and have shown no intention of delivering a free trade arrangement.
The amazingly rapid trade arrangement agreed with Japan stands in stark contrast to the four years of prevarication by the EU. Despite the UK starting point being alignment as we were members of the EU, this demonstrates how right the government are to call out the bad faith and poor endeavours of the EU to reach a settlement. It is also worth noting that the state aid clauses of the Japan deal are well short of what the EU demands and demonstrate what a normal but extensive trade arrangement should look like
I support the rule of law, but this can only be properly policed within a nation state and is a luxury of sovereignty. Thank goodness the UK is sovereign and, by and large, we practice it. Within an international dimension however, there is no court or policeman of behaviour and while we have been playing with a straight bat, others have persistently not.
We should not be mealy-mouthed about this: Britain needs to stand up for its rights and not bow to the bully boys in international arena of playground politics. Our reputation will not be hurt by standing up for ourselves. The only way to deal with a bully, in this case the EU, is to punch them on the nose.
John Longworth is director general of the Centre for Brexit Policy, Chairman of the Independent Business Network and the Foundation for Independence
Britain needs to stand up for its rights and not bow to the Brussels bully boys
While we have been playing cricket with a straight bat internationally, others have been playing dodgeball