Hacker News Reader

Comment by hn_throwaway_99 | Hacker News Reader

Oh puhleese. The EU very much wanted the UK to stay in the union. The UK is the one that decided to leave. No way they should get to have the benefits of membership without the responsibilities. And your characterizing this as just "EU putting up trade barriers to the UK" is laughable.

View on HN

it is not asking for the "benefits of membership", the UK Government is asking for a free trade agreement along the lines of that agreed with Canada

They had a great free trade agreement - when they were in the European Union.

that is not in question, but full membership is now politically unacceptable to the UK electorate

the UK Government wants to keep barriers to trade as low as possible, it is seeking a free trade agreement

the EU is currently ratifying the Canadian FTA, and last week announced agreement with Japan had been reached that would reduce barriers by 99%[1]... whilst simultaneously threatening the UK with increased barriers to trade

[1]: https://www.ft.com/content/c874d02a-60ba-11e7-91a7-502f7ee26...

> that is not in question, but full membership is now politically unacceptable to the UK electorate

> the UK Government wants to keep barriers to trade as low as possible, it is seeking a free trade agreement

UK electorate cannot have both

so what's this?

http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ceta/ceta-explaine...

Im not going to read that huge list of links, but from what I understand CETA doesn't cover e.g. eggs, poultry... https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/15/brexit-canada-...

And doesn't cover finantial services, thing that is very important for the UK

An agreement that was negotiated for a long, long time? Not two years

And what the UK wants is not a free trade agreement, they want the same acces that they have now.

yes, it took a while to negotiate

the UK wants an "ambitious free trade agreement", not membership of the single market, if you don't believe me see https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/the-governments-negot...

    So we do not seek membership of the single market. Instead we seek the greatest possible access to it through a new, comprehensive, bold and ambitious free trade agreement.

A much more limited arrangement than the single market.

Why not?

A free trade agreement does not require being in the EU. So of course they want one. The EU saying no is there way of punishing the UK, and discouraging any other nations from leaving. Hmmm. Freedom of choice indeed.

"A free trade agreement does not require being in the EU." which is only offered to NON European countries. Please see the deal that Switzerland and Norway got. Deals that the UK does not want.

"there way of punishing the UK" Look, If you are going to have a divorce and tell your wife: "Look, we are going to have a divorce but I don't want to pay alimony and we are going to stay fuck buddies and the cottage in Italy that you inherited from your parents, I am still going to use this."

Then all this sounds like an excellent idea but if your wife says "I pass" this does not mean that your wife is going to "punish you". She is just passing on the deal.

So the EU will offer will only free trade deals to those not in the European continent, that sounds even worse, sounds like trying to force people into their cartel.

Take it or leave it. But now, you can get a free trade deal even if you are in the European continent. But then all four freedoms apply. No cherry picking. Use your brain!

Did they? Where was the subsidy for shipping across the channel?

They'll get it, eventually.

I gotta ask the opposite, why does the UK want such an FTA so much?

Could it be, gasp, that they realized they're actually fucked without one?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com