Lord Frost Dodges Brexiteer's Stupid Question On Bilateral Deals!

Tory MP Richard Drax asked Brexit Minister Lord Frost a question on bilateral agreements with EU member states, but by asking the question Drax either doesn't understand how the EU works or is pretending not to. Lord Frost didn't clarify the situation when he actually dodged the question somewhat.

#Brexit
#Brexiteer
#LordFrost
#BilaterialDeals

[mentar]

It's hilarious by now when Brexiteers repeat their "the EU needs to understand that the UK has left" line. It's rather "the UK needs to understand what it means to have left the EU".

[brianarmstrong]

They are clearly living in some sort of parallel universe where The British Empire still rules the world. Madness, sheer madness.

[marcusaurelius]

I don’t give the Tories the benefit of the doubt anymore. Thick is as thick does.

[mandycouchbean]

Max While They hold all the cards We hold all the Idiots & the liars !

[clivemortimore]

Can Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland make their own deals without the British Government BIG BROTHER telling them "No".

[rockerjim]

Shouldn't MPs know the rules to begin with so they don't ask stupid questions. Apparently not.

[TorianTammas]

The EU is every member state. They work together as it benefits them. They make the rules and agree on the rules they then follow.

[tommohawksaxe]

In the months and years ahead the EU will change everything to please you, Lord Frost. What the fuk is he on?

[simoncolombo]

True, EU countries can do trade deals with other countries, as in commercial contracts and investment deals, but not free trade agreements.

[michaelbudden]

Classic example of how a certain type of Englishman seems to think we’re still in the 1920s, or even the 1820s, rather than the 2020s.

[gdwnet]

it's not a question of the EU understanding that the UK has left the EU but of the UK understanding that the UK has the left the EU! All too often, the UK seems to expect the EU to solve the UK's issues. It's almost like we can't go it alone.

[nadtz]

Phil mentioned this yesterday I believe from a different story. I'd honestly love to know if they don't know how the EU works to this extent or if there is some kind of purpose to all this. It's honestly hard to believe that as an American who has had to learn about the EU for business reasons I have a better understanding of how the EU works than government officials of a country that just left the EU a few months ago.

[theotherandrew]

The whole scene was just smoke & mirrors for the Brexiteers.

[indricotherium]

Another passing, casual exchange of dream fragments across the Mad Hatter's Tea Party table.

[peterzapp]

Brexiteers persistently try to excuse Brexit Britain's failures by the EU's resentment and "attitude", rather than by their overestimation of Britain's negotiating power, by their ignorance of WTO rules and EU statutes, based on binding international treaties and ratified by all members.

[BenPortmanlewes]

So making deals with individual countries in the EU is ok, but rejoining the common market is not.
I thought I was thick.

[alfresco]

LOL. As if we are going to have any influence on the EU's rules on bilateral trade from outside the EU...when we never managed that when a member. Five years on and we're right back to "Thick as Mince's" plans to do individual deals with Germany.

[johnpark]

Do you think Drax is still cleaning his tongue, must have taken some time to pull it out of frost's rear end.

[SonOfViking]

France did not sign a "trade deal" with India, as you said here, at least not if you are going to be precise in your terminology. It brokered a comprehensive business deal on behalf of some of its commercial concerns, which is quite a different matter. EU countries, like any country, can lend diplomatic weight to certain commercial initiatives related to specific business sectors (as the UK repeatedly did while an EU member - think Saudi Arabia etc). Any trade resulting still must comply with EU terms under which the member operates.

As a third country the UK can negotiate directly with EU members on that basis, and even attempt something more comprehensive in which it addresses niche sectors consistently under EU target production quotas etc. While this could even be beneficial to individual EU member states it is not however in their best interests to pursue such negotiations repeatedly, if at all. And what no EU member can ever do is negotiate a free trade deal with a third country. That would be subject to ratification by the EU Council according to the EU constitutional treaties the member has signed up to and would be almost certainly shot down, with repercussions for the member state.

That said, you are correct about Drax being either thick or arrogantly dismissive of international law. And likewise Frost, who we know is both, was hardly going to correct the man. This committee hearing was pure "echo chamber" stuff, with absolutely no significance for anyone living in the real world, outside the Brexit rabbit hole that is current UK government.

[aljosacebokli]

Oh. My. God. These guys just plain won't acknowledge reality🤣🤣🤣