Bloomberg (November 25)
“Since the Brexit vote in 2016, the UK government is yet to deliver major legislative change with significant benefits for businesses. Instead, companies have had to grapple with higher paperwork costs on trade, a tighter labor market spurred by a reduction in EU migration and a weaker pound increasing import costs. Brexit has also had a political cost of aggravating tensions in Northern Ireland and hurting diplomatic relations with the EU.”
Tags: Benefits, Brexit, Businesses, Costs, EU, Government, Import, Labor market, Migration, Northern Ireland, Paperwork, Pound, Trade, UK, Weaker
Washington Post (October 21)
“Brexit has consistently proved to be unpredictable. After more than three years, there does appear to be one certainty, however: Whatever happens, Brexit won’t just be ‘done,’ as Johnson is suggesting.” The potential departure of Northern Ireland or Scotland from the UK and other “concerns that have been on Britons’ minds in recent years” will “remain a risk.”
Tags: Brexit, Certainty, Concerns, Johnson, Northern Ireland, Scotland, UK, Unpredictable
The Irish Times (March 15)
“Northern nationalism has shifted its view on the continued viability of the Northern Irish state.” A referendum is imminent and preparation essential for a unified Ireland. “A no-deal Brexit will lead to an instant call for a referendum…. If that happens, we’re into uncharted waters. That scenario is still only a few weeks away.” If there is a Brexit deal, “then the next census, due in 2021, will show a nationalist majority. At that point, it’s hard to see how a British secretary of state could resist calls for a border poll.”
Tags: Brexit, Census, Ireland, Majority, Nationalism, No-deal, Northern Ireland, Poll, Referendum, Unification
The Economist (July 2)
“It is now a week since voters narrowly opted for Brexit, and the country has seldom looked so wildly off the rails. The prime minister has handed in his notice. The leader of the opposition is struggling to survive a coup. The pound hit a 31-year low against the dollar and banks lost a third of their value, before stabilising. Meanwhile there is talk in Scotland and Northern Ireland of secession.”
Tags: Banks, Brexit, Dollar, Northern Ireland, Opposition, Pound, Prime minister, Scotland, Secession, UK, Voters
New York Times (September 13)
In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement brought peace to Northern Ireland. The arrangement now looks to be in peril. “Ending the power-sharing provincial government in Northern Ireland will serve no good purpose, either for Protestant unionists or Catholic nationalists. The only ones who gain are the dark forces on both sides who remain consumed by sectarian hatred and violence.”
Tags: Catholic nationalists, Dark forces, Good Friday Agreement, Government, Hatred, Northern Ireland, Peace, Power sharing, Protestant unionists, Violence
New York Times (February 13, 2014)
On September 18, Scotland will vote on whether to go independent or remain in Great Britain, which also includes England, Wales and Northern Ireland. “As the countdown begins for the fateful vote, the Scots should certainly weigh the potential economic consequences, but also the pros and cons of dropping out of ‘Team G.B.’”
Tags: Cons, Consequences, England, Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Pros, Scotland, Scots, Vote, Wales
