The LEP MeetUp in London / Brexit / Talking to my Daughter

Episode Notes and Transcriptions

The world appears to be burning

No-deal Brexit

Timur

Hello, Luke. I’ve got a question related to the latestpodcast. What is the word combination that appears from time to time and soundslike NO DEAL? What does leaving the EU ‘without a deal’ mean?

Luke Thompson JEDI-PODMASTER Timur • 16 days ago

To explain the whole ‘no deal Brexit’ thing:

The EU is our largest trading zone. Most of our stuff isbought and sold there. It’s an extremely beneficial position to be able totrade freely, help create laws, be part of close collaboration, be a gateway toinvestment and so on. Leaving that union would mean cutting ties and access tothe market without any defined terms in an agreement. The UK would end uppaying extremely high export tariffs while low import tariffs would allow ourmarket to become flooded. That’s the way it would be set out in WTO terms.

The UK would face losing access to its biggest marketplacewhile having to create new agreements with other markets from scratch.International trading agreements take years to put together and within the EUwe are in a much more advantageous position for creating trade deals with othercountries while working as a bloc.

But with no deal in place for things like trade, customs,tariffs, security and so on, the UK would be in a weaker position I think.

Leaving with no deal would also bring up the NorthernIreland problem because it would create a hard border on the island of Ireland.We are very aware from recent history how things can flare up badly in thatregion when there are border posts.

Leaving the EU with a deal is something that has been madepossible due to several years of negotiating with the EU for a withdrawalagreement, which would mean a total withdrawal from the union – no MEPs orother officials taking part in lawmaking, not being subject to standard EUlaws, but would also include details for things like access to the singlemarket or the customs union. There is the shaky Northern Ireland backstop whichwould put northern Ireland somehow in the customs union, with a border in thesea between Britain and Ireland.

So, basically, leaving with a deal means leaving the legalframework of the EU, but making an agreement setting out terms for membershipof the single market or customs union like the Norway model.

But leaving with no deal would mean having no agreements inplace with our nearest and largest marketplace for both goods and services.

Weekend in London

Music

LEP Meetup

Questions from the Meetup

Pick a question, answer it, then say anything else you wantfor 2 to 3 minutes.

Which of these would you choose?

To be able to grow plants faster and better than anyone else

or to be able to fly

Which of these would you choose?

To be one of the best stage musicians

To be the world’s videogame champion

Which of these would you choose?

To be the strongest person in the world

To write the funniest play ever

What would you miss more if it ceased to exist?

Live concerts

Role playing games

Whom do you consider worse?

Those who get drunk to avoid dealing with their problems

Which of these would you choose?

To never need to use the toilet

To be the best football player in the world

Which of these would you choose?

To invent faster-than-light travel

To conclusively prove the existence or non-existence of god

What do you consider worse?

Destroying posters put up by rival political parties

Trolling a forum where people want to discuss their hobby

What would you miss more if it ceased to exist?

Bicycles

Television series

Which of these would you choose?

To be the richest person in the world

To write the best-selling novel of all time

Which of these would you choose?

To be able to read wifi signals with your mind

to discover something that extends life expectancy by oneyear

Which of these would you choose?

To age half as fast from now on

To need no food or drink

Whom do you consider worse?

Someone who offers a cigarette to a friend who has just quitsmoking

Someone who knows a friend’s spouse is cheating on him butdoesn’t say

Whom do you consider worse?

Someone who claims anything they don’t understand is stupidnonsense

Someone who steals a handful of coins from a blindpan-handler

Which of these would you choose?

To write the most beautiful song ever sung

To be the fastest runner in the world

Which of these would you choose?

To be able to read minds

To be able to comfort anyone sad

What would you miss more if it ceased to exist?

Hot showers and baths

Comic books

Which of these would you choose?

To be the best martial artist in the world

To have a pet unicorn

Which of these would you choose?

To be able to instantly sober up when you want

To be able to see any map you want in your mind’s eye

Which of these would you choose?

To be able to see through the eyes of any nearby animal

To be able to play any musical instrument perfectly

Meetups

What you can do, how you can organise them (set up an event,let me know about it and I’ll give you some publicity. Choose a place withspace where you can perhaps get a drink, bring some board games or questionpoints, speak and relax!) The LEP Meetup page on the website. Exchange ideasand contact details. Check in every now and then.

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