Putting Boris Johnson's wreckage back together again
His background at Eton and Oxford shows that Boris Johnson was, is, one of the most gifted of the thousands who passed through its halls over many centuries. His performance, especially in British politics, despite such proven evidence of intelligence and listeza, is marred by his opportunistic behaviour, his lack of respect for himself and the tradition of his Conservative Party and, above all, his rabid reluctance to leave power once his irrepressible tendency to lie to Parliament has been proven, probably the most serious political behaviour in the UK, especially if the perpetrator is the prime minister. Praise, then, to British institutionality, which has resisted the totalitarian impulse of its head of government and removed him from power in order to preserve the very prestige of the country so lethally damaged by Johnson. An example of institutional and civic courage that is sure to provoke healthy envy in more southern European latitudes.
While Johnson is finally removed from 10 Downing Street, putting an end to his traumatic experience characterised by a toxic mix of economic incompetence, ethical degeneration and international disrepute, both UK and European political forces are already assessing how to repair the enormous damage caused by Johnson, after all an opportunist who appropriated the ultra-nationalist UKIP flag to consummate a Brexit that promised little less than the restoration of the empire and endless days of wine and roses.
The reality is that nothing seems to have turned out as Johnson predicted. Look at his latest alleged achievements: the unilateral break-up of the Irish Protocol is clearly a disastrous decision not only for relations with the European Union but also for the very maintenance of peace in Northern Ireland. Scottish nationalists have seized on the Brexit lie to reintroduce a referendum on independence; it was not for nothing that EU membership was the most convincing argument for those who were against secession, and who were literally embarrassed by Johnson. To close the picture, see also the toll of his drastic anti-immigration policies, which have resulted in a glaring labour shortage in essential public services, hospitality and commerce. In short, Johnson's sad legacy is that he has brought the country to the brink of a serious structural crisis and territorial breakdown. Nor, of course, has the great promise of that sham referendum been fulfilled, that the UK, after regaining control, would free and energise the economy, would sign big deals with the whole world, starting with the United States, without the shackles of Brussels bureaucracy.
IMPOSSIBLE TO REVERSE BREXIT, BUT THERE ARE INTERMEDIATE SOLUTIONS
As Michael Emerson notes, "the damage done to many of the crown jewels has been incredibly irresponsible, including the academic and scientific community, and even the City of London". He and other Brussels analysts note, however, that there is as yet no real support for a complete reversal of Brexit and rejoining the EU, nor would there be unanimity within the current EU to support it. They argue that, since Brexit, the EU has seen substantial innovations in funding, with massive borrowing and the prospect of new EU tax revenues, which in their view would have been unthinkable with the British in because they would have blocked it outright.
Other solutions, which would facilitate a return to the single market and customs union, are being devised in the think-tanks of the EU capital. Specifically, this would involve London joining the European Economic Area (EEA) in the Norwegian way, i.e. without the EU's agricultural and fisheries policies.
They argue that such a solution would "get trade flowing back into the EU without bureaucratic costs, as well as restoring the free movement of people. It would also undo the damage of being excluded from EU research and education programmes, namely Horizon Europe and the Erasmus programme.
For the same reasons, such a solution would arguably defuse the fuss triggered by Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's proposed new independence referendum on the pretext of having contravened the promise, made to remain in the UK in the previous referendum, that they would remain in Europe. And, of course, it would also remove at a stroke the need for the Irish Protocol, now the main problem in EU-UK relations, a nightmare for traders and a serious threat to the fragile stability of the island of Ireland.
Obviously, EEA membership is not the same as full EU membership. However, it would be a compromise solution to repair the damage, after the clearly unfavourable outcome of Brexit for the UK. The EEA would thus ensure reintegration into the single market and free movement, while avoiding the federalisation so feared by British nationalists. Nor would they be required to join the EU's fiscal and macroeconomic policy, and would instead facilitate cooperation on scientific research, foreign policy and security issues.
Such cautions would also be good for the EU itself. If the British, so jealous of their independence, would not be driven to become a federal state within the EU, neither would the EU see its great projects for advancing integration and innovation, which our British ex-partners had a disastrous habit of blocking.