Sargon of Akkad - Carl Benjamin - #MakeBritainGreatAgain

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Jan. 18, 2017 - Sargon of Akkad - Carl Benjamin

49:38

#MakeBritainGreatAgain

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	I want this United Kingdom to emerge from this period of change stronger, fairer, more united and more outward looking than ever before.
	I want us to be a secure, prosperous, tolerant country, a magnet for international talent and a home to the pioneers and innovators who will shape the world ahead.
	I want us to be a truly global Britain, the best friend and neighbour to our European partners, but a country that reaches beyond the borders of Europe too.
	A country that goes out into the world to build relationships with old friends and new allies alike.
	I want Britain to be what we have the potential, talent and ambition to be.
	A great global trading nation that is respected around the world, and strong, confident, and united at home.
	Theresa May gave her Brexit speech yesterday, and it was surprisingly good.
	And I have to say, I am actually genuinely impressed about just how firm Theresa May has been when it comes to the subject of Brexit.
	Honestly, I'm no fan of what Theresa May has done in the past and I'm no fan of what the Conservatives are currently doing to Britain, which is why I would like some kind of credible liberal alternative to the Conservatives.
	But it's not going to happen.
	So let's take a look at some of the interesting points that May made in her speech.
	And she did make quite a few of them actually, I have to say.
	The first thing I'd like to talk about is May's recognition of the different political traditions of Britain and the continent.
	June the 23rd was not the moment Britain chose to step back from the world.
	It was the moment we chose to build a truly global Britain.
	I know that this and the other reasons Britain took such a decision is not always well understood among our friends and allies in Europe.
	And I know many fear that this might herald the beginning of a greater unravelling of the EU.
	But let me be clear, I do not want that to happen.
	It would not be in the best interests of Britain.
	It remains overwhelmingly and compellingly in Britain's national interest that the EU should succeed.
	I think it's very interesting that Theresa May says that the British reasons for leaving the EU are not well understood in the EU.
	And it really does speak to the difference in the political development of Europe and Britain as separate entities.
	I find it bizarre that people on the continent are prepared to live under laws made by lawmakers that they cannot personally hold accountable at the ballot box.
	That, for me, is just the most anti-British thing I can imagine.
	And that's what Theresa May basically says.
	It's not simply because our history and culture is profoundly internationalist, important though that is.
	Many in Britain have always felt that the United Kingdom's place in the European Union came at the expense of our global ties and of a bolder embrace of free trade with the wider world.
	There are other important reasons too.
	Our political traditions are different.
	Unlike other European countries, we have no written constitution, but the principle of parliamentary sovereignty is the basis of our unwritten constitutional settlement.
	We have only a recent history of devolved governance, though it has rapidly embedded itself.
	And we have little history of coalition government.
	The public expect to be able to hold their governments to account very directly.
	And as a result, supranational institutions as strong as those created by the European Union sit very uneasily in relation to our political history and way of life.
	The public expect to hold their governments to account very directly.
	Isn't that amazing that she has to say that to the Eurocrats in Brussels?
	This is not the English way.
	This is not the British way.
	We want to be able to elect the lawmakers.
	In the south of England, the sovereignty argument was the one that won the day.
	There isn't a huge amount of immigration in the sort of southwest of England.
	And this area also voted overwhelmingly to leave.
	And I think, honestly, it was entirely because we are not voting for the lawmakers that people wanted that.
	In the north of England, the motivation was very definitely about immigration.
	But in the south of England, I really do think it is this point of principle that was completely overlooked.
	And I think that that's one of the reasons that May is bringing it up now.
	This is genuinely important to the British, that we elect the people who make the laws.
	In the social contract, Rousseau makes a point of noting how the English view themselves with regards to their government.
	He says, The people of England regards itself as free, but is grossly mistaken.
	It is free only during the election of members of parliament.
	As soon as they are elected, slavery overtakes it and it is nothing.
	Now, I think that he's actually really understating the importance of the election of members of parliament, and the fact that the people of England have the power to remove the members of parliament they don't like.
	And I think they're right to think of themselves as free during these elections.
	Again, I think he's being excessively cynical when he says that, well, after that, it's slavery again.
	Okay, calm down.
	Rousseau found this to be an interesting quirk of the English, one that they held dear at the time and still do, even though, in his opinion, they're not free any other time.
	Honestly, I don't agree with how he's presenting the situation here.
	I think that, in fact, this is pretty much as good as it's going to get, at least in the current system that we have.
	But I do find it very interesting how this has been a long-running thing.
	And this goes right back to the Magna Carta, where the Barons sat King John down and told him that the king will not dictate without the consent of his underlings.
	And this is very important to the British character.
	And honestly, I mean, if you had to pinpoint, I think, one principle, one reason why the British don't sit well in the EU, it's this fantasy of freedom that they have.
	Even if the legislators they elect are bad legislators and create bad legislation, the fact that they have the power to remove them was important and still is.
	In fact, I mean, to me personally, this is the supreme principle that literally all other principles of government follow from, because this establishes the consent of the governed.
	And that is the thing that the European Union violates.
	I do not consent to their laws because I do not elect their lawmakers.
	And I honestly think this is the root cause of Britain wanting to leave the EU.
	The EU could have at any time reformed itself so that the public is electing the legislators, or that legislation could be created by the Parliament and not just the Commission.
	But they won't.
	And I think it comes from the continental mindset, which is, in my opinion, very much top-down, whereas the English mindset is very much bottom-up.
	Anyway, the next point is that Theresa May has been very firm that Britain is leaving the European Union.
	It is not going to have a halfway house or partial membership.
	We are leaving the European Union, but we are not leaving Europe.
	And that is why we seek a new and equal partnership between an independent, self-governing, global Britain and our friends and allies in the EU.
	Not partial membership of the European Union, associate membership of the European Union, or anything that leaves us half in, half out.
	We do not seek to adopt a model already enjoyed by other countries.
	We do not seek to hold on to bits of membership as we leave.
	No, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union.
	And my job is to get the right deal for Britain as we do.
	That's precisely what I want to hear.
	We can trade with the European Union from the outside, as other nation-states do.
	In fact, every other nation-state that trades with Europe does exactly that.
	There is no reason that this is something beyond our capability, something we can't do, or something that should even be considered unusual.
	The fact that the Remainers would have us believe that we are, I don't know, it's this kind of learned helplessness that they have, this tremendous fear that Britain can't get along on its own, despite the fact it's the sixth biggest economy on the planet, drives me nuts.
	And we'll talk more about this later, and we'll talk about what business actually thinks of this.
	And obviously, it's in complete contradiction to the Ramona narrative.
	Theresa May has set out 12 principles for Brexit that she plans to adhere to while she conducts the negotiations.
	And I'll go through a few of them now.
	The first one is to be as firm and certain as possible.
	The first objective is crucial.
	We will provide certainty whenever we can.
	We are about to enter a negotiation.
	That means there will be give and take.
	There will have to be compromises.
	It will require imagination on both sides.
	And not everybody will be able to know everything at every stage.
	But I recognise how important it is to provide business, the public sector, and everybody with as much certainty as possible as we move through the process.
	So where we can offer that certainty, we will do so.
	This is completely expected, and I'm not surprised that it's the first thing she brings up.
	And not only for markets, which is going to be the main cause of a lot of people's concerns about the uncertainty of what's going to happen with Brexit, because markets are basically feelings-driven and very responsive to public perceptions, which is honestly one of the reasons why I honestly think the Ramonas, those people in The Guardian and The Independent and all the very left-leaning people who think that being a part of the European Union is some kind of moral duty to push forward humanity.
	I'm trying to say we've got to go forward and try and make Europe work.
	We've got to stay in to try and make it work.
	It's for the future of humanity.
	I think Theresa May is talking almost specifically to these lunatics who think that humanity's future hinges on Britain's membership of the EU.
	These people generally seem to be scared.
	They generally seem to be afraid for the future and they're not afraid to say that all over social media or in various newspaper columns or on television and whatnot.
	These people seem to be terribly afraid of the uncertainty of the future.
	They don't see it as an opportunity, they see it as a catastrophe.
	And so Theresa May saying, look, certainty is the most important thing, is probably as much for them as it is for the markets.
	The second point is about the repatriation of powers and the return of sovereignty, full sovereignty, to the British Parliament.
	And again, there is very little to complain about here from either a remain or leave perspective.
	We will convert the AKI, the body of existing EU law, into British law.
	This will give the country maximum certainty as we leave the EU.
	The same rules and laws will apply on the day after Brexit as they did before.
	And it will be for the British Parliament to decide on any changes to that law after full scrutiny and proper parliamentary debate.
	And when it comes to Parliament, there is one other way in which I would like to provide certainty.
	I can confirm today that the government will put the final deal that is agreed between the UK and the EU to a vote in both houses of parliament before it comes into force.
	Our second guiding principle is to build a stronger Britain.
	That means taking control of our own affairs, as those who voted in their millions to leave the European Union demanded we must.
	So we will take back control of our laws and bring an end to the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice in Britain.
	Leaving the European Union will mean that our laws will be made in Westminster, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
	And those laws will be interpreted by judges not in Luxembourg, but in courts across this country.
	Because we will not have truly left the European Union if we are not in control of our own laws.
	Now that sentiment is music to my ears, but there are going to be plenty in Parliament who do wish to block Brexit.
	And that's something we do have to worry about.
	David Davis, the Secretary of State for exiting the European Union, has said that Brexit will happen even if Parliament votes against it.
	And Theresa May is thinking about calling a snap election if Parliament blocks Brexit.
	This is actually a really savvy political move because this basically puts Theresa May in a position to form a new majority in Parliament, which will happen.
	If a snap election was called tomorrow, the Conservatives would win in a landslide and they would win on the back of the Brexit vote.
	This is why Theresa May is the most popular politician in Britain at the moment.
	Jeremy Corbyn, Tony Blair, whoever, any other politicians who want to oppose her, are going to fail.
	So they need to basically get on board and deal with it.
	I think the MPs are savvy enough to know that.
	So while there will undoubtedly be the hardcore Ramonas who hold out complaining and voting against, I think that the majority in the Parliament will vote for May's Brexit deal.
	And I think it will all go through pretty much without a hitch.
	But I could be wrong, it could be that they go up in arms in revolt and we'll see where that leads at the next by-election, won't we?
	Put simply, May is arguing from a position of supreme strength.
	The public will is behind her and she knows it.
	And she's got every right to use it.
	She has a clear-cut mandate.
	And I'm really sick of the remain politicians going, well, no one voted for this.
	No, we did vote for this.
	This is exactly what we voted for when we voted to leave the EU.
	And let's not forget that even the leftiest of the lefties, Jeremy Corbyn, has said that the UK can be better off out of the EU and that they're absolutely in favour of repatriating powers from Brussels and they're not wedded to free movement.
	So let's all get on board with making Britain great again.
	If Comrade Corbyn is even on board with this, I'm sure that the other Liberal Democrat and Labour MPs can zip it for a minute, understand that their political futures hang in the balance and understand where public mood is.
	May has the political capital to make this happen and she's going to use it, so stop opposing her here.
	This is not the battle you need to fight.
	Theresa May then goes on to demonstrate why she has so much political capital in Britain at the moment, because she understands Britain's problem with immigration.
	The third principle is to build a fairer Britain.
	That means ensuring it is fair to everyone who lives and works in this country.
	And that is why we will ensure we can control immigration to Britain from Europe.
	We will continue to attract the brightest and the best to work or study in Britain.
	Indeed, openness to international talent must remain one of this country's most distinctive assets.
	But that process must be managed properly so that our immigration system serves the national interest.
	So we will get control of the number of people coming to Britain from the EU.
	Because while controlled immigration can bring great benefits, filling skills shortages, delivering public services, making British businesses the world beaters they often are, when the numbers get too high, public support for the system falters.
	And that sheer volume has put pressure on public services like schools, stretched our infrastructure, especially housing, and put a downward pressure on wages for working class people.
	As Home Secretary for six years, I know that you cannot control immigration overall when there is free movement to Britain from Europe.
	Immigration was a massive issue during Brexit, especially in the north of England, where people have been most hard hit.
	And she doesn't talk about the social consequences of immigration.
	And she also doesn't mention the millions let in to Germany and under Merkel who may well be able to access Britain by just getting German passports, which, let's be honest, eventually it's probably going to happen.
	But it is definitely a major issue.
	And this is speaking directly to voters in the north of England.
	I am going to get immigration under control because I know you have a problem with immigration.
	That if the left ever wants to take back the north of England, that has to be their mantra.
	They will have to, always, stress that they are an anti-immigration party because that's what the people in the north of England want.
	One of the main concerns from left-leaning Remain voters has been the protection of workers' rights, and May addresses it here.
	And a fairer Britain is a country that protects and enhances the rights people have at work.
	That is why as we translate the body of European law into our domestic regulations, we will ensure that workers' rights are fully protected and maintained.
	Indeed, under my leadership, not only will the government protect the rights of workers set out in European legislation, we will build on them.
	Because under this Conservative government, we will make sure legal protection for workers keeps pace with the changing labour market and that the voices of workers are heard by the boards of publicly listed companies for the first time.
	These are good words from Theresa May, but I'm very worried that they are particularly hollow, given the Conservative track record on workers' rights in the UK.
	They have been very, very pro-corporate in the past and put in very pro-corporate policies, such as the zero-hour contracts and the workfare scheme for benefit claimants.
	These are really worrying things.
	And honestly, if there was one thing on which Theresa May is very likely to backslide, I would say it's this.
	So if you're a lefty Remainer, this is what you should worry about.
	This is something that you actually have that's a legitimate cause.
	The Conservatives probably will try to roll back workers' rights, and that would be a bad thing.
	So that's the thing that you should focus on the most.
	Stop trying to make Brexit not happen.
	It's going to happen.
	You need to get in there and agitate for this.
	One of the major points of contention between the Remain camp and the Leave Camp was the issue of the single market.
	And Theresa May has been unequivocal on this point.
	We will be leaving the single market.
	But I want to be clear.
	What I am proposing cannot mean membership of the single market.
	European leaders have said many times that membership means accepting the four freedoms of goods, capital, services and people.
	And being out of the EU, but a member of the single market, would mean complying with the EU's rules and regulations that implement those freedoms without having a vote on what those rules and regulations are.
	That's why our objectives include a proposed free trade agreement between Britain and the European Union and explicitly rule out membership of the EU's single market.
	Because when the EU's leaders say they believe the four freedoms of the single market are indivisible, we respect that position.
	When the 27 member states say they want to continue their journey inside the European Union, we not only respect that fact, but support it.
	This is one of the strongest points of contention with Ramonas who, honestly, as someone who doesn't understand much about economics, I can tell you that they understand even less.
	And these people seem to think that if we leave the single market, that means that we will have either limited or highly tariffed access to the single market.
	This is nonsense, this is a total fantasy, and it totally undermines Britain's bargaining position when it comes to these negotiations.
	High-ranking politicians within the European Union, such as people from the European Commission or the European Parliament or the Council, they all want Britain to be punished severely for leaving the EU, because this is an attack on their power.
	This is their strength that we are sapping by doing this.
	And they would like punitive measures against Britain as a warning to other countries not to leave.
	However, this is not a very good idea from a business point of view, and businesses are opposing it overwhelmingly.
	Originally, Merkel did come out in a very hardline stance saying, no, there is no negotiation on this topic.
	You either have the four freedoms or you do not have access to the single market, or at least free access to the single market.
	But she softened this stance after German industry decided to openly plead for a free trade deal with the UK, because they fucking need it.
	Marcus Kerber, the head of the powerful BDI, or Federation of German Industry, warned against the regressive introduction of tariffs.
	Imposing trade barriers, imposing protectionist measures between our two countries or between two political entities, the EU on the one hand and the UK on the other, would be a very, very foolish thing to do in the 21st century.
	The BDI would urge politicians on both sides to come up with a trade regime that enables us to uphold and maintain the levels of trade we have.
	They say this because more than 5.5 million jobs in Europe are linked to exports to the UK.
	And last year Britain imported 67.8 billion more in European goods and services than it sold to the EU.
	We have a massive trade deficit with these people.
	If they can't trade to us without tariffs, they lose billions.
	Which is presumably why the Bavarian Economy Minister is saying that Brexit poses a high risk to the German economy and argued that the UK is one of the most important trading partners for Bavaria, one of Germany's most prosperous states.
	Britain is hoping that Germany will help temper demands from France that Britain must pay a price for its decision to leave the EU.
	They know they are going to have to play ball.
	The EU is not a secure enough entity to be able to cut off its own nose to spite its face.
	If Germany's economy starts tanking because of French punitive measures put on Britain, it's going to create another layer of instability inside the European Union.
	And this is not something they can afford to do with all of the other layers of instability that they have.
	Huge amounts of unemployment and huge amounts of immigration are fueling highly nationalist movements that are protectionist, they are anti-immigrant, and they are anti-EU and these are some of the most popular movements in their respective nation states.
	The EU cannot afford more instability.
	Which is why Angela Merkel suggested that she would be willing to compromise on free movement in the wake of Brexit.
	Because the other issues are capital, goods, skills, these are not a problem for Britain to take in.
	In fact, they're quite happy to take these things in.
	But the free movement of people packaged along with this is intolerable.
	And it's being treated as if it's some sort of religious ordinance.
	You have to have all or nothing.
	Well, why?
	Why does that have to be the case?
	Why is free movement something that has to go along with it?
	Why can't it just be regulated movement using visas and a point system?
	What's wrong with that?
	And I think it's worth pointing out that foreign firms are calling for free trade deals with the UK and are warning politicians not to punish Britain for Brexit.
	A survey by consultancy company FTI of nearly a thousand business leaders from nine countries, including the USA, Singapore, China, India, and Brazil, shows 73% support the idea of their country striking a free trade deal with the UK.
	At the same time, 72% say that their firm would look for opportunities in the UK once it leaves the EU.
	This is incredibly beneficial for Britain.
	This puts us in a position of strength when it comes to our bargaining power.
	We can get what we want because we don't stand to lose anything.
	We actually stand to benefit.
	And us even deigning to have these negotiations is us being generous to the EU.
	We could hurt them if we wanted.
	But as Theresa May has already said, she doesn't want that.
	I mean, almost 40% of our trade comes from the EU.
	It doesn't help us to ruin them, even though we have the power.
	Analysts said that the survey showed that global businessmen do not want the UK to be punished for its decision to vote leave and are instead actively encouraging their politicians to come to a swift and sensible solution.
	Dan Healy, FTI Consulting Managing Director of the Head of Research, said, This is a clear message to politicians across the globe that they should not burn bridges with the UK over the EU vote.
	He added, When politics is stripped away, the UK is simply too big a market for multinational corporations.
	Almost three in four global business leaders want their country's political leaders to engage with the UK so they can consider all potential trade agreements before deciding whether to remain or leave the EU.
	Again, these people understand that Britain is actually in a powerful position here.
	Britain is actually an open opportunity for international investment, especially with the devaluation of the pound.
	It's actually to our benefit for all of this to happen.
	We find ourselves in a position of remarkable strength, and all I hear from the left is them desperately trying to neg us, to talk us down, as if we are helpless and set adrift when in fact we're actually taking the reins of our own destiny.
	We're actually making money.
	We're the biggest growing economy in Europe.
	We are actually kicking ass.
	And all you hear from the left is, eh, it's so scary.
	No, it's exciting.
	Fucking hell, you should be walking around with a semi if you're an entrepreneur.
	If you are in any way interested in getting jobs into this country and helping the plight of the people at the very bottom who are struggling to find these jobs, Brexit is the best thing that could happen.
	This is why British business leaders are saying stop moaning and back global Britain.
	British businesses should stop hiding and instead travel the world promoting brand Britain as cheerleaders of open markets, according to former centuries boss Justin King.
	He was joined by Sir Michael Reag, the chairman of BTM WorldPay, who said that the global reaction to the vote is one of shock, and so British firms should take the lead in restoring the country's image.
	And part of the reason that the country's image has been damaged has been the negativity coming from the Remain camp.
	People see your media.
	They see what you're saying.
	They listen to you talking the country down and they think, well, they don't even have faith in themselves.
	If they think they're going to fail, why the hell would we think they're going to succeed?
	These trade opportunities are, of course, things that Theresa May is completely aware of.
	Because important though our trade with the EU is and will remain, it is clear that the UK needs to increase significantly its trade with the fastest growing export markets in the world.
	Since joining the EU, trade as a percentage of GDP has broadly stagnated in the UK.
	That is why it is time for Britain to get out into the world and rediscover its role as a great global trading nation.
	This is such a priority for me that when I became Prime Minister, I established for the first time a department for international trade led by Liam Fox.
	Theresa May understands the powerful bargaining position that Britain is in at the moment and she is not afraid to use it.
	I must be clear.
	Britain wants to remain a good friend and neighbour to Europe.
	Yet I know there are some voices calling for a punitive deal that punishes Britain and discourages other countries from taking the same path.
	That would be an act of calamitous self-harm for the countries of Europe and it would not be the act of a friend.
	Britain would not, indeed we could not, accept such an approach.
	And while I am confident that this scenario need never arise, while I am sure a positive agreement can be reached, I am equally clear that no deal for Britain is better than a bad deal for Britain.
	That is a line in the sand and that is so significant.
	That is a threat to Germany and France that we will tank their economies if they don't give us the deal that we want.
	They are over a barrel.
	There is no way the German and French leadership and the EU leadership are going to sacrifice billions out of their own economies in order to punish Britain for leaving.
	It's not going to happen.
	That would be political suicide.
	Just the number of jobs lost would be a calamity.
	And the thing is, Theresa May knows all this and goes even further.
	She's really getting them over a barrel by saying that she will change the nature of the British economy if they don't play ball.
	And if we were excluded from accessing the single market, we would be free to change the basis of Britain's economic model.
	But for the EU, it would mean new barriers to trade with one of the biggest economies in the world.
	It would jeopardise investments in Britain by EU companies worth more than half a trillion pounds.
	It would mean a loss of access for European firms to the financial services of the City of London.
	It would risk exports from the EU to Britain worth around £290 billion every year.
	And it would disrupt the sophisticated and integrated supply chains upon which many EU companies rely.
	Important sectors of the EU economy would also suffer.
	We're a crucial, profitable export market for Europe's automotive industry, as well as sectors including energy, food and drink, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and agriculture.
	These sectors employ millions of people around Europe.
	And I don't believe that the EU's leaders will seriously tell German exporters, French farmers, Spanish fishermen, the young unemployed of the Eurozone, and millions of others that they want to make them poorer, just to punish Britain and make a political point.
	Honestly, there's a part of me that hopes that they do.
	Because I personally would like to see the EU crumble into dust.
	But that's never going to happen.
	They are not that suicidal.
	All they would be doing is creating extreme problems for themselves at home and for their own constituents, not that they seem to give a damn about them, in an attempt to simply scare other people into remaining in the EU.
	And all that's going to do is fuel the nationalist parties.
	All that's going to do is hasten the breakup of the EU.
	Theresa May knows it, the European Union leaders know it, and now you know it.
	These people are fucked.
	We have them where we want them.
	They haven't, what have they got over us?
	If Theresa May is going, look, you know what we do?
	We'll just change the nature of our entire fucking economy.
	Fuck you.
	We'll have no deal.
	We won't trade with you.
	We will trade with all of the other people who are lining up to trade with us.
	We've started discussions on future trade ties with countries like Australia, New Zealand and India.
	And President-elect Trump has said Britain is not at the back of the queue for a trade deal with the United States, the world's biggest economy, but front of the line.
	I mean, this is an incredible position for Britain to be in.
	We are in the driving seat here.
	And I mean, May has just stripped the EU of anything they had to bargain with.
	Fuck your opinions.
	Fuck your tariffs.
	Fuck your fucking single market.
	She doesn't care.
	She has the rest of the world to deal with, and they want to deal with her.
	And the final thing that I don't think she addressed in this speech, but she has mentioned elsewhere, is the final lingering threat, and this is just my favourite one, that she will turn Britain into an offshore tax haven, which is freaking out economists and politicians on the continent.
	For example, the Netherlands will block an UK-EU deal without tax avoidance measures.
	The Netherlands will block any EU trade deal with the UK unless it signs up to tough tax avoidance regulations preventing it from becoming an attractive offshore haven for multinationals and the rich, the Deputy Prime Minister of the country said.
	Lojwig, fuck, fuck Netherlands, fuck it, who was elected as the leader of the Dutch Labour Party, which is currently the partner in the ruling coalition government, has written to socialist leaders across the continent stipulating his party's red lines in the coming talks.
	This was actually a move of such incredible brilliance.
	i'm actually genuinely impressed that the british government managed to think of it because usually the british government is rather plodding mundane and incapable of anything either great or terrible so this was actually it's brilliance This is a huge weapon to use against the socialists on the continent.
	And there are many, many, many, many socialists and many governments who all are fanatical about their socialist policies.
	And this really got their craw.
	Listen to Jeremy Corbyn at the very mere mention of this.
	Today, Theresa May set out her vision for a Britain after Brexit.
	And it's not a global Britain, but a Britain for the global elite.
	She threatened to turn Britain into a tax haven on the edge of Europe.
	bargain-basement economy that would mean okay I'm not gonna lie He didn't really just go, ree.
	He actually did make some points.
	But all I hear when Jeremy Corbyn speaks is, But the point is, Jeremy Corbyn got his panties in a bunch about this, which was really foolish, because, Jeremy, this was an obvious tactic from Theresa May.
	She is not going to turn Britain into an offshore tax haven, but it gets you thinking she might, and it gets you dancing to her tune.
	She's the one calling the shots and you're the ones desperately reacting to them.
	And that's, honestly, I'm genuinely amazed at how brilliant Theresa May has been through all of this and her strategy and tactics and how well they're paying off.
	I mean, this has got the socialists up in arms, and now they're going to agree to pretty much anything she wants, because otherwise, offshore tax haven, the poor are going to get poorer, what are you going to fucking say about it?
	Nothing.
	You're going to do what she wants, because otherwise, she's going to fuck the people you claim to defend.
	I know I keep saying it, but I'm just shocked that Theresa May has managed to corral so many different factions within the EU and within politics, and bend them to her will and get them under her power by simply pushing the right buttons.
	She's done a tremendously brilliant job, and it really annoys me watching people who don't really understand power politics, the great game, reacting like fools, like absolute childish buffoons in the name of this.
	They're just responding.
	They don't even know.
	They're not looking at the bigger picture.
	They don't seem to be thinking about what's actually going on and what's really going to happen.
	In a letter seen by The Guardian, Asher writes that it's in the interests of both the UK and the remaining 27 EU member states that May's government is prevented from creating a low-tax neoliberal outpost.
	In a sign of the complexity of the trade negotiations to come, he writes, if you and I pay taxes, so should the large enterprises.
	Let's fight the race to the bottom for profits taxation together, which threatens to come into existence if it's up to the Conservative UK government.
	See, this is a major issue for these people.
	If Theresa May threatens it, then they are going to have to fight her or capitulate to something else to prevent this.
	And I think they will capitulate to something less offensive and then allow her or run the risk of allowing her to go down this route.
	They are going to capitulate to what she wants.
	So one of the arguments that I've heard, and I'll give an example from The New Statesman, which is a publication that was broadly remained and full of regressives, is that we're going to lose all of our financial services to Frankfurt.
	Theresa May's Brexit speech is Angela Merkel's victory, here's why, from a person who does not understand what's going on at the moment.
	By accepting the UK will be outside and there can be no halfway house, Theresa May has essentially caved in before the negotiations begun.
	No, she fucking hasn't.
	It's the total opposite.
	They want a halfway house.
	They want us to be in the single market and she is resisting them and they have caved.
	Merkel has said, okay, no freedom of movement.
	She's softened on the issue.
	It's totally the other way around.
	At her meeting with May in July last year, the German Chancellor stated her ultimatum that there could be no, fuck you, Germany, the German equivalent of cherry-picking.
	Merkel stated that Britain was not free to choose and that's still her position.
	And May has taken her up on it by saying, no, out, completely gone.
	And Merkel changed her mind.
	But more importantly, Britain's main export is its services.
	It constitutes 79% of the economy.
	Without access to the single market for services and without free movement of skilled workers, the financial sector will have a strong incentive to move to European mainland.
	This is Germany's game.
	There is a general consensus that many banks are ready to move if Britain quits the single market and Frankfurt is an obvious destination.
	But the thing is, it's not going to be that easy, because there are some severe logistical challenges that would have to be overcome for Frankfurt to steal the city's business.
	Frankfurt Main Finance, the city's lobby group, believes attracting businesses and banks to its patch does not necessarily involve getting into a fistfight with London.
	Hubertus Varth, the lobby group's managing director, believes Frankfurt is looking to complement rather than supplant London as a financial capital and share in the spoils.
	London will maintain its position as the central financial centre.
	We hope that the financial centre Frankfurt will become the bridge between London and the Eurozone.
	They are not looking to steal our services.
	And even if they were, they're not capable of doing so.
	A bridge is undoubtedly going to be needed, and there's no reason that they shouldn't profit by being that bridge.
	The argument goes that the city has a world-class transport network, and office space in Frankfurt is 10-15% cheaper per square foot compared to in London.
	The only problem is that Frankfurt is a provincial town, functioning not chic, and in no way geared up to cope with a mass influx of bankers or anyone else for that matter, looking to escape a Brexit-burdened London.
	For instance, as of the 31st of December 2015, data indicates that there are just over half a million people working in the City of London and Canary Wharf.
	That's more than three quarters of Frankfurt's entire population, according to the last available census data.
	Chris Bell from the head of European Investment at Night Frank said, should there be an increase in calls on commercial property, availability would become a major issue.
	This would subsequently start reflecting in the prices, so the cheaper office space wouldn't last.
	And he also added, work-life balance that London offers is right up there with the best.
	The financial services sector values talent.
	If valued employees indicate their unwillingness to relocate, then the issue that's an issue that the employer has to look very, very carefully at.
	This factors into corporate thinking.
	You can't just draw plans on the hoof and expect that thousands of your employees would go with it, because believe it or not, they're not just fucking robots.
	And the thing is, I believe this more than I believe the new statesman, because I know that these people are on the ground and they deal with financial services professionally.
	Whereas the new statesmen, they're quote-unquote journalists, don't and they very obviously have an agenda of their own, which is to downplay Brexit for some reason, to try and rescind the whole vote, which is not going to happen.
	Get the fuck over it.
	One of the main reasons that people wanted to leave the EU is because the EU cost Britain a lot of money.
	And Theresa May has said unequivocally again that these contributions will cease.
	And because we will no longer be members of the single market, we will not be required to contribute huge sums to the EU budget.
	There may be some specific European programmes in which we might want to participate.
	If so, and this will be for us to decide, it's reasonable that we should make an appropriate contribution.
	But the principle is clear.
	The days of Britain making vast contributions to the European Union every year will end.
	Again, another strong point in May's favour.
	She's going to be taking money out of their pockets.
	They are going to be furious.
	By this, I do not mean that we will seek some form of unlimited transitional status in which we find ourselves stuck forever in some kind of permanent political purgatory.
	That would not be good for Britain.
	But nor do I believe it will be good for the EU.
	Instead, I want us to have reached an agreement about our future partnership by the time the two-year Article 50 process has concluded.
	This is the framework of a deal that will herald a new partnership between the UK and the EU.
	It is a comprehensive and carefully considered plan that focuses on the ends, not just the means, with its eyes fixed firmly on the future and on the kind of country we will be once we leave.
	She'd like this to be a swift and conclusive transition, and I'm in full support of that.
	She goes on to address some of the complaints or concerns of the Remainers, and I really do agree with these points.
	There's been a lot of concern from scientists who are genuinely worried about Britain's contribution to sciences.
	And as she says, there's no reason that Britain can't continue cooperating and pay into any science funding that needs to be paid with Europe.
	One of our great strengths as a nation is the breadth and depth of our academic and scientific communities, backed up by some of the world's best universities.
	And we have a proud history of leading and supporting cutting-edge research and innovation.
	So we will also welcome agreement to continue to collaborate with our European partners on major science, research and technology initiatives.
	That's totally reasonable, and I can't see how you can say more fair than that.
	And finally, we'll deal with the negative attitude of the Ramonas.
	And this is her opinion on that.
	It reflects the hard work of many in this room today, who have worked tirelessly to bring it together and to prepare this country for the negotiations ahead.
	And it will, I know, be debated and discussed at length.
	That is only right.
	But those who urge us to reveal more, such as the blow-bly-blow details of our negotiating strategy, the areas in which we might compromise the places where we think there are potential trade-offs, will not be acting in the national interest.
	Because this is not a game or a time for opposition for opposition's sake.
	It is a crucial and sensitive negotiation that will define the interests and the success of our country for many years to come.
	And it is vital that we maintain our discipline.
	That is why I've said before and will continue to say, that every stray word and every hyped-up media report is going to make it harder for us to get the right deal for Britain.
	Our opposite numbers in the European Commission know it, which is why they are keeping their discipline.
	The ministers in government know it, which is why we will also maintain ours.
	This was a message to the people opposing Brexit who are still opposing Brexit.
	We have now entered negotiations.
	We are now weighing up the strengths and weaknesses of each party.
	And Britain's strengths are a lot stronger than you're giving us credit for.
	And Europe's weaknesses are also a lot greater than you imagine.
	Alinsky's first rule of tactics is: power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.
	And that's his first rule for a reason.
	We have entered into the negotiations.
	Now it's about power.
	And the more you talk Britain down, the less power we will have.
	And the less power we will have, the worse deal we will get.
	And the worse deal we'll get, the worse it will be for the people you want to defend.
	The immigrants, the working class, the people you consider to be the weak.
	They will have it worse if you get a worse deal for Britain.
	So it's every British person's responsibility now to make Britain sound fucking brilliant.
	If we give a united front of just Britain is amazing.
	We're confident we're going for this.
	Everyone's on our side.
	This is going great for us.
	We will win.
	We will have a great deal from the EU.
	We will be able to put them over a barrel and to be able to just call the shots.
	And we can be magnanimous.
	We don't have to just screw them.
	As Theresa May has made very clear throughout the whole thing, she doesn't want to ruin Europe.
	She just doesn't want Britain to be part of Europe because that's what the British electorate chose.
	It is now to the responsibility of anyone in the remain camp to get behind Brexit.
	And I have to say, it's the responsibility of all the levers now to make yourselves heard.
	You have to go on social media, you have to write any articles that you can, you have to spread it around that we are behind Brexit 100%, and we want Britain and May, the Conservatives, to do a good job of it.
	And thankfully, they look like they're doing a fairly good job of it now.
	But we should fight these people on social media when they're just constantly whining.
	We should, in fact, choose a hashtag.
	We should choose a hashtag that we can, whenever we see them saying something like, oh, Britain's economy is going to collapse or whatever, we should get in there, hashtag, you're full of shit.
	Here's a link to prove you wrong.
	Boom, make Britain great again, or something like that.
	That's seriously, we need to be able to organise against these people to show them that they are full of shit, to show the outside world that there is a strong faction within the Brexit debate that is pro-Brexit, very confidently so, and very happy that this is going on.
	And if we can make a loud enough noise, create a loud enough voice, then this will be the impression that a lot of people will take away.
	We can start changing the narrative.
	All we have to do is get on board.
	So I would say make Britain great again as a hashtag.
	That's the one I'll be using.
	I'll probably title this video that.
	And I guess I'll finish it here because this has been going on for quite some time.
	But this is basically what Theresa May is saying when she says this.
	The referendum was divisive at times, and those divisions have taken time to heal.
	But one of the reasons that Britain's democracy has been such a success for so many years is that the strength of our identity as one nation, the respect we show to one another as fellow citizens, and the importance we attach to our institutions means that when a vote has been held, we all respect the result.
	The victors have the responsibility to act magnanimously.
	The losers have the responsibility to respect the legitimacy of the outcome.

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