Now we know. The Article 50 (A50) process to leave the EU can be reversed – unilaterally. Cue: national shroud-waving. The prevailing political wisdom [sic] is (maybe) the people have spoken. Therefore, the idea of stopping Brexit is anathema, at least to the vast majority of parliamentarians, without another public/people's vote (also known unsurprisingly as a referendum).
But what is the juridical position? Unless the UK unilaterally deactivates the A50 process, it will cease to be a member of the European Union on 29 March 2019. No amount of UK parliamentary bluster will stop that process unless legislation is passed to reverse it before that date. So far the closest any parliamentaries are to that is to speculate wistfully about the EU Council extending the A50 deadline while preparations for a fresh UK referendum are put in place.
In the meantime, business uncertainly resulting in rotting vegetables, unpicked fruit, job losses and an investment freeze continues. EU nationals and their families are going 'home', the readiness of their compatriots to risk their futures in the UK has plummetted and the resulting loss of skills and community enrichment is uncalculable.
There is much talk of Parliament taking back control in the event of the Conservative government's so-called EU Brexit deal being rejected in the House of Commons. NB It is not a Brexit deal by any stretch of the imagination. That will take another indefinite period to resolve – and the above uncertainties are compounded. All the EU Withdrawal Treaty (WA) resolves are the leaving date, the cost of divorce and the supremacy of EU law until a Brexit deal is agreed.
Today, if the debate on the WT and accompanying Political Declaration goes ahead we should learn more about whether Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn is up to the challenges that face the country.
If Labour is serious about wanting to force an election, then Corbyn has got to 'bury' Prime Minister Theresa May in reply to her opening speech tonight about all the perils facing the country as a result of this bungled Brexit negotiation – to the NHS, education, social care, public services more widely, local democracy and devolution, not to mention jobs and investment. Forget GDP figures. Government has ground to a halt. She has lost the support of the majority of the House of Commons for the Conservatives' flagship manifesto policy His specific challenge in shaping his case for a general election is whether to continue with the notion of a better Brexit, or take a cue from the other Johnson brother, Jo – and accept the time for 'fantastical' ideas is over.
Closure of the brighter/better Brexit chapter to the satisfaction of Labour leavers ought not to be difficult. The Conservative government has rebuffed every attempt by Labour to shape Brexit thinking. Tory bungling has been compounded by denying Parliament access to impact studies and latterly legal opinion. Could Labour have been more helpful? When it became clear the A50 two-year time window was too short to negotiate a future trading relationship, which Party proposed a 'transition period' – Labour, When the government's right to invoke A50 was successfully challenged by Gina Miller in the courts, which party supported tbe government in Parliament to activate the process – Labour. So attempts by May to point the finger at Labour are bound to fail.
But what did May achieve? At best, an expensive £39 billion divorce bill for surrendering a place at the top table, destroying the illusion of the UK as a global power and having a say in future EU decision-making; oh and ending freedom of movement for the UK's 65 million inhabitants throughout the EU-27. Everything else is To Be Decided, except the Irish border which has to remain open and therefore the UK is, to use the Brexiteers' terminology 'trapped' in the EU in perpetuity with no say, and still subject to the European Court of Justice. (Assuming I have understood the gist of the Attorney-General's as yet unpublished opinion.)
So, Mr Corbyn, shed crocodile tears over that brighter/better Brexit. But, please, don't pretend it forms any further part in Labour policy thinking. This is not a plea to Remain. It is a call to refocus on the future - to rebuilding and reforming within the EU in partnership with our sister parties and other progressive forces in the EU-28. May's increasingly strident and desperate rhetoric proclaims that the people want to see Brexit decided. So why doesn't Labour respond to that challenge, and offer the country the opportunity to settle the issue through a general election early in the New Year with a commitment to withdraw A50 immediately if elected. That way business uncertainty is ended at a stroke, and the UK wouldn't have to rely on EU-27 goodwill to secure an extension of A50.
All it would take from Corbyn is leadership. What has he got to lose?