ES Views: There’s no point delaying EU trade talks any further

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PM Theresa May greets European Council president Donald Tusk at Downing Street in April this year.
Getty Images
25 October 2017
WEST END FINAL

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It’s in the best interests of both the UK and the EU that a trade deal is agreed, but at this stage there isn’t even a date agreed to start trade talks. Things need to change.

The Prime Minister wants to reach an agreement amicably but appeasement did not work before the Second World War and it is not working now. The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, and the EU believe they have the upper hand and can make unreasonable demands, but they are wrong.

The EU may appear strong and united but things could change rapidly. If one member state starts to complain about the lack of progress on trade talks, others will quickly follow. It must be remembered that the EU relies greatly on being able to export its produce to the lucrative UK market, and thousands of jobs are dependent on these exports.

Merkel, Theresa May and the EU need to stop playing games and do the right thing for EU citizens and the UK; start trade talks as soon as possible.
Brian Smith


When I voted to stay in the EU I was voting for economic stability, security and the preservation of peace. Instead, Brexit’s divisive machinations have brought us instability, tension and a slow-growing animosity between communities in the UK and across Europe.

I am tired of hearing Brexiteers repeating that the EU referendum reflected “the will of the people”, when in fact only two-thirds of the population voted on the issue and even then it was hardly an overwhelming majority.

I think, more accurately, that it represented the people’s confusion; bamboozled by the Remainers with their over-complicated arguments and duped by the Leavers with their immigration smokescreen. Now that more facts and undesirable consequences are surfacing, Brexiteers are becoming more extreme and belligerent, blaming everybody else for the escalating chaos.

The only way in which they are united is in their determination to deny the public any opportunity for a second vote, no matter what new pitfalls and potential disasters become apparent.
Robert Perry


The Government has conceded that the UK will have to pay compensation to the EU for reneging on our agreed Treaty obligations. The actual amounts involved will be subject to fierce negotiation but will certainly be more than we were led to believe at the time of the referendum.

When the full amount of our reparations is finally agreed, a second referendum would determine whether the British people are prepared to pay the price of Brexit.
James McGrory


Children's futures must be a priority

Everyone wants the best start in life for their children yet research published by Action for Children shows that Conservative councillors are concerned about the lack of government funding for children’s services. We want to see real action on increased investment in children’s centres and family support, especially in the first 1,001 days of a child’s life.

We support David Cameron’s proposal for a Life Chances strategy and Labour’s plans to “place quality at the heart of early years education”. We need to work together to create a strong start for all of our children.
Ben Wesson, Jenny St John, Jane Williams, Olwyn Ditchburn and Adam Payne, Strong Start for All Children


Overseas buyers inflate the market

Regarding your article [“Mayor intervenes over homes for DIY store site”, October 18]: the elephant in the room is not being discussed. Many new flats are being bought by overseas buyers and rented out at high rates to repay the high purchase price.

Developers are contributing millions to infrastructure and the more money they donate the better the chance of planning permission. But this pushes up the price of the flats so the buyer — not the developer — is paying for these projects. Hence only buy-to-let foreign investors can afford them.

If we want affordable homes, use these building plots for social housing or housing association rent-only accommodation. Tax overseas buyers and stop selling council housing.
Bill Shannon


Police pursuits are the last resort

There is at present a lively debate about police pursuits, yet the rules about these chases have to protect other people and must not be bypassed in the way the disciplinary case over Henry Hicks, who was killed when his moped crashed during a police chase in London, revealed. A pursuit should be a last resort only when other evidence can’t be gathered.
Nik Wood


Too little too late from Rees-Mogg

I was amused to read about Jacob-Rees Mogg saying on LBC that the Government was “irresponsible” in its preparations for Brexit [Online, October 23]. He must have known this before the Withdrawal Notice Bill passed through Parliament as many witnesses in Select Committee evidence, including David Davis himself, had already made that clear.

Why did he not do what any good parliamentarian would have done and held the risk-taking Government to account and refused to vote in favour of the Withdrawal Bill unless and until the Government produced a detailed plan for Brexit?

Rees-Mogg has to shoulder his share of the blame. But it may not matter, as based on his comments from Hansard, where he hinted at the possibility of a second referendum. Why shouldn’t the electorate be given the opportunity to change its mind when it can see how the negotiations are going?
Fionna O’Leary

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T-charge will make very little difference

Inevitably, the Mayor is trying to gain political capital from his brave new T-charge, blaming the Tories for London’s pollution. But he fails to mention that it was a Labour government under Gordon Brown that encouraged us to buy the now demonised diesel vehicles.

When Ken Livingstone brought in the original Congestion Charge, it was welcomed by a number of better-off Londoners as it made it much more pleasant to drive in London. Whether it is cycle lanes, 20mph zones, humps in the road or unnecessary one-way systems, all of these I suspect have a greater impact on pollution than older cars driven by poorer members of society.
Lystra Riches


The Mayor’s T-charge plan is unambitious. How about following the lead of European cities such as Madrid, Paris and Munich, which are banning diesel altogether from 2020?

This charge is just posturing. Something which genuinely makes a difference to air quality is tree-planting but Khan reneged on that promise when he was elected. The Mayor is all talk with little result.
Maria Johnson


The T-charge will have a minimal effect on London pollution. If the Mayor is serious about tackling air quality, he should ban on all polluting vehicles. This would encourage more cycling and walking while those who “need to” drive into central London could use an electric vehicle. This would save the lives of many Londoners and make the capital a far more pleasant place to visit.
Martin Truksa
 

The T-charge is a small start to tackling our air pollution problem but the real snag is that it is restricted to certain hours from Monday to Friday. One would have thought the T-charge should be applied every day.
Dan Lalla


What is the point of the MOT emissions check in London? I have a 19-year-old petrol Volvo whose emissions came in at 10 per cent of the permitted maximum on my last MOT. Surely there are cars with worse emissions, yet I must pay an extra £10 to enter central London. Is that not unfair and irrational?
Graham Weiner

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