Wednesday 16th November

We have had a leaked report by a firm of Consultants, which of course the Government denies, that there is no coherent plan for Brexit.  Why are we surprised?  Cameron had no plan, and had apparently forbidden Civil Servants from even starting to draw up contingency plans in case he lost.  And Theresa May, although probably a Leaver all along, was only interested in becoming P.M.  She made a fatal mistake in appointing Liam Fox (and presumably his travelling companion) to Trade and David Davis to a new Department for Brexit.  They are both fairly inexperienced and were outsiders and in the case of the former, a rabid Brexiteer.  Getting rid of Osborne was probably a mistake too; although I disagreed with his Austerity he was obviously a clever Minister and should have been moved sideways and kept in the Cabinet.  But Mrs. May was more interested in stamping her Authority and settling old scores than Continuity.

I suspect that she is trying desperately to square the un-squarable circle of how to leave the EU with minimal damage, both to the country and trade and to her electoral prospects.  If she loses the Single Market we will suffer a, possibly sustained, period of poor trade and growth.  If she keeps us in the Single Market she will have to accept free movement of people, which Agriculture and Business wants, but which she believes the British Public voted against. A rock and a hard place.  Which is why there is no real plan.  She will try to get both, or a degree of both from Europe.  Good luck to her, she will need it, but as of now there is no real plan.  They will probably make it up as they go along.  Why not, that’s how the Government has stumbled along for the past six and a half years.