I rather enjoyed this exchange between two SNP MPs in the House of Commons last night after an intervention by Tory MP Nadine Dorries. The debate was on whether or not the government should do impact assessments (cost estimates) on various aspects of Brexit:
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. An impact assessment, by definition, is more than simply something printed on the side of a bus.
The argument put forward by the hon. Lady from England somewhere–the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire (Nadine Dorries)–is quite strange. It is akin to the person who says, “Given the cost of buying a map, isn't it far better that we stumble around in the dark?” That is the argument against impact assessments: do not buy a map, stumble in the dark.
Exactly.
They are sentiments most with any common or financial sense would share.
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But as we know Richard, Dorris, like all of the Europhobes, hasn’t got any common or financial sense. She’s determined to get us out of the EU, no matter what the cost.
But as we know Richard, Dorris, like all of the Europhobes, hasn’t got any common or financial sense. She’s determined to get us out of the EU, no matter what the cost.
The SNP on the other hand, are a beacon of good sense and sanity in Westminster. I never used to be sympathetic to their cause, but now………
Impact Assessment & Keeping the Lights on.
One aspect of the UK leaving the EU is the status of electrical interconnectors between the UK, France, Ireland and the Netherlands. Further interconnectors are planned (Belgium & Norway). EU legislation covers trading through existing (and future) interconnectors.The existing interconnectors provide around 2.5GW of power. UK capacity margins (i.e. generation reserves) are so low that the UK cannot afford to lose these interconnectors (& most of the energy flows are from mainland Europe to UK). Dorries & the other Brexit dolts have two options with respect to the interconnectiors:
– acceptance of EU legislation covering power markets in the UK,
– acceptance of rolling blackouts in the UK at peak periods.
I wonder which they will chose on behalf of the UK population? Given their stupidity probably number 2.
Impact Assessment?!!!
Talk about trying to close the gate after the horse has bolted.
What a mess.
Honestly……………….
I watched this live, as many in Scotland do these days. Dorries’ ignorance is only exceeded by her contempt for the SNP MPs.
Another highlight of the proceedings was the SNP contingent whistling “Ode to Joy” while waiting for a division to end. I hope Nadine (assuming she knows it’s the EU anthem) was suitably “impressed”.
Raheem Kassam, of the ultra division of UKIP, was incensed – describing the whistling as treason on Twitter. The ensuing storm of suggestions led him to ask if there was a simple way to block Scotland.
Another “highlight” of the day was from Michael Gove. He asked Mike Russell if Scotland could afford a contribution to the EEA of £3.3 billion at the “Exiting Europe” committee. After being corrected live at the hearing by a Tory colleague (it is an estimate of what the UK contribution might be), Gove continued to refer to £3.3 billion as the Scottish contribution on Twitter. Naturally, he was swiftly chastised – which is always satisfying.
I was amused by the Ode to Joy