The Deal is Done

 About an hour ago, it was announced that Britain and EU have done the Brexit deal.

This ends a disconcerting four and half year period when Brexit (how I've grown to hate that word) completely dominated the British media. It was hell for editors - the most important news story for a generation was also the most complex and boring one. 

I'm no fan of Boris Johnson, but at least he, or at least his former special advisor Dominic Cummings knew something about negotiation. That something is that in order to negotiate from a position of weakness you have to appear slightly crazy. Downright insane at times and willing to do the unthinkable like walk away and go for a non-deal Brixit. 

That was Teresa May's problem - she was far too sane and rational to make that threat look real, so the EU negotiators didn't take her seriously enough. Boris Johnson is a bit of flake and isn't ashamed to show it - a much more volatile and impulsive character and in the Brexit negotiations that counted for a lot.

Sadly those traits are rubbish when it comes to the applied science of COVID repression. Here Boris is weak and plodding cautious methodical Teresa May would have been outstanding. Ipswich is joining the rest of the South East in Tier 4 from the first minute of Boxing Day. Thankfully there are no fewer than three effective vaccines available soon so I'm hoping at some point in the late Spring of 2021 Britain will return to something like normal. 

The task of rebuilding the economy and coming to terms with what the Brexit deal really means will consume the country for the next few years.