Comments by "peabase" (@peabase) on "Michel Barnier warns UK: EU will not conclude post-Brexit trade deal 'at any price'" video.

@McQuade 1 The Belgians invented "French" fries. American soldiers in WW1 named them such because they didn't realise they were on Belgian territory, not French. It figures, because even to this day, geography baffles the Americans.
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@nigeljohnson9820 Nope. As it is, the UK imports 70% of the fish it consumes, while 80% of what it catches gets exported. So I was exaggerating a bit, 80% of the British fishing fleet could be sold off for scrap. Or blown up, since you're the violent type. The French, among others, have been fishing in what is now regarded the UK's economic exclusion zone for centuries. The UN, which oversees the laws of the sea, recognises both EEZs and historic rights. You don't have a clear-cut case there. But all that may be moot, since the EU can simply decide not to buy British fish till the stench in your harbours simply becomes unbearable.
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But the EU are very much needed. 70% of the UK fish exports go to the EU.
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@craigbowler5248 Er, because France vetoes the trade deal and high tariffs on British fish make EU buyers shop elsewhere? As to other markets, read my earlier comment (hint: look out for "rotten fish").
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You think something that makes up 0.1% of the UK economy is so significant? Is this some kind of Britannia Rules the Waves thing for you, i.e. if the Royal Navy is no longer capable of dominating at sea, then British fishermen must step into the breach?
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@McQuade 1 I know all about it. I've had more than my fair share of either variety.
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@nigeljohnson9820 You might as well destroy your own fishing fleet -- or to get some return on investment, sell it off for scrap.
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@nigeljohnson9820 You can speculate all you want, but from a legal standpoint, the UN decides who gets to fish where. The EEZ isn't necessarily all that exclusive when they're through with it. Reciprocity, why not. The law is the same for everyone. But you can't deny that the UK is extremely dependent on the EU as an export market for its fish. Without access to a nearby market, parts of the British fishing industry will collapse. Go attack a French fisherman if you're spoiling for a fight. I have no part in it.
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@PS-py8zf But it would make perfect sense to consume your own fish already. Yet you don't. Fish is a highly perishable commodity, so selling one's excess to one's neighbours is all but a necessity. Good luck peddling your rotten fish to far-off countries.
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@craigbowler5248 It's called a trade war. I'm sure the UK will counter with tariffs on fish imported from the EU, which will hurt British consumers in equal measure or even worse. After all, 60% of British fish imports come from the EU.
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@craigbowler5248 Now I can really tell you're unfamiliar with trade-related terms. Thanks to Trump's wrangling, the USA is embroiled in trade wars with both China and the EU. Try googling for it -- you'll be amazed. The EU will be relatively unfazed by a trade dispute over fisheries. It's the UK you should be worried about.
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@craigbowler5248 I gave you examples on ongoing trade wars, since you seem unfamiliar with the term. I think your imagination got the better of you there. Furthermore, I wasn't comparing the UK to the US. However, you are comparing the UK to the EU, which is a similar folly. In the (unlikely) event of a trade war, the EU would trickle blood from a cut finger, but the UK would gush all over the place. No, instead of a trade war, I expect we'll see BoJo throw the British fishermen under the Brexit Bus. The IMF's growth projections are just that, projections, and they stand out from others. Also, the IMF explicitly added a proviso about an orderly exit. The possibility of that has now grown even smaller.
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@simoncolombo6640 You're fooling yourselves if you think WTO tariffs are a safeguard against the EU, the UK or any other trading nation imposing more tariffs on one another. And it's not just tariffs; there are quotas and other barriers to trade that they can throw up.
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@craigbowler5248 You must be under the impression that services are exempt from taxes. Just as naively, you seem to think that EU members aren't tapped into global markets, but trade strictly with one another. Save your doomsday talk for yourselves.
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@craigbowler5248 Wrong on both counts? Are you seriously suggesting that services are tax-exempt? Also, I've been doing business in Asia for the last twenty years, working for Nordic telecommunications companies. The last British competitor we had we snapped up decades ago. I must be imagining it all. You won't thrive, you'll struggle along. You may outperform poorer EU countries, but you'll be left behind by the top performers. Nothing will change in that respect.
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