Good to hear you’re reading a variety of media Clint
I know I’m preaching to the converted but its obviously not all the EUs fault...it’s been a shambles of a negotiation for the past 4 years with both sides at fault. The free trade deal is (should be) doable, we’re already aligned terms of rules/regs, we’ve apparently agreed to non regression clauses on environment and employment standards, state aid we’re far lower percentage of gdp than France, Germany etc and we’re a huge net importer so the financial impact of tariffs will be far greater for EU companies (and we will generate more in tariffs albeit, this will partially be borne by the U.K. consumers, some of which can be redirected to large exporters who will face high EU tariffs)
We all know there’s other stuff at play though. The government should have acknowledged/addressed this sooner. Ultimately the EU is a trading block, so understandably they will look to protect their own interests (although I think a no deal could cause huge ructions in the EU as there are a number of countries that heavily rely on us for trade, Ireland in particular)
I’ve always thought we should’ve properly planned for a no deal from day one and then hoped for the best in terms of the negotiations. Not because I want it, however, it appears the fundamentals make it more likely than it would first appear. That’s where the government has failed/is at fault in my eyes and unless something is pulled out the bag quickly, it will be a messy/disruptive 2021 (not what we need after/during Covid).
ps Still keeping fingers crossed for a deal but feels like it’s not currently edging that way