Mackle

  I've actually used the word immigrant here in the UAE to describe myself and been corrected by Indian and Pakistani colleagues that we are all expats. The UAE media also refers to non-Emiratis as expats as well, regardless of where they come from.   And labour cards say "expatriate" on them - for everyone, not just the Brit ones.

  Not quite sure that it is a simple binary choice like that, especially in light of Russian influences during the referendum campaign.

A situation that I think @murphaph mused about has recently come to pass for me - business visits in the EU/EEA by UK passport holders.   I was asked to go to a particular EU country for a few weeks, to work on a new cloud environment build. The third party who advise my employer on Visas and migration law said the description of work being carried out was not covered by the standard Visa-free access and I would require a permit to enter.  So of course, one of the managers involved in my proposed EU visit contacts this third party consultancy to say a permit is unacceptable because there is a business requirement for this to happen in a weeks time, and says I filled out the form incorrectly as I am "merely attending a couple of business meetings over this period". The response back is then "business meetings are visa-free and no border entry issues".   Of course, there were no business meetings and I worked solidly for the entirety of my time there. I was (and still am) really annoyed at being put in a position where I was effectively breaking immigration law and was working in the country illegally.  The standard covering letter I had in case the passport stamper wanted more detail about my reason for being there was laughable - basically said "You must permit entry because this person works for us, this oh-so-important company HQ'd in the USA and listed on the US stock market, and our customers include your government and biggest organisations".

  I think Jeba already pretty much said that if it avoids a potential WW3 then just give him what he wants - and it's okay because he won't want East-Germany back.

  You only have to watch a few YouTube videos of Daniel Hannan to see how the modern Tory really feels about things such as workers rights and the NHS - and as the party are very happy to put him on the board of trade and send him around the world representing them, it's difficult to say that he's not representative.

  @murphaph might be able to advise on this, but apparently something similar was done by a ferry operator in Ireland a few years ago?   I don't think the UK change it's employment laws post-Brexit yet, so the only difference now is that before Brexit the UK government could publicly blame Brussels and do nothing, whereas now the buck stops with them. 

  You don't see him as a Tiny Dancer then?

  To me, I hear what sounds like an Essex, possibly Southend or Romford type of accent on TV a lot.   And it grates when I hear "ya know" repeated over and over again. Mind you, it's the same in the Middle East where "yanni" gets said in every other sentence (although it doesn't jar like "ya know" does) 

  I can't look at this desk without thinking about The Blues Brothers

  Somewhere Hellfire shot his load at the sight of an isolated BoJo putting his hands in his pockets 

  This is what struck me when the news broke - there was none of the usual stuff about consultation or notice periods, or things like settlement/compromise agreements with the company paying the employees legal advice bill, it was just a two minute zoom saying everyone is sacked off with none of the usual legal process followed.   Then over the weekend this whole "Maritime Law applies because the workers are not based in the UK" as some kind of justification as to why it could be done like this, started to filter out in some news outlets.    

  I saw something about the workers being contractually based in Jersey, and therefore P&O can argue that UK employment law does not apply, only Maritime Law?   I don't think they've got right to disbanding employment law post-Brexit yet, although interestingly things like TUPE existed in the UK well before EU minimums were introduced.

  What do they make of Gerhard Schröder at the moment?

  It might not be straight lunacy - even some in the German press have written articles over the years that say that many Germans have an inherent fear of Russia.   So I guess when that kind of paralysing fear is felt by someone, ceding whatever territory is demanded feels like the best way out. In this case, it doesn't matter that Putin has already told the world several times over that he wants an expanded Russia and that Poland, Lithuania, Romania, etc. are Russian territory because of the way he views history, just keep giving him what he wants, let him have the GDR back if it makes Vlad go away.   

  What do you mean by "neutrality"? Because Belarus are supposed to be neutral, and you are basically saying to the Ukrainians "You will be like Belarus and be grateful"!    There is a complete difference between being some kind of client-state, and being like Finland.