Brexit Metaphor No 26
Some Brexiteers calling for a Hard Brexit say a woman cannot be "half-pregnant", so similarly either Britain is in the EU or it isn't. The fact that Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and Turkey continue to be various degrees of "pregnant" somehow escapes them.
If Brexit is the fetus of sovereign trade policy and the end to free movement, does this fetus have to be delivered on March 29, 2019? Or can Brexit be aborted?
Abortion law varies from country to country but in the vast majority of countries abortion is legal if it endangers the health of the mother (not only in the west but even in the Middle East). Additionally, abortion is usually legal on the grounds of fetal defects.
So given that Brexit has irreparable fetal defects and is endangering the health of the mother (Britain's economic prosperity), could it be aborted before March 29? The court case on how Article 50 can be suspended has recently been referred by Scotland's supreme court to the European Court of Justice. Now that the abortion case is with the medical doctors (the judges), the cat seems to be out of the bag.
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| Abortion law around the world (Source: Wikipedia) |
Notes:
1. Timeline: This article is part of a #BrexitMetaphors daily series, with 135 more Brexit Metaphors to follow until Brexit day, March 29, 2019.
2. Disclosure: The author has a master's degree in European Integration.
3. Invitation: If you'd like to contribute to the debate, you are welcome to leave a comment below.
Half-pregnant in human terms could mean 4.5 months pregnant.
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