The Single Market is an IKEA bookcase, not a Lego set

By George ILIEV
Brexit Metaphor No 14

Access to the Single Market has been described by the EU as a "set menu", not an "a-la-carte" choice for Britain. However, the focus of these two metaphors is the price you pay for dinner. While the Single Market is much more than that.

Creating a Single Market is like assembling an IKEA bookcase, not like playing with a Lego set. With Lego bricks, you can use as many or as few as you like; arrange them in any way that you like; and the outcome is open-ended. In contrast, when you order an IKEA bookcase, you have to use all parts (bar the odd screw that you can skip); assemble them in a strict sequence; and the outcome is the standard Billy bookcase that you ordered.

Lego bricks (Source: Wikipedia)

 
The odd screw that you can skip when assembling an IKEA bookcase is like Norway's 98% membership of the Single Market: covering everything except agricultural products. Yet, Norway pays the full price for the "Single Market" bookcase.

This is what Brexiteers fail to understand: if you order an IKEA bookcase, you pay the price for the entire set; you don't get to haggle over each and every panel and dowel.

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(This article is part of a daily series, with 147 more Brexit Metaphors to follow until Brexit day, March 29, 2019.)