Thoughts on Brexit
Thoughts on Brexit. A local told us that he had voted for Brexit ‘because the world would welcome Britain’s products – especially the Commonwealth’. I was a bit shocked for three reasons:
- In the early 1970s, Britain was so excited to join the then ‘European Common Market’ that it slammed the door on the Commonwealth – refusing to continue to import products, a decision that left many Commonwealth countries in economic difficulties. Now, Britain expects those same countries to welcome it back.
- It might be a different matter if Britain had something to sell. Unfortunately, Britain completely missed the ‘quality revolution’. No one here would have heard of Deming. As an example, the British car industry has closed down. Cars made here are made by Japanese and Korean companies according to Japanese and Korean rules and instructions. British quality has fallen way behind world expectations and cannot compete with reliable, inexpensive Asian products. Britain is asleep and wallowing in its past glory. I think it is the same disease as ‘Make America Great Again’. The world has moved on.
- China. I have the strong impression that England thinks that it can still sail its boats up the Yangtze and force China to do its bidding as it did in 1900. China was asleep then, but it is not asleep now.
I had the impression that people in Britain believe that they can order Commonwealth countries to accept Britain’s goods without tariffs while imposing tariffs on imports from the Commonwealth.
