Theresa May still refuses to define Brexit
Brexit is like four-dimensional chess - within Cabinet, with backbenchers, with businesses and also with the rest of the EU.
Monday 9 January 2017 03:02, UK
The Prime Minister's 2017 scene setter was an attempt not to be defined by Brexit.
But she again refused to define Brexit.
In the second week of January, the PM will still not detail what Brexit really means to her.
She seemed to hint a bit more strongly that Britain will leave the Single Market, under strong questioning from Sky News' Sophy Ridge.
But again, in her own special way, she did not absolutely rule anything out, refusing to call immigration a "red line".
Her plan for Brexit is still being developed as crunch time approaches at the end of March.
Perhaps that is no surprise.
She admitted the Brexit plan was "taking some time" and confirmed "there hadn't been any plans made for Brexit" when she came into office.
Her negotiation is four dimensional chess - within Cabinet, with her backbenchers, with international business and also with the rest of the EU. It's understandable that it might take a bit of time.
Her words about not wanting to stay in "bits" of the European Union, she has said before, in interviews around her October conference speech.
She did, though, say this: "What I'm looking at is not the means to the end but what the outcome is and I think this is so important.
"What people want is for us to focus on the right outcome for the UK.
"People who simply talk about issues around membership of the single market, access to the single market, are looking at the means.
"I'm looking at the outcome and the outcome is a really good, ambitious trade deal for the UK with the European Union that enables our companies to trade in and operate in the European single market and that's both goods and services."
Where do we appear to be heading?
The PM will insist on UK repatriation of powers over borders and inward migration into the EU, and then rely on the EU seeing the economic advantage of maintaining for UK companies tariff free access to and operations within the European Single Market.
The PM herself describes this as "ambitious".
This general approach, championed by David Davis, is what Sir Ivan Rogers was probably referring to as "muddled".
The PM's response to his resignation? That he was leaving in November anyway.
"I'm ambitious for what we can get for the UK in terms of our relationship with the European Union because I also think that's going to be good for the European Union so our thinking on this isn't muddled at all," she said.
It would require quite some change of approach, tone and policy from the EU27. It is where we are heading.
That said, never have the words of the famous ex-US central banker Alan Greenspan ever been more relevant.
He once said: "If I turn out to be particularly clear, you've probably misunderstood what I said."
That was about the comparatively simple pleasures of setting US interest rates.
Brexit is far more gnomic a prospect. Crunch time is weeks away.
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