Remind me again why we left the EU

[Filo]

Neutrals don't appear to have to commit just ask questions, but don't take my word for it look at the lack of answers ...... any time ......... how does one vote neutral?

Sydney – strange as it may seem I actually did in a real and positive selective sense vote ‘neutral’ in the last General Election!

It is of course in the tangled web of Northern Ireland politics that I cast my vote, and maybe that gives me a chance to give a brief overview given the recent violence here.

All political parties here are expected to make clear their stance on the biggest issue of all, namely Unionism (i.e wishing to remain part of the UK or Nationalism/Republicanism (wishing to become part of the Republic of Ireland).  Parties may take a ‘neutral’ stance. On the Unionist Side there are the DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) and UUP (Ulster Unionist Party) and smaller parties like the PUP (Progressive Unionist Party) and TUV (Traditional Unionist Voice). On the Republican side are Sinn Fein and SDLP (Social Democratic and Labour Party). The two main parties that are ‘neutral’ are the Alliance Party and the Greens.

The Labour Party does not field candidates in NI, and the Conservatives do very little and with no real prospect of an MP over here.

I decided as a non-indigenous recent arrival here, that for the time at least I would vote for a ‘neutral’ party (Alliance as they are the largest neutral party).

When the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) was signed in 1998 it was as a result if the so called Hume-Adams talks, although great credit must also go to David Trimble as well. The great John Hume was the leader of the SDLP, the moderate republican party who always condemn all violence out of hand. Sinn Fein on the other hand are of course highly tied to the republican paramilitaries. David Trimble was the leader of the moderate UUP, the Unionist moderates who also condemn all violence while the DUP have links to the Unionist paramilitaries. In the initial post GFA NI Assembly in Stormont it was the moderate UUP and SDLP who were by far the largest parties. However with the need to keep paramilitaries within the process this has shifted over time, and the centre moderates have been marginalised by the NI voters with power shifting to Sinn Fein and DUP. The political centre is now a very sparsely populated place here in NI, with the Alliance Party now having an increased role compared with 1998. IMHO this is a symptom of the volatility here, and explains (but not justifies) the strong reactions.

Also IMHO it was a colossal blunder by the DUP to back Brexit, presumably preferring to be allied with the Conservative party, rather than thinking through the obvious and all too clear consequences.

I don’t think it was a blunder by the DUP, I thunk it was a calculated act, to create division, I also think Arlene Foster is a nasty piece of work

[Dutch Uncle]

Also a possibility Filo, but what did she and her party expect to gain?

[Metalmicky]

I don’t think it was a blunder by the DUP, I thunk it was a calculated act, to create division, I also think Arlene Foster is a nasty piece of work

I'm not keen on her either..... I believe her upbringing was directly affected by IRA incidents and that has formed her politics.  Not a lady I would like to meet in a dark alley though..   

[BillyStubbsTears]

DU

Excellent post.

My take on the last paragraph: The DUP is currently run by some very small-minded people. Ian Paisley, for all his faults, saw the bigger picture. I'm not sure Foster sees anything beyond immediate sectarian advantage. I think they supported Brexit because they thought it would weaken ties with Ireland and strengthen ties with GB. That they could misread the situation so very badly in both ways is an indication of what political pygmies they are.

[Dutch Uncle]

DU

Excellent post.

My take on the last paragraph: The DUP is currently run by some very small-minded people. Ian Paisley, for all his faults, saw the bigger picture. I'm not sure Foster sees anything beyond immediate sectarian advantage. I think they supported Brexit because they thought it would weaken ties with Ireland and strengthen ties with GB. That they could misread the situation so very badly in both ways is an indication of what political pygmies they are.

I agree BST. Your take has a real feeling of likely reality, a mixture of blinkered small mindedness mixed with stubbornness and entrenchment in the past.   

We need true heirs of Hume, Trimble, Paisley (Snr) and even McGuinness to step forward, and I see absolutely no candidates.   

[wilts rover]

Yep, it's great that the government chose not to participate in the joint EU vaccine purchasing scheme earlier this year, saying that it could secure doses more quickly itself.

Labour’s policy and Keir Starmer's own personal choice was to participate in the joint EU vaccine purchasing scheme, claiming that Brexit will actually make the rollout of the UK’s vaccination programme more difficult.

Great decision by the government.

The purchasing was nothing to do with being in or out of the EU - according to Boris Johnson it was down to 'greed and capitalism'.

And the vaccination programme was completely the opposite as following the failure of the Serco Test & Trace they gave the organisation & delivery of the vaccination programme over to the public sector via the NHS - but rarely mention that when taking the credit.

[wilts rover]

Also a possibility Filo, but what did she and her party expect to gain?

She represents her base and it would have been extremly difficult, if not impossible for her to do otherwise, or she would have been out - and replaced with someone even more hardline. Don't forget the DUP were always against the GFA too.

There is also the not inconsiderable matter of £1.2 billion she gained from Theresa May. If only that had been spent making life better for people on the Shankhill Estates etc.

[Dutch Uncle]

Also a possibility Filo, but what did she and her party expect to gain?

She represents her base and it would have been extremly difficult, if not impossible for her to do otherwise, or she would have been out - and replaced with someone even more hardline. Don't forget the DUP were always against the GFA too.

There is also the not inconsiderable matter of £1.2 billion she gained from Theresa May. If only that had been spent making life better for people on the Shankhill Estates etc.

Good points Wilts. Another point sometimes forgotten with regards to current outbreak of violence is that many of the paramilitaries have now morphed down into criminal gangs and the police have very recently launched a number of successful operations against some of the loyalist ones.

[Metalmicky]

Dutch,

If religious differences in Ireland were to disappear tomorrow do you think much would change....? 

To the layman (me) it seems that much of the last 5 or 6 decades of troubles have largely been a direct result of organised gangland criminal activity on both sides - including drugs trafficking, tax and excise fraud (on cigs/fuel/alcohol), organised immigration crime. etc.  I've two good mates who did numerous tours out there in the 90's and always tell me illegal gangland activity was rife back then, and suggest it is probably the same now..... 

Is religion just a cover for what is essentially mafia level activities?

[Axholme Lion]

Neutrals don't appear to have to commit just ask questions, but don't take my word for it look at the lack of answers ...... any time ......... how does one vote neutral?

Sydney – strange as it may seem I actually did in a real and positive selective sense vote ‘neutral’ in the last General Election!

It is of course in the tangled web of Northern Ireland politics that I cast my vote, and maybe that gives me a chance to give a brief overview given the recent violence here.

All political parties here are expected to make clear their stance on the biggest issue of all, namely Unionism (i.e wishing to remain part of the UK or Nationalism/Republicanism (wishing to become part of the Republic of Ireland).  Parties may take a ‘neutral’ stance. On the Unionist Side there are the DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) and UUP (Ulster Unionist Party) and smaller parties like the PUP (Progressive Unionist Party) and TUV (Traditional Unionist Voice). On the Republican side are Sinn Fein and SDLP (Social Democratic and Labour Party). The two main parties that are ‘neutral’ are the Alliance Party and the Greens.

The Labour Party does not field candidates in NI, and the Conservatives do very little and with no real prospect of an MP over here.

I decided as a non-indigenous recent arrival here, that for the time at least I would vote for a ‘neutral’ party (Alliance as they are the largest neutral party).

When the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) was signed in 1998 it was as a result if the so called Hume-Adams talks, although great credit must also go to David Trimble as well. The great John Hume was the leader of the SDLP, the moderate republican party who always condemn all violence out of hand. Sinn Fein on the other hand are of course highly tied to the republican paramilitaries. David Trimble was the leader of the moderate UUP, the Unionist moderates who also condemn all violence while the DUP have links to the Unionist paramilitaries. In the initial post GFA NI Assembly in Stormont it was the moderate UUP and SDLP who were by far the largest parties. However with the need to keep paramilitaries within the process this has shifted over time, and the centre moderates have been marginalised by the NI voters with power shifting to Sinn Fein and DUP. The political centre is now a very sparsely populated place here in NI, with the Alliance Party now having an increased role compared with 1998. IMHO this is a symptom of the volatility here, and explains (but not justifies) the strong reactions.

Also IMHO it was a colossal blunder by the DUP to back Brexit, presumably preferring to be allied with the Conservative party, rather than thinking through the obvious and all too clear consequences.

I don’t think it was a blunder by the DUP, I thunk it was a calculated act, to create division, I also think Arlene Foster is a nasty piece of work

As far as i'm aware she's never blown anyone up though, unlike...

[Metalmicky]

As far as i'm aware she's never blown anyone up though, unlike...

There may have been some blowing though...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-56747947

[Dutch Uncle]

Dutch,

If religious differences in Ireland were to disappear tomorrow do you think much would change....? 

To the layman (me) it seems that much of the last 5 or 6 decades of troubles have largely been a direct result of organised gangland criminal activity on both sides - including drugs trafficking, tax and excise fraud (on cigs/fuel/alcohol), organised immigration crime. etc.  I've two good mates who did numerous tours out there in the 90's and always tell me illegal gangland activity was rife back then, and suggest it is probably the same now..... 

Is religion just a cover for what is essentially mafia level activities?

I am (unusually over here) a largely unbiassed observer, and my opinion/interpretation MM, for what it is worth, is that the Religion is almost 100% aligned with whether a person over here wishes Northern Ireland to remain in the mainly Protestant UK or become part of the mainly Catholic Republic of Ireland. The history of Ireland is dominated by ‘plantation’ whereby British/English settlers were sent over to own land taken from the indigenous Irish by force, usually military. The Irish naturally felt oppressed and wronged. In the aftermath of the 1916 revolution when Northern Ireland was created in 1921, mainly as a place for the British/English to continue, the Irish Catholics here were thought of and in all practical senses were second class citizens. Priority for jobs, voting rights and other social aspects gave unequal advantages to Protestants, and the communities were also mainly separated rather than integrated in their lives, certainly education was separated. This gave rise to the Civil Rights unrest in the early sixties which eventually turned into the Troubles when the British did nothing to redress the inequalities. At this point the republican paramilitaries gained extraordinary support from their communities, and the loyalist paramilitaries grew likewise in response. At this point, IMHO, it was all politically motivated with criminal aspects very much secondary. After the GFA, when via Sinn Fein and DUP the paramilitaries have a political voice, and the successful peace has been enjoyed by all, the paramilitaries lost most of their community support, but the hard-core criminal activities carried on and have IMHO now become a major factor.

As I said, just my take.

[Filo]

Neutrals don't appear to have to commit just ask questions, but don't take my word for it look at the lack of answers ...... any time ......... how does one vote neutral?

Sydney – strange as it may seem I actually did in a real and positive selective sense vote ‘neutral’ in the last General Election!

It is of course in the tangled web of Northern Ireland politics that I cast my vote, and maybe that gives me a chance to give a brief overview given the recent violence here.

All political parties here are expected to make clear their stance on the biggest issue of all, namely Unionism (i.e wishing to remain part of the UK or Nationalism/Republicanism (wishing to become part of the Republic of Ireland).  Parties may take a ‘neutral’ stance. On the Unionist Side there are the DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) and UUP (Ulster Unionist Party) and smaller parties like the PUP (Progressive Unionist Party) and TUV (Traditional Unionist Voice). On the Republican side are Sinn Fein and SDLP (Social Democratic and Labour Party). The two main parties that are ‘neutral’ are the Alliance Party and the Greens.

The Labour Party does not field candidates in NI, and the Conservatives do very little and with no real prospect of an MP over here.

I decided as a non-indigenous recent arrival here, that for the time at least I would vote for a ‘neutral’ party (Alliance as they are the largest neutral party).

When the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) was signed in 1998 it was as a result if the so called Hume-Adams talks, although great credit must also go to David Trimble as well. The great John Hume was the leader of the SDLP, the moderate republican party who always condemn all violence out of hand. Sinn Fein on the other hand are of course highly tied to the republican paramilitaries. David Trimble was the leader of the moderate UUP, the Unionist moderates who also condemn all violence while the DUP have links to the Unionist paramilitaries. In the initial post GFA NI Assembly in Stormont it was the moderate UUP and SDLP who were by far the largest parties. However with the need to keep paramilitaries within the process this has shifted over time, and the centre moderates have been marginalised by the NI voters with power shifting to Sinn Fein and DUP. The political centre is now a very sparsely populated place here in NI, with the Alliance Party now having an increased role compared with 1998. IMHO this is a symptom of the volatility here, and explains (but not justifies) the strong reactions.

Also IMHO it was a colossal blunder by the DUP to back Brexit, presumably preferring to be allied with the Conservative party, rather than thinking through the obvious and all too clear consequences.

I don’t think it was a blunder by the DUP, I thunk it was a calculated act, to create division, I also think Arlene Foster is a nasty piece of work

As far as i'm aware she's never blown anyone up though, unlike...

It’s rumoured she met with loyalist paramilitaries, just before the present riots started on the Shankill Road in loyalist areas, she probably has others doing her bidding

[wilts rover]

I heard someone on the radio the other week talking about the GFA and how it was intended to bring both 'peace and reconciliation'. Their comment was along the lines of 'it managed the peace but never started on the reconciliation' and that is why there are some parts of NI still as divided as they always have been.

As this bloke sums up his piece with:

Working-class children are being preyed upon by criminal gangs with a vested interest in division. That really should be unthinkable for everyone.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/apr/14/belfast-riots-brexit-good-friday-peace-deal

[SydneyRover]

A lot of hand wringing going on atm and a ruing of missed opportunities, the reminder of the queen consorting with 'terrorists'  would hit a raw nerve too with quite a few in these parts.

[selby]

  I heard the statement on the trade figures by the times correspondent on the radio at ^-30 am that morning.
  I think you are wrong in your statement, he said that in a survey of companies 40% of companies trading with the EU had reported that exports to the EU had fallen in value.
  He also stated that 20% of companies in the survey had reported that the value of their exports to the EU had increased and they were mainly the larger companies in the survey.
  The overall value of exports in the time period because big business were generally doing well, was near comparable with figures before Brexit.
  Ignoring his full text of his report makes good headlines for the remainers  who read the guardian I suppose, makes them feel better after a long run of defeats.
 

[wilts rover]

  I heard the statement on the trade figures by the times correspondent on the radio at ^-30 am that morning.
  I think you are wrong in your statement, he said that in a survey of companies 40% of companies trading with the EU had reported that exports to the EU had fallen in value.
  He also stated that 20% of companies in the survey had reported that the value of their exports to the EU had increased and they were mainly the larger companies in the survey.
  The overall value of exports in the time period because big business were generally doing well, was near comparable with figures before Brexit.
  Ignoring his full text of his report makes good headlines for the remainers  who read the guardian I suppose, makes them feel better after a long run of defeats.
 

Eh, who's wrong in whose statement?

These are the figures btw:

In February, exports to the EU increased by £3.7 billion (46.6 percent) after a record fall of £5.7 billion (negative 42 percent) in January, figures reported by the Office for National Statistics showed.

However, exports were still significantly lower in February, compared to 2020, before the end of the Brexit transition period. Imports from the EU also picked up, though only slightly, increasing by £1.2 billion in February after a record drop of £6.7 billion in January.

https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-goods-trade-with-eu-signals-recovery/

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/bulletins/uktrade/february2021

[wilts rover]

And the good news, for those who want to see a smaller economy, keeps on coming:

City of London Brexit hit worse than expected says recent study:

Over 400 financial firms in Britain have shifted activities, staff and a combined £1 trillion ($1.4 trillion) in assets to hubs in the European Union due to Brexit, with more expected to follow:

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-finance-idUKKBN2C22ZB

[Herbert Anchovy]

And the good news, for those who want to see a smaller economy, keeps on coming:

City of London Brexit hit worse than expected says recent study:

Over 400 financial firms in Britain have shifted activities, staff and a combined £1 trillion ($1.4 trillion) in assets to hubs in the European Union due to Brexit, with more expected to follow:

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-finance-

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

[Bentley Bullet]

No, but, yeah but, no but, yeah but, no.....

[Glyn_Wigley]

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

It doesn't say they'll be opening offices at all.

[Herbert Anchovy]

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

It doesn't say they'll be opening offices at all.

The first paragraph in the article says
 “About 1000 EU finance firms are eying up opening offices in the UK for the first time”.

Perhaps you know better than the BBC Glyn?

[SydneyRover]

This sounds like really good news HA, any reason they didn't make the move before Brexit?

[Glyn_Wigley]

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

It doesn't say they'll be opening offices at all.

The first paragraph in the article says
 “About 1000 EU finance firms are eying up opening offices in the UK for the first time”.

Perhaps you know better than the BBC Glyn?

That is opinion, not fact, and it isn't even the BBC's opinion at that. Or perhaps you know better, eh?

The only fact the report contains is that '1,500 money managers, payment firms and insurers have applied for permission to continue operating in the UK after Brexit.'

'Continue operating' means they are already operating in the UK. They're not businesses new to the UK. Even if they're foreign companies that didn't have a physical presence in the UK before Brexit they won't need to have a physical presence afterwards, all they need is a UK-recognised legal entity to order to conduct their UK business, even if their entire workforce is outside the UK and stays outside the UK.

[Herbert Anchovy]

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

It doesn't say they'll be opening offices at all.

The first paragraph in the article says
 “About 1000 EU finance firms are eying up opening offices in the UK for the first time”.

Perhaps you know better than the BBC Glyn?

That is opinion, not fact, and it isn't even the BBC's opinion at that. Or perhaps you know better, eh?

The only fact the report contains is that '1,500 money managers, payment firms and insurers have applied for permission to continue operating in the UK after Brexit.'

'Continue operating' means they are already operating in the UK. They're not businesses new to the UK. Even if they're foreign companies that didn't have a physical presence in the UK before Brexit they won't need to have a physical presence afterwards, all they need is a UK-recognised legal entity to order to conduct their UK business, even if their entire workforce is outside the UK and stays outside the UK.

I take it back Glyn..,you clearly don’t know better than the BBC.

“Around two-thirds had no prior physical operations in Britain.”

“Many of these business will be opening offices for the first time.”

Actually, we could have a bit of fun with this. Maybe we could run a book based around how our remainer friends will spin this good news to bad?

I’ll give you odds of:

2-1 The whole story is bullshit
3-1 The story doesn’t actually mean what it clearly says
6-1 Businesses are moving to London, but they’re not the type of businesses we want here thank you very much
10-1 The story is just someone’s opinion without any basis in fact
50-1 Herbert anchovy is an ignorant, racist simpleton who is likely the bas**rd son of Nigel Farage and Julie Hartley-Brewer and believes any old bullshit written by the right wing media?

[Glyn_Wigley]

And for the benefit of equilibrium within the debate, let’s not forget the 1000+ finance businesses who’ve said that they’ll be opening new offices in London post Brexit.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56155531.amp

It doesn't say they'll be opening offices at all.

The first paragraph in the article says
 “About 1000 EU finance firms are eying up opening offices in the UK for the first time”.

Perhaps you know better than the BBC Glyn?

That is opinion, not fact, and it isn't even the BBC's opinion at that. Or perhaps you know better, eh?

The only fact the report contains is that '1,500 money managers, payment firms and insurers have applied for permission to continue operating in the UK after Brexit.'

'Continue operating' means they are already operating in the UK. They're not businesses new to the UK. Even if they're foreign companies that didn't have a physical presence in the UK before Brexit they won't need to have a physical presence afterwards, all they need is a UK-recognised legal entity to order to conduct their UK business, even if their entire workforce is outside the UK and stays outside the UK.

I take it back Glyn..,you clearly don’t know better than the BBC.

“Around two-thirds had no prior physical operations in Britain.”

“Many of these business will be opening offices for the first time.”

Actually, we could have a bit of fun with this. Maybe we could run a book based around how our remainer friends will spin this good news to bad?

I’ll give you odds of:

2-1 The whole story is bullshit
3-1 The story doesn’t actually mean what it clearly says
6-1 Businesses are moving to London, but they’re not the type of businesses we want here thank you very much
10-1 The story is just someone’s opinion without any basis in fact
50-1 Herbert anchovy is an ignorant, racist simpleton who is likely the bas**rd son of Nigel Farage and Julie Hartley-Brewer and believes any old bullshit written by the right wing media?

“Around two-thirds had no prior physical operations in Britain.”

And they don't need to change that, as I explained but you couldn't be bothered to read.

“Many of these business will be opening offices for the first time.”

Bovill OPINION. Not FACT.

The main fact at the centre of the story isn't bullshit. The Bovill opinion that makes up 90% of what surrounds it possibly  is, though. I can't think of any conceivable way that a private consultancy firm could know the intentions of all of the applicants applying to continue operations, can you? Could it possibly be, you know, a guesstimated OPINION?

There is only one fact in that report, as I said. The rest is all 'could be, might be, is suggested' conjecture and not fact at all.

PS You missed out the evens bet of 'Herbert Anchovy just read the first line of the BBC article and didn't bother thinking about the rest of it'.

[Herbert Anchovy]

Touché Glyn. Excellent little comeback at the end there!

Fact based on assessment of the feedback provided by the organisations consulted? It seems quite clear to me Glyn. Look, I’m long enough in the tooth to understand the lay of the land on this forum....good news Brexit stories are b*llocks, bad news stories about Brexit are fact. I know that’s the name of the game. An article from a respected news organisation reports that businesses are planning to open offices here can’t be true right? Goes against the Brexit narrative and all that.

For what it’s worth, despite the criticism they receive I tend to believe news stories provided by the beeb. Both good news Brexit stories and bad. I’ve no reason to doubt this story despite your best efforts to spin it, and the next negative Brexit story I read from the bbc I’ll also believe. Open your mind Glyn, you’ll be much happier.

[drfchound]

Touché Glyn. Excellent little comeback at the end there!

Fact based on assessment of the feedback provided by the organisations consulted? It seems quite clear to me Glyn. Look, I’m long enough in the tooth to understand the lay of the land on this forum....good news Brexit stories are b*llocks, bad news stories about Brexit are fact. I know that’s the name of the game. An article from a respected news organisation reports that businesses are planning to open offices here can’t be true right? Goes against the Brexit narrative and all that.

For what it’s worth, despite the criticism they receive I tend to believe news stories provided by the beeb. Both good news Brexit stories and bad. I’ve no reason to doubt this story despite your best efforts to spin it, and the next negative Brexit story I read from the bbc I’ll also believe. Open your mind Glyn, you’ll be much happier.

Good post Herbert and well said.

[selby]

  Back to the Op the only reason we left the EU is because more people voted to leave than stay in.
  The fact that some voters to remain are still arsy is just a side show.

[Glyn_Wigley]

Touché Glyn. Excellent little comeback at the end there!

Fact based on assessment of the feedback provided by the organisations consulted? It seems quite clear to me Glyn. Look, I’m long enough in the tooth to understand the lay of the land on this forum....good news Brexit stories are b*llocks, bad news stories about Brexit are fact. I know that’s the name of the game. An article from a respected news organisation reports that businesses are planning to open offices here can’t be true right? Goes against the Brexit narrative and all that.

For what it’s worth, despite the criticism they receive I tend to believe news stories provided by the beeb. Both good news Brexit stories and bad. I’ve no reason to doubt this story despite your best efforts to spin it, and the next negative Brexit story I read from the bbc I’ll also believe. Open your mind Glyn, you’ll be much happier.

Oh, I believe the BBC. But all they've reported is the opinion of an organisation that would benefit from financial companies opening new offices. And I believe that they told the BBC exactly what the BBC has reported. But that still doesn't change what the BBC reported as Brovill's opinion into a fact. It would be wonderful if new offices were opened by financial businesses, but that article doesn't say it's going to happen, only what a third party thinks is going to happen.