The winning hypocrisy of Theresa May
The British prime minister's double-talk on Brexit is gobsmackingly transparent. It also might just work.
Does anyone envy Theresa May? Her task as U.K. prime minister is to extricate Britain from the EU without too much economic pain, without an exodus of European talent from London, and without accidentally restarting the Troubles in Northern Ireland. And at the same time, she has to keep Scotland from leaving the clutches of her own much older political union.
You see the dilemma. After the head of the Scottish Nationalist Party declared her intention to ask for another referendum on independence, May's job description could be reduced to a single task: Talk out of both sides of your mouth and make everyone agree to what you're saying.
On the one hand — her Brexit one — sovereignty is the precious good that gives democratic government legitimacy. To be routinely outvoted or overturned by a political body whose own interests diverge from your own is rank effrontery. Even a little economic pain, political turmoil, and uncertainty is worth enduring to preserve a unique identity and a nation's genius from the smothering embrace of a political union that distorts its self-government. The conveniences of the union are not worth the national self-abasement that the EU requires. The precious good of peace will survive Europe's political re-division.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
On the other hand — the Unionist one — sovereignty on the Isles has always been a matter of degrees and self-effacement, governed by prudence. And the political upset caused by these questions of national identity enflame our worst passions, don't they? Maybe better to delay them until tempers have cooled from the last time. And you may have seen the forecasts for oil prices over the next few years, which makes you wonder how Scotland could afford all the services it loves. Recall that David Cameron called this the "best political union ever," one that effectively ended war on an island that had known little but since the Middle Ages.
But, surprisingly enough, May has a chance of pulling this off. The Brexit negotiations really are coming at a moment of low morale for the Eurocrats. In Poland and Hungary, Brussels has to deal with member regimes it claims to hate. Within critical member states like France and Italy, it has to fight the political forces representing EU dissolution. Turkey is also turning up the pressure, threatening to cause turmoil in the hopes of boosting dissatisfaction with the status quo.
Rather than high-tailing it to Dublin and Frankfurt, the financial industry seems to be effectively lobbying for mercy for the U.K. Peripheral states in the EU, like Sweden and Ireland, benefit immensely from liberal trade policies with the United Kingdom. Do the French and German hardliners really believe that after EU-defender Emmanuel Macron raised such huge sums of money for his presidential campaign in London that his patrons will be pleased to be bidden home under punitive Brexit terms?
And Scotland may be sore about Brexit, but its prospects for independence really are materially worse than previously thought. Everyone now knows that the SNP used ludicrous projects based on oil wealth in the last IndyRef. And with the forces of nationalism stalking Europe, there are big EU member states like France and Italy that would rather discourage secessionist movements in their own countries. They'd be very hesitant to grant expedited membership to Scotland. That means Scotland would have to create its own currency and have some kind of defense policy on top of recreating the National Health Service without nearly as much money to fund it.
In other words, May's double-talk has a good chance of succeeding in its political goals. If she sounds silly for a few months so be it. Great political victories occasionally demand a certain amount of hypocrisy and foolishness.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Michael Brendan Dougherty is senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is the founder and editor of The Slurve, a newsletter about baseball. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, ESPN Magazine, Slate and The American Conservative.
-
'Criminal trail?'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Grindr 'shared user HIV status' with ad firms, lawsuit claims
Speed Read LGBTQ dating app accused of breaching UK data protection laws in case filed at London's High Court
By Rebecca Messina, The Week UK Published
-
The best dog-friendly hotels around the UK
The Week Recommends Take a break with your four-legged friend in accommodation that offers you both a warm welcome
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Myanmar: the Spring Revolution and the downfall of the generals
Talking Point An armed protest movement has swept across the country since the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was overthrown in 2021
By The Week Staff Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Is there a peaceful way forward for Israel and Iran?
Today's Big Question Tehran has initially sought to downplay the latest Israeli missile strike on its territory
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How powerful is Iran?
Today's big question Islamic republic is facing domestic dissent and 'economic peril' but has a vast military, dangerous allies and a nuclear threat
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US, Israel brace for Iran retaliatory strikes
Speed Read An Iranian attack on Israel is believed to be imminent
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How green onions could swing South Korea's election
The Explainer Country's president has fallen foul of the oldest trick in the campaign book, not knowing the price of groceries
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's battle to save Kharkiv from Putin's drones
The Explainer Country's second-largest city has been under almost daily attacks since February amid claims Russia wants to make it uninhabitable
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published