NEIL: WE SHOULD KNOW LATER ON
THIS AFTERNOON, THERESA MAY
FORCING ANOTHER VET ON BREXIT.
THIS ONE IS THE BEST WE CAN DO,
CONCESSIONS HAVE BEEN MADE AND
WE HAVE GOTTEN A LOT OF NEW
FEATURES HERE MEMBERS SHOULD
LIKE BUT IT IS EXPECTED TO FACE
AN UPHILL BATTER HERE.
THEN WHAT?
THE QUESTION BECOMES DO THEY
HAVE A NEW REFERENDUM OR DO THEY
JUST SKIP THE WHOLE THING?
WHERE DO WE GO.
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT MEMBER
DANIEL HANNAN ON WHAT THE
ABILITIES ARE.
VERY GOOD TO HAVE YOU.
>> HI, NEIL.
THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM IS VERY
SIMPLY STATED, WHEN MEMBERS OF
PARLIAMENT ASKED THE COUNTRY TO
VOTE ON WHETHER TO LEAVE THE
EUROPEAN UNION IT NEVER OCCURRED
TO THEM THEY MIGHT RETURN
SOMETHING THAT THE MEMBERS OF
PARLIAMENT DIDN'T LIKE.
WE'RE STUCK IN THE SITUATION
WHERE MAJORITY OF MPs WON'T
EXCEPT THE VERDICT OF THE 2016
REFERENDUM.
THEY WANT TO STOP "BREXIT" ALL
TOGETHER OR FORCE PEOPLE TO VOTE
AGAIN OR DECAFFINATE IT TO THE
POINT IT DOESN'T AMOUNT TO WHAT
PEOPLE VOTED FOR.
THAT MEANS ALMOST ANYTHING IS
POSSIBLE IF REMAINING IN THE
EUROPEAN UNION TO LEAVING WITH
NO DEAL AND ALMOST EVERY STOP
ALONG THAT ROUTE.
NEIL: SO, WHAT ARE THE ODDS OF A
WHOLE NEW REFERENDUM?
BECAUSE IT LOOKS LIKE THE SAME
SENTIMENT WOULD APPLY AS IT DID
BACK TO 2016 OR I COULD BE
MISSING IT, WHAT DO YOU THINK?
>> YES.
I DON'T THINK THE ODDS ARE GREAT
BUT IT IS DEFINITELY A
POSSIBILITY.
THE EUROPEAN UNION DOES THIS
REGULARLY, WHEN IT DOESN'T GET
THE RESULT IT WANTS IT MAKES
PEOPLE VOTE AGAIN.
THEY DID IT IN DENMARK, TWICE IN
IRELAND.
TRY IT AGAIN, PADDY, WE'LL SAY
IT MORE SLOWLY.
THEY LITERALLY REFUSED TO TAKE
NO FOR AN ANSWER SO THAT IS A
POSSIBILITY AND I THINK THAT --
I'M AFRAID THE IRISH EXPERIENCE
SHOWS PRETTY CLEARLY IF THERE IS
A SECOND REFERENDUM IT WILL BE
RIGGED.
THEY WILL NOT RISK A FAIR
REFERENDUM.
AT VERY LEAST THERE WOULD BE A
DIFFERENT QUESTION.
THEY MAY TWEAK THE FRANCHISE,
FOR EXAMPLE, GIVING THE VOTE TO
16-YEAR-OLDS OR EU NATIONALS
RESIDENT IN THE UK BUT THEY'RE
NOT GOING TO RISK PUTTING A FAIR
QUESTION TO THE COUNTRY A SECOND
TIME.
NEIL: YOU KNOW, DANIEL, WHAT IS
THE BIG DRAW TO THOSE WHO WANT
ANOTHER REFERENDUM, ANOTHER SHOT
AT THIS, TO BE, STAY IN THIS
CLUB, THIS CLUB THE EUROPEAN
UNION WHEN IN FACT SO MANY
MEMBERS OF THE UNION, ALL THE
WAY FROM GERMANY WHICH IS ON
VERGE OF ENTERING RECESSION, TO
ITALY CAN'T GET OUT OF ITS OWN
WAY, TO PORTUGAL, A MESS IN
ITSELF, WITH IS THERE ANYTHING
UNIQUE BEING IN THAT CLUB?
>> SUCH A GOOD QUESTION,
ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU THINK THAT,
ALL OF THE PREDICTIONS OF
ECONOMIC CALAMITY WE WERE GIVEN
DURING THE REFERENDUM IN 2016
HAVE SPECTACULARLY FAILED TO
MATERIALIZE.
I MEAN WE WERE TOLD THAT WITHIN
TWO YEARS OF A VOTE TO LEAVE
UNEMPLOYMENT WOULD HAVE RISEN BY
AN EYE WATERING 500,000.
IT HAS FALLEN BY NEARLY 800,000.
THE STOCK EXCHANGE IS UP,
EXPORTS ARE UP, GROWTH IS UP,
EMPLOYMENT IS UP, MANUFACTURING
IS UP, CONSUMER CONFIDENCE IS UP
AND YET, THE SAME PESSIMISTS WHO
WERE SO DETERMINED THAT WE WERE
FACING A NATIONAL CATASTROPHE
HAVE NOW JUST POSTPONED THE DATE
OF APOCALYPSE, BUT YEAH IF YOU
LEAVE WITH NO DEAL ALL THESE
TERRIBLE THINGS WE SAID ARE
STILL GOING TO HAPPEN.
TO BE HONEST THE ANSWER TO YOUR
QUESTION LIES MORE IN THE REALM
OF PSYCHOLOGY THAN IN POLITICS.
I THINK THEY ARE JUST SO
UNBALANCED BY THE COUNTRY HAVING
POLITELY TURNED DOWN ALL OF THE
OPTIONS THAT THE ELITES USED TO
PUT IN FRONT OF THEN, THAT THEY
SIMPLY DON'T KNOW HOW TO REACT.
NEIL: THAT SUMS IT UP BETTER
THAN ANY I HEARD OF LATE.
DANIEL HANNAN, THANK YOU VERY,
