Meanwhile, May faces obstacles to her plan for a clean break. The EU won’t start exit talks until she agrees to settle Britain’s financial commitments to the bloc, a sign that its negotiating stance is hardening. Those liabilities may reach 60 billion euros ($64 billion).
At What Cost
If Maugham is right, and British voters come to see the cost of leaving the EU as too great, he will be on a very short list of high-profile opponents of Brexit. In the age of Trump and populist anger, perhaps even an unpatriotic tax lawyer and sometime windmill resident called Jolyon can find a place in the political firmament.
He’s also started the Good Law Project, which will raise money to fight lawsuits that advance a progressive agenda. The website’s homepage declares: “This isn’t us. This isn’t who we are.” One of its first cases will be to challenge the amount of tax paid by Uber Technologies Inc. in the U.K.
At the Young Fabians event in Portcullis House, Maugham sits at the head of a long table. It’s a friendly audience of about 15 young people who are, like Maugham, left-leaning, politically active and pro-Europe. The building also houses the offices of British MPs and staff. Outside in the hall, two armed police officers stand next to a painting of the Queen.
Changing World
One of Fabians asks, politely, whether the Dublin lawsuit is a purely hypothetical question, since there isn’t much evidence of Britain backing away from its decision.
“The world has changed a lot since June 2016,” Maugham replies. “Times are very, very uncertain. We don’t yet know what that means. It’s bold to assume it will have no impact on people’s perceptions of the desirability of Brexit.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.