127 is the answer

[Feedback]

Firstly, yes, improving wages and living standards for poorer communities generally was a part of my reasoning for voting leave. Not the biggest reason, but a part. Although I should add, if i had 100 votes, 45 of them would have been for Remain, so it's a balanced argument. But yes, it was. I don't agree in a totally laissez faire, deregulated economic model such as the single market.

time will tell but I think leaving the worlds largest free market so we can sell widgets to Micronesia tariff free isn't going to have positive impact you think it will.

Secondly, I don't think arguing for investment in training, apprenticeships, increases in wages or conditions makes someone an advocate for North Korea. No one advocates 'total self sufficiency' it's about 'greater self sufficiency' and that, I would argue is a good thing. It certainly is rarely a bad thing especially when we have a crisis of disaffected youth, communities and training. It makes sense to try and fill some of these gaps closer to home really.

I was making a point that we live in a global economy and looking to ensure that we can provide all of what we need from within these shores is very American in thinking. We import most of our food, fuel, energy, and building materials. If we try and become any more self-sufficient then we'll fail. The reason we left the EU is so we could forge our own trade deals. Great, we can buy kraft cheese to put on our burgers duty free. but the big purchases like German and French cars, lets whack 10% on to the cost. do you understand why we are seeing inflation at 4% ?

Thirdly, I didn't pay any attention to the 2000 lorry strike as I would have been getting pissed in the student union and chatting up girls but I probably would have had sympathy for their concerns if not all of their actions.

you would have been the only one, as most people back then were pissed off with the inconvenience.

The point is, what is your answer? Rewind history? Open up visas? We've just done that, there is a shortage in the EU too, and a global pandemic on.

my answer would be to re-join the worlds largest free trade economy and accept that Britannia no longer rules the waves.

The long term sustainable route to this is to make critical jobs like HGV drivers valued, trained and respected properly and make it a viable line of work for people.

Hopefully that happens and I don't see why anyone would oppose that ambition.