Brexit: Three things to take from the pantomime villain
The EU's chief negotiator cements his role by promising that member states will stand together in the face of Brexit.
Tuesday 6 December 2016 14:35, UK
As pantomime season descends on Britain, Michel Barnier is surely the EU villain if you read many of the British newspapers. One dubbed him "the most dangerous man in Europe".
A French politician determined to give Britain a bad deal, to destroy the City of London in favour of Paris, even to negotiate in French!
I can hear the hissing from here.
But the EU Commission's chief negotiator has been at pains to stress this is not the case.
He reminisced that, aged 20, he had actually campaigned and voted in France for Britain to become a member of the European Community.
Some 40 years later, though, the UK is now leaving the European Union stage and he wants it to happen as soon as possible. We are ready ... ready to start tomorrow, he repeatedly said.
And so, amid the unfolding drama there are three key points that we can take from Mr Barnier's latest performance.
Firstly, the actual negotiations will last much less than the two years set aside under Article 50 (A50).
Mr Barnier wants to see them completed by October 2018 on the current UK timetable, allowing time for any agreement to be approved by the European Council and Parliament.
Essentially, this is to ensure that Britain will have 'Brexited' by March 2019 ahead of the next EU Parliament elections in June of that year.
This will not be surprising to Team May - but will mean the UK must have its ducks in row before the Prime Minister pushes the A50 button.
Secondly, there will be no "having your cake and eating it" for the UK - or as Mr Barnier insisted, no "cherry-picking".
"The single market and its four freedoms (which includes freedom of movement) are indivisible. Cherry-picking is not an option," he said.
A stark reminder to those optimistic Brexiteers that the rest of the EU is not open to helping Britain get the best deal if it is better than current membership.
Thirdly, that Europe is open to a transitional deal that may last years, ensuring Britain does not simply fall off the EU stage.
Any deal might see the UK become a Norway or an Iceland - members of the single market but with little say on its rules and still with freedom of movement.
How palatable would that be to Brexiteers, even for a short term?
Mr Barnier's speech could be seen as the end of the first act in a drama that will play out over the next two years or so.
The EU member states seem insistent that they will remain united, principled, and want it over as soon as possible - and this should ensure Mr Barnier keeps his role as the EU pantomime villain on the British stage for some time to come.