Twitter user demolishes major Brexiteer fallacy in epic thread

In an epic thread, Twitter user Jim Grace has demolished the idea of an EU stranglehold on UK laws. Picture: Twitter Twitter

A Twitter user has devoted umpteen tweets to an exhaustive debunk of one of the most common Brexiteer myths.

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Brace for mega thread on "ALL THEM RULES INNIT"



There is a type of of brexiter who is motivated not by xenophobia, or Empire nostalgia, or buccaneering trade fantasies, but instead by "all them EU rules". Sadly they can never name a single one. So I have done some research... — Jim Grace #FBPE (@mac_puck) January 21, 2019

Jim Grace (or @mac_puck, as per his handle) decided to address a common Brexiteer complaint: the supposed stranglehold that EU laws have on the UK.

He tweeted: “There is a type [of] brexiter who is motivated not by xenophobia, or Empire nostalgia, or buccaneering trade fantasies, but instead by “all them EU rules”. Sadly they can never name a single one.”

Setting off on the hunt for EU rules foisted rudely on us, he first points to the Commons library and a research briefing that Full Fact says comes from Leave.EU’s own campaign.

Jim crunches the numbers. Out of 34,105 laws passed in the UK, he says, 4,514 of them were influenced by EU laws.

The commons library looked at how many UK laws were influenced by EU laws. https://t.co/jTb6CQU2mx

4,514 out of 34,105.

And out of the EU laws that influenced the 4,514 ....Vote Leave discovered 72 that were forced on us against our will. 72! https://t.co/EqZXZBruBM

... pic.twitter.com/gdNWUcTgRd — Jim Grace #FBPE (@mac_puck) January 21, 2019

And of those which were actually forced on the UK against our will?

“Vote Leave discovered 72 that were forced on us against our will. 72!”

That’s ... 0.2 per cent of the laws passed in the UK in the given time span.

But, some would say, that’s 0.2 per cent too much.

(1/72) 29/03/1996 https://t.co/2kkmWwtx9T

EU: Food labels should say if Aspartine is present.

UK: Nonsense. Bloody red tape!



(Linked to cancer, headaches and seizures, even Pepsi USA stopped using it by 2015) — Jim Grace #FBPE (@mac_puck) January 21, 2019

What are these rules that have ravaged our fair isles’ delicate sense of sovereignty?

In Jim’s epic thread, every single one has its own tweet.

The UK was forced to label aspartame in food, which he points out is merely a cancer prevention measure that was taken by bleeding heart corporate Pepsi in the USA by 2015.

The UK was held at gunpoint to sign up to better labelling of cow feed, an outrage because this country’s bovine herds have never had health issues.

(6/72) 24/09/1996 https://t.co/UriOrjihxt

EU: posted workers must be given the same pay and conditions as local workers.

UK: You're kidding! The whole POINT of posted workers is to undercut the locals and undermine their employment rights. — Jim Grace #FBPE (@mac_puck) January 21, 2019

In another example, Jim paraphrases: “EU: posted workers must be given the same pay and conditions as local workers,”

“UK: You’re kidding! The whole POINT of posted workers is to undercut the locals and undermine their employment rights.”

It goes on. One of the monstrous new rules was about the fair treatment of transported livestock, which agreeing with is practically treason.

The EU also compelled the UK to contribute to the repatriation costs of asylum seekers, which we objected to presumably because of our country’s well-known love for keeping refugees on UK soil.

(15/72) 16/02/1998 https://t.co/JEtxNLQKys

EU: Trucks for livestock journeys over 8 hours must have bedding, feed, water, ventilation, partitions and access for inspectors.

UK: Why spend all that money? Innit all just meat on the plate at the end of the day? — Jim Grace #FBPE (@mac_puck) January 21, 2019

In one instance Jim cites, the EU made the UK sign up to the compensation of delayed air passengers, which we objected to because ... “we don’t support this proposal because ... um ... because ... we are just utter, utter b*stards” suggests Jim.

But, Jim, we’re b*stards with sovereignty, and that’s apparently what counts.

Click here for the full thread unrolled in Threadreaderapp.