Christmas December Newsletter 2017

Dear Bremainer,
It's hard to believe that it's the end of December already, and what an eventful month it
has been - not just for me, but for Theresa May and her government, too.
My travels this month have again taken me to the UK - for details of my trip, please see
here, and see below for a report from Bremain member Elspeth Williams. I also travelled
to Málaga, where it was a great pleasure to meet up with Bremain members and the
Bremain Council, some of whom I had never met before. We are so fortunate in Bremain
to have so many dedicated, motivated and passionate volunteers & members who make
this struggle worthwhile.
While I have been fighting to #StopBrexit, May has been doing everything in her power -
if she actually has any - to rush on through with Brexit negotiations. She managed
against all expectations to gain agreement for talks to progress to the next phase, but in
the process managed to push citizens' rights and Irish border issues to the back of the
queue. To add insult to injury, she then wrote an open letter to UK citizens in the EU,
telling us what a wonderful job she was doing. Needless to say, we didn't agree, so we
responded immediately with our own open letter, which you can see here in our press
release.
Other events this month include the passage of the EU (Withdrawal) Bill through the
committee stage in the House of Commons, with one major win for the good guys in the
form of the passing of Amendment 7. I am rather looking forward to the passage of this
bill through the House of Lords, which is expected to take approximately three months
from the end of January. As one member of the House of Lords told me recently, they're
"going to have some fun with it!"
We've also at last seen the publication of the "sectoral analyses" from DExEU, which
amounted to not much more than a cut and paste job from Google. My favourite
"revelations" were that food is vital for consumers, planes have wings, post consists of
letters and parcels, and fishing tends to happen at the coast - no wonder David Davis
didn't want them published!
As we come to the end of the year, it's only natural to reflect on 2017 and to wonder
what 2018 will bring. This year has certainly been a rollercoaster ride, but as it comes to
an end, I am feeling ever more optimistic that our goal can be achieved. As each new
Brexit disaster is revealed and it becomes blatantly obvious that the government doesn't
have a clue how to deal with it, more and more Leavers are questioning their decision
and the government's ability to deliver what was promised.
Finally, I would like to say a special thank you to the Bremain Council and to all of our
amazing volunteers for their determination, enthusiasm and friendship, which make me
stronger and more determined than ever. Thank you also to all of our members for your
continued support and for sharing our journey. A very Merry Christmas to you all, and a
Happy New Year!
Sue Wilson - Chair