Ford announced that it is preparing to exit the UK. That’s a lot of manufacturing jobs going “poof” in a little over a month.
In 44 days the UK will exit the European Union without an agreement on tariffs and trade, barring some unforeseen remedy.
Knowing the UK (a little) I think the unforeseen remedy could be intercession by Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith.
While there are norms around the idea of the royal family staying out of politics, I’d be surprised if the Queen allows the country to throw itself in the rubbish bin. I don’t know how intercession would work and I realize that this is a deus ex machina to end all deus ex machina, but the Queen is the only person in the country with the stature to propose a path away from the calamity that could get a listen.
Certainly, there are huge risks for the monarchy but at some point, those risks become outweighed by the manifest risks of standing aside.
Ford has said a no-deal Brexit would be catastrophic for the firm’s manufacturing operations in the UK and that it would do “whatever is necessary” to protect its business.
The comments come after a report the carmaker was stepping up preparations to move production out of the UK. Ford declined to comment directly on The Times’ report, but said it had long warned against a “hard Brexit”.