Ash Wednesday marked the beginning of Lent, a period of 40 days in the Christian calendar to mark the period when Jesus fasted in the wilderness. During this time Christians reflect on the lead up to Easter, marking the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. It is a time for sacrifice or fasting or perhaps abstaining from certain food (Chocolate is common) or alcoholic drinks. The thought of what we might sacrifice for Lent got me thinking about the extraordinary times we are living through. 

By the time lent is over we may or may not have given up the EU. I somehow doubt that we will have left. I expect the Theresa May deal will fail once more in parliament this week with the government going cap in hand to Brussels for a three month extension to Article 50. This will allow the can to be kicked down the road for a further period.By the end of the three months one or two things might have changed. The European elections will have taken place across the rest of Europe, making another extension of Article 50 very difficult to obtain. However, the Irish backstop will not have been solved. The only way to avoid a hard border in Ireland in the medium term is to stay in the EU or develop a customs arrangement to avoid checks on the border. So will this make a no deal Brexit more likely? Will a softer Brexit solve the problem? Or will we be voting again? Your guess is as good as mine! 

The hardliners seem to have given up challenging project fear for Lent too. As yet another car manufacturer portends a factory closure, the ERG remain unusually silent. As the evidence mounts on the damage Brexit will cause, they have stopped trying to argue that black is white. The temporary sacrifices and inconveniences will all be worth it as we gain our sovereign rights! After some pain, they argue that we will be able to turn the UK into Singapore on the fringe of Europe. Sacrifices are the order of the day to achieve a brave new world tomorrow. I doubt that the hundreds of thousands of workers whose livelihoods depend on the car industry would agree. The sacrifices of Mr Rees-Mogg are intellectual and theoretical. Car workers have mouths to feed and mortgages to pay.

Now, there is talk that the Brexiteers also want to give up tariffs on imported goods once we leave. These great negotiators have yet to replicate deals with most countries who currently have trade deals with the EU. Perhaps I should not blame them, how can the pulling power of 65 million people ever match that of 650 million? However the abolition of tariffs, irrespective of what tariffs are changed by the third party jurisdiction on our goods, does not seem to enhance our bargaining position in negotiations. This is a generous gesture to the rest of the world but how it is fair to UK producers is quite another matter. Our farmers are very worried indeed about the sacrifices they may be called upon to face, not to mention other sectors of our economy.

Lent is a solemn period as Christians look toward Easter with its message of sacrifice and pain. Sadly, this Lenten season is also solemn as we watch the spectre of monumental self-harm threatening the lives of our citizens. It is time to stop pretending that there is an easy route forward. Giving up on the EU is going to be painful. Although the rest of the world can see our folly, our leaders seem to be blind to the desperate harm that Brexit is going to cause. Let's hope that we do find a way forward which preserves the bulk of our economy and does not require future generations to suffer the consequences of our foolish decisions today.