The British do this to themselves.

They EU are asking for early notification and it's for transparency reasons.
And it's not a special British clause.
Yes, it could result in the EU stepping, but that would be a very big thing, and it hasn't happened yet.
If it happens, we can all get upset about it.
Some Brexit "neutrals" will finally learn that Remainers never believed the EU would be fluffy to those outside the bloc.
Some Brexit supporters will learn what it *actually* feels to have an economic super power on their doorstep able to act in their interest and against theirs, in opposed to their fantasies about how they are subsidising companies to leave.
Lots of people will learn the EU can move quite quickly when it has to.
Of course, this wouldn't effect us if we were in the EU...and we'd probably want transparency at this point too.
AZ were not able to satisfy the Commission when they met with them yesterday, and now the EU wants greater visibility. If AZ aren't covering anything up, it may never go beyond this.
Right now this is a non-story that has the potential to be a big story in the future, but as usual the legendary self created shoulder chip the UK has is going to make it the biggest story of the day.
But the British press need something for the EU haters to masturbate too.
So here we are in outrage city again.
I hate to break this to everybody but this is probably going to be UK political discourse for the next 10 years at the least.
It's going to be a long "Once in a generation".

/End

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Two things can be true at once:
1. There is an issue with hostility some academics have faced on some issues
2. Another academic who himself uses threats of legal action to bully colleagues into silence is not a good faith champion of the free speech cause


I have kept quiet about Matthew's recent outpourings on here but as my estwhile co-author has now seen fit to portray me as an enabler of oppression I think I have a right to reply. So I will.

I consider Matthew to be a colleague and a friend, and we had a longstanding agreement not to engage in disputes on twitter. I disagree with much in the article @UOzkirimli wrote on his research in @openDemocracy but I strongly support his right to express such critical views

I therefore find it outrageous that Matthew saw fit to bully @openDemocracy with legal threats, seeking it seems to stifle criticism of his own work. Such behaviour is simply wrong, and completely inconsistent with an academic commitment to free speech.

I am not embroiling myself in the various other cases Matt lists because, unlike him, I think attention to the detail matters and I don't have time to research each of these cases in detail.

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