EU’s Hogan slams ‘Empire 2.0’ thinking behind Brexit

He praised Theresa May as a cool head struggling to control ‘extremist wing of her party.’

European Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan suggested Monday that cheery rhetoric on Brexit is based on “fanciful” ideas that Britain remains a colonial power.

The commissioner was in Dublin to address an event on Brexit organized by the Irish Farmers’ Association, where he spoke about Brussels’ approach to the coming negotiations with Britain and dangers to Ireland’s food and agricultural trade.

Hogan praised British Prime Minister Theresa May as a cool head struggling to control the “extremist wing of her party.”

However, he was blunt about her aim to use Brexit to secure beneficial trade deals with countries outside the European Union.

“This aim, based on notions of an Empire 2.0, is somewhat fanciful when you look at the trade-offs the U.K. would have to submit to in order to do deals around the world,” he said.

The commissioner also attacked the “loony voices” on Britain’s right. He said they had stoked up anti-EU fervor and underlined that the country needed to pay its so-called “exit bill” once it leaves the bloc.

“A lot of ‘noise’ has been made about the so-called ‘bill’ that the U.K. faces when leaving the Union,” Hogan said.

“Much of that noise has come as part of an anti-EU right-wing media campaign in the U.K., which has fed the British people a diet of misleading and false negativity for over 40 years, so we should hardly be surprised that they are continuing to misinform the people today,” he added.