At the European Central Bank the current president, Mario Draghi, is already preparing for his departure on 31 October 2019 – and it looks like he will make it out before his policy of issuing of trillions of new euros – mainly as cheap loans to EU corporations – comes to a sticky end.

While at the British equivalent, the Bank of England, governor Mark Carney, is staying on until January 2020; to make sure that Brexit goes to plan. However what is not clear is exactly whose plan that is – even though Philip Hammond has something in mind.

Over in Brussels president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, will also see out the end of his term on 31 October 2019 – and Team Juncker [yes that really is the name they use!] have already tabled their final works. So if the Brexit can is kicked any further down the road a new president would be in charge – interesting…

However that other key Brexit figure Donald Franciszek Tusk, president of the European Council, will be around for another month after Juncker; not ending his term until 30 November 2019. And the can will have to be kicked further towards Christmas for both posts to have changed.

So that’s four important figures that we expect to leave soon – yet we are totally in the dark about our national politicians. The local government elections are just next week and even though they do not effect Westminster directly the results will send a message to the parties about public sentiment. More importantly the EU elections follow on just three weeks later and the indications are that the public will vent their feelings on our failure to leave on that much-promised March date. The Conservatives are getting very worried.

It’s hard to imagine but if these EU elections do go ahead in the UK then the UK government will look even more out of touch and gutless. This potential major embarrassment to the government means that all sorts of cunning plans and under the counter exchanges will be tried to avoid them taking place – or, if they do, to restrict the powers of UK MEPs in Brussels. However given the level of incompetence in Westminster it may be Brussels that acts on this instead.

But the big question avoided so far is – when is time up for Mrs May? Stories of her demise have been floated repeatedly without result. Despite all those defeats and numerous resignations our PM blunders on quite unable, it seems, to accept anything other than getting her deal agreed. A deal so toxic for our grandchildren that it must be stopped from ever reaching our statute books. What’s in it for her? We may never know.

And at this point a Labi Siffre song from the 1990’s seems appropriate –

The higher you build your barriers
The taller I become
The further you take my rights away
The faster I will run
You can deny me, you can decide
To turn your face away
No matter ’cause there’s

Something inside so strong
I know that I can make it
Though you’re doing me wrong, so wrong
You thought that my pride was gone, oh no
There’s something inside so strong
Oh, something inside so strong