I agree that 40 years of entanglement will take time to remedy, but politically there is no soft option left. The Withdrawal agreement, which the EU see as a Treaty and have signed, is not acceptable to the Eurosceptic MPs of whatever party, nor to the Brexit Party. Attitudes have hardened as a result of the behaviour of Brussels and it’s unlikely Johnson will be able to sell it to Parliament, if he tries. And then a GE will see a further polarisation, being fought on the issue of Independence (Brexit if you like).