Brexit 50p to Finally be Released (Or Is It?)

Brexit Coin

Brexit 50p Tweet by HM treasury

Original March Brexit 50p Coin

In October 2018, The Royal Mint first announced to the public that a special 50 pence celebrating the first Brexit deal would be released in March 2019. The only coins that were created with this date were test coins to check the dies but were never put into circulation. The original Brexit coin which was dated 29th March 2019 had to be corrected to the date that the UK will make their Brexit deal but has kept the same Peace and Prosperity design.  

"Friendship With All Nations"

The inscription on the coin reads “PEACE, PROSPERITY AND FRIENDSHIP WITH ALL NATIONS” accompanied by the date 31 October 2019. Despite voting out for Brexit, the UK are still celebrating peace and friendship with all nations, well perhaps only unilaterally with President Macron and Angela Merkel. 

What Is The Privy Council? 

The Privy Council, headed by Brexit supporter Jacob Rees-Mogg, were behind the approval of the Brexit coin. The council consists of senior politicians who effectively deal with legislation on behalf of the Queen. The official Privy Council website describes the office as follows:-  

The Privy Council is the mechanism through which interdepartmental agreement is reached on those items of Government business which, for historical or other reasons, fall to Ministers as Privy Counsellors rather than as Departmental Ministers. 

Reports from the council can be found on their webpage – a useful technique for finding out about future coins prior to their release. 

Is The New Brexit Coin Risky?  

A total of three million Privy Council approved Brexit coins will be ready to be released to the public on October 31st which will then be followed by another seven million next year. The new Brexit coin does come with added risk of even more abandoned coins if the government struggles to find a Brexit deal requiring another extension.

What Happens if the Brexit Deal is Delayed... Again? 

As I'm sure you’re aware, if no deal is passed by 18th October the UK government must ask for a Brexit extension. It’s looking more and more likely that this will be the case. Whilst the European Parliament has no obligation to grant an extension, it’s not inconceivable that Brexit could be delayed a further three months.......or indefinitely at this rate!

Reports prior to writing this blog indicate that production of the Brexit fifty pence coin is yet to begin, The Royal Mint is well equipped to produce the initial three million Brexit coins by the October 31st deadline should they need to. It’s quite likely they’re waiting until 18th October to commence production, rather than having millions of Brexit coins issued with the incorrect date. 
 

Potential Brexit Coin

Will A Brexit Deal Happen?

Your guess is as good as ours. By announcing the coin it seems like it will happen, but this could be a psychological ploy to convince doubters on both sides that a Brexit deal is going ahead on the 31st of October. The question is, are the government and Prime Minister really serious about leaving by then? Or could it all be a ploy by Dominic Cummings? At such a late stage no one really knows. It may be time to flip a coin - or even better, one of our famous Referendum Medallions. 

Chards Mark the Occasion

Brexit Medallions

We created a Brexit medallion as people were unsure of which way to vote. Why not flip a coin (or medallion) to decide? There are two medallions on offer. One is made from copper with a rose gold finish, the other is made from brass with a shiny appearance. Both medallions feature the Union flag on one side with the word 'OUT' and the European flag on the other side with word 'IN'. 

In Out Brexit Medallion