A LOOK AT BRITAIN’S POLITICAL SYSTEM
Britain’s political system has retarded this truth-and-reconciliation process. One of the unfortunate side-effects of Brexit is the noxious effect it had on the political establishment’s capacity for honesty and candor. A polemical campaign marked by false claims and exaggerations gave way to a post-referendum code of omerta. The majority of parliamentarians understood that the decision to withdraw was economically harmful, but it became impolitic to confront this openly for fear of alienating Leave-voting constituencies. This taboo is now breaking down, thanks partly to the leadership ambitions of Labour’s Wes Streeting. But there is a long way to go.
A country that has yet to resolve the traumas that caused it to break away last time can hardly be regarded as a reliable partner. Hence the speculation that, if Britain did attempt to rejoin, the EU would require a “Farage clause” to protect the bloc from a future Reform UK government led by Brexit’s chief architect, Nigel Farage, reneging on any deal.
In any case, the hurdles to rejoining would be daunting. Time has moved on and the UK, the EU and the world have all changed since 2016.
The British public’s recognition that Brexit was an economic mistake doesn’t necessarily imply a willingness to go through the whole ordeal again. And even if an application were welcomed, there’s no guarantee the country could obtain the same generous terms enjoyed previously, such as budget rebates and opt-outs from the euro and the Schengen passport-free area.
There are more fundamental questions to address first.
Returning to the UK in 2022 after more than three decades away, I recognise now that I came back to a much more divided and discontented country than the one I left. It still feels in flux. Britain can’t make credible decisions about its long-term destiny until it has moved beyond this unstable equilibrium. The powers of sovereignty and autonomy reclaimed by Brexit are real; they’re just not free. A shared understanding on that point needs to be the start rather than the end of a journey.
