I am one of the 48%. In my hometown of Harrow remain won (55 to 45). I remain a remainer. The culture of bullying and name-calling (remoaners etc) targeted at those who continue - as a point of principle - to support EU membership represents some of the worst aspects of our country's political DNA. It is important to be humble in victory, as well as defeat. Whilst I accept the referendum result, I do not accept the rewriting of history which suggests it was in any respect a categorical result with clear implications.
17,410,742 votes compared to 16,141,241 was - and is - close. And reducing a complex issue with a million little issues inside it into a binary choice of yes or no was a foolish and irresponsible decision by David Cameron.
Brexit and what it means - should mean- is contestable and should be contested.
I have a further, big concern though. Aside from the overwhelming cultural, economic and political case for being inside the European Union I have always feared Brexit - and indeed a referendum - would simply be an unhelpful distraction. And so it has been, is and will continue to be. Political time in not infinite, certain issues invariably dominate and we need to be thoughtful about the issues we prioritise as a nation in our discourse and decision making.
In September 2014 Ipsos MORI asked people what issues would help them decide who to vote for in the general election of 2015. The EU ranked seventh, well behind the economy and public services. Two years later (September 2016) and polling - again by Ipsos MORI- showed the EU to be our third biggest priority (behind health and immigration but, amazingly, ahead of the economy, education, unemployment, poverty and housing).
We spent a year following the general election focused almost exclusively on the EU (hence the change in the polls mentioned above). Big challenges were swept away as a consequence - the childhood obesity strategy delayed (and then watered down) and the life chances strategy kicked into the long grass, where it stays.
People are also being sucked into the Brexit vortex. Talented people - in business and in the public sector - are put on Brexit committees to work out the implications for their organisations or seconded to new units to weigh up the pros and cons of this new, shifting landscape. The Guardian's Jane Dudman has written a good piece about the brain drain of civil servants from every department into the new Brexit department.
The costs of Brexit will not be exclusively related to Brexit. We are sacrificing progress across a whole range of domestic and international challenges. The problem with obsessions like Brexit is that they tend to narrow rather than open the mind. Tunnel vision is the biggest Brexit risk. Those of us who voted remain have two tasks: standing up for a pro-European Britain (culturally, economically and politically) and ensuring Brexit isn't the only show in town.
17,410,742 votes compared to 16,141,241 was - and is - close. And reducing a complex issue with a million little issues inside it into a binary choice of yes or no was a foolish and irresponsible decision by David Cameron.
Brexit and what it means - should mean- is contestable and should be contested.
I have a further, big concern though. Aside from the overwhelming cultural, economic and political case for being inside the European Union I have always feared Brexit - and indeed a referendum - would simply be an unhelpful distraction. And so it has been, is and will continue to be. Political time in not infinite, certain issues invariably dominate and we need to be thoughtful about the issues we prioritise as a nation in our discourse and decision making.
In September 2014 Ipsos MORI asked people what issues would help them decide who to vote for in the general election of 2015. The EU ranked seventh, well behind the economy and public services. Two years later (September 2016) and polling - again by Ipsos MORI- showed the EU to be our third biggest priority (behind health and immigration but, amazingly, ahead of the economy, education, unemployment, poverty and housing).
We spent a year following the general election focused almost exclusively on the EU (hence the change in the polls mentioned above). Big challenges were swept away as a consequence - the childhood obesity strategy delayed (and then watered down) and the life chances strategy kicked into the long grass, where it stays.
People are also being sucked into the Brexit vortex. Talented people - in business and in the public sector - are put on Brexit committees to work out the implications for their organisations or seconded to new units to weigh up the pros and cons of this new, shifting landscape. The Guardian's Jane Dudman has written a good piece about the brain drain of civil servants from every department into the new Brexit department.
The costs of Brexit will not be exclusively related to Brexit. We are sacrificing progress across a whole range of domestic and international challenges. The problem with obsessions like Brexit is that they tend to narrow rather than open the mind. Tunnel vision is the biggest Brexit risk. Those of us who voted remain have two tasks: standing up for a pro-European Britain (culturally, economically and politically) and ensuring Brexit isn't the only show in town.
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