Why Brexit Will Reunite Britain (Really!)

 

Photo by Rocco Dipoppa on Unsplash

The name of this article seems a little illogical coming from someone who is and always has been pro-remain and anti-Brexit. Yet I increasingly believe the issue that I’ve seen as a negative force will actually unite my country again (in a way).

To be clear, I am sure of the fact Brexit will be incredibly damaging. There’s little to mitigate against that now. It’s a reality. 

There’s no more posturing on what Brexit could potentially mean. It is what it always was, a huge shock to our system. In some ways, this is welcome as it shakes us awake from complacency but also forces us to sober up and truly see our place in the world without all the pomp and bluster. 

Brexit is no longer hypothetical, it’s real!

We’re outside the EU, the Single Market, Customs Union, and we have a thin deal which prevents the very worst outcome from this whole exercise. Everything Brexiteers wanted has been placated along the way and yet, “the sunlit uplands” (which have long been a cliché by this point) don’t seem very obvious. 

The country could potentially break apart due to Brexit. Scotland and Northern Ireland are quite clearly eyeing the way out of the Union and one would imagine that Wales would think seriously about doing the same. It could bring about the end of the United Kingdom and I’m not catastrophising when I say that.

A lot rests on the politics of the country and that is easily our biggest weakness. There is talk about “reuniting” and “healing” but it is barked at us by who want to achieve reconciliation without the work being put in to understand why Brexit was so divisive in the first place. 

Is there actually a cause for optimism?

Now, of course, this all seems pretty negative and hopeless. However, I still believe there is cause for optimism from all this. 

Brexit, in its way, can be a unifying force. However, the irony is it will only create eventual unity by successfully uniting more and more people against it. A lot of the population who were indifferent or vaguely pro the idea as a concept are not necessarily going to stay that way for long. 

Sadly, it has taken the painful realisation to perhaps start the country on its road to recovery. But, like an alcoholic, it had to reach rock bottom first before it would consider seeking help.

We might not even be at rock bottom yet. Things are still coming to light about what this all means for the average person (or fisherman) going forward. 

The important difference is that functionally we can’t really blame the EU for our situation. They don’t tell us what to do in our own country and we’ve voluntarily waived any right to tell them how things should be run in their own market. Maybe for once, we’ll turn our attention to the cause of our actual problem, which is (and always has been) our own government’s policy on one hand and our local mediascape on the other. 

In other words, Brexit and the causes of Brexit are something that will unite us against themselves eventually.

What comes next?

In the short to medium term, depending on how well the initial problems are resolved, it’s going to be a painful time for many people. This will all depend on how well the government attends to the crisis with practical solutions.

I’m not that optimistic that they’ll do that in time (given recent form) and considering it seems obsessed with solving problems with politics I fear a lot of damage will be done that will be hard to undo. 

This of course begs the question, how to undo it? I think one thing that’s clear is that a form of continued alignment with Europe might be the only realistic solution. Whether as a member of EFTA, the Single Market or the Customs Union, or a mix of all three. That said, I think we’re a long way off a formal reentry bid back into the EU itself. 

The sooner that better alignment with the EU happens the more likely businesses will be able to cope better. That said, given the inability of the government to stare facts in the face, we’ll probably see more pointless posturing that will harm our international standing. 

Johnson and his cabinet will do what they’ve always liked to do which is to play well to their own audience by talking down foreigners. This is in spite of whether this approach slows down the process of creating a positive new international identity for Britain. After all, no one in the world is interested in a global partner that will always be somewhere between begging you for concessions and fickle antagonism. 

The dawning of the reality of the situation will slowly but surely push the British identity to one of concession or cooperation with Europe no matter how long Britain stomps around being angry that the international world order of the 19th Century doesn’t exist anymore. It’s our responsibility now to come to terms with that and our place in the world. 

This will mean understanding what we are good at and what we are bad at and playing to the strengths whilst mitigating the weaknesses. This will also mean holding those who are responsible for the damage caused by Brexit to account.

The United States is probably going to be an interesting litmus test for whether this works. The dismantling of the cult around Trump will be an interesting case study in how nations can (if possible) reset and establish a new national norm following such division.

However, there has to be actual punishment for those who either lied or simply didn’t understand the realities of Brexit. It’s criminally negligent to have led the country to this point.

Letting people get away with this kind of ideological manipulation cannot be allowed to stand. If you don’t stop it now it could easily happen again but with even worse results. 

We have the chance to grow from this difficult time. It won’t be easy but it requires bravery in the face of the true reality and an adult approach to tricky issues. Am I confident this will happen? Simply put, yes, but it will take time.