Category: Causes of Brexit Vote

Causes of the “Leave” Vote A range of factors have been put forward to explain the vote in favour of leave. Several books have been written about the subject. The loss of sovereignty and lack of democratic control feature prominently. Some have explained the result in terms of British history and the re-emergence of a […]

Historical Relationship Britain’s relationship with the European Union and its predecessors has been described as ambivalent and half-hearted. It had an imperial past and a relationship with Commonwealth countries. It has looked to the United States as a partner in defence and political affairs and to some extent has seen itself as a bridge between […]

Immigration and EU Expansion A Lord Ashcroft referendum day poll of over 10,000 voters found that one-third of the voters said their main reason for voting leave was that it offered the best chance for the UK to regain control over immigration and its own borders. Later polling shortly afterwards showed that up to one […]

Populism The notion that Brexit brakes were part of a wave of populism in the Western world has been widely highlighted. 2016 saw the election of Donald Trump in the United States. Marine Le Pen leader of French National Front finished second in the first round of the election with 21.3% of the vote, receiving […]

Globalisation Standard economic theory dating back to Adam Smith in the 18th century appears to hold that international trade is always a win-win for each country. Although some countries lose in some sectors, this is offset by gains in other sectors so that each country is, in theory, better off. In practice, world trade has […]

Migrant Crisis in 2015/2016 The dramatic rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and elsewhere and other conflicts led to a dramatic increase in the numbers seeking asylum in Europe. Many others seeking asylum also came from Eritrea Afghanistan Kosovo Albania Mali and other sub-Saharan countries. The Refugee Convention 1951 requires  states to accept refugees […]

Economic arguments Many in the United Kingdom have argued that EU regulation has become burdensome and unreasonable. While an EU correspondent for The Telegraph in the 1990s, Boris Johnson criticised regulation sometimes in an exaggerated way; famously in relation to a supposed prohibition on the bendy banana. Compounding the economic arguments is that the UK’s […]