Lessons for the UK and other EU members flirting with withdrawal.
1) Don’t hold
a referendum unless the electorate know what they are voting about. And don’t
let a referendum be used as a protest vote about other things. The Remain
campaign failed to communicate the essential point to the public - that
during its EU membership Britain’s GDP grew more that those of the US, Germany
and France.
https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/news/brexit/
Lessons for
the UK
Economic
A soft Brexit
never really existed. The EU is a customs union and without being in the EU,
there is no easy access into it for British companies. It has left many UK
companies without enough trained staff after the departure of EU workers.
Discounting
the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, Brexit has had a
negative effect on the economy and so far, the promised opportunities (rapid
trade treaties with other countries) have not materialized. Job prospects for
young British citizens within Europe are now much reduced.
Political
There is now
the problem of the Northern Ireland border and Brexit exacerbated the Scottish
independence question.
The Brexit
campaign was largely fought on the immigration question, paradoxically often in
terms of attitudes to non-EU immigration. While immigration from the EU has
fallen, non-EU immigration has not been reduced by Brexit but has increased
Meanwhile
illegal migration continues.
Lessons for
the EU
The EU adopted the right approach, trying to maintain a positive attitude to relations with the UK after Brexit. At the same time, it needs to be more effective in communicating with and listening to its citizens and fulfilling its promises on jobs and prosperity if it wants to stem the rise of ultra-nationalist or anti-EU parties.
The EU needs
to create a more flexible decision-making processi f it is going to be able to
achieve real unity and effective action.
For background see also:
Nessun commento:
Posta un commento
Nota. Solo i membri di questo blog possono postare un commento.