Dear John
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a landmark UK–EU "reset" deal, the most substantial agreement between the two sides since Brexit.
Starmer framed it as a “win-win,” offering the UK greater access to the EU without rejoining the single market.
And what did the Brexiteers have to say?
“Capitulation.” “Humiliation.” “Surrender.” And, of course, “betrayal.” These are the buzzwords echoing from the Mail, The Sun, The Express, Boris Johnson, and other hardline Brexit voices.
But is it really a betrayal if people have simply changed their minds?
Most Britons now believe Brexit was a mistake. Recent polling shows that 56% of voters think the UK was wrong to leave the EU, and 66% support closer ties with Europe - even if that doesn’t necessarily mean rejoining. In a democracy, people are allowed to reconsider. In fact, that’s what democracy is for.
Yet for years, our broken political system has enabled a toxic orthodoxy: a cross-party consensus that the 2016 referendum - nearly a decade out now - must remain sacred and untouched. “The people have spoken,” they say, “and we don’t want to hear them speak again.”
Now, the same voices who once demanded we “take back control” are trying to shut down any conversation about adjusting course. They claim that reducing checks on food and drink exports makes the UK a "rule-taker." They say allowing EU fishing vessels limited access to British waters amounts to surrender – conveniently ignoring the fact that over 70% of the catch British fishermen take from the sea is exported to Europe.
The reality though, is that these people asked for sovereignty, and this is what sovereignty looks like.
For the first time, the UK government is actually acknowledging the consequences of Brexit. Since leaving the EU, UK goods exports to Europe have fallen by around 21%, and imports by roughly 7%. The promised dream of a booming, independent “Global Britain” simply isn’t materialising. Keir Starmer seems to have realised it can no longer be ignored.
Much has changed - across the world and within our own borders - since 2016. And central to any functioning democracy is the right to change the consensus.
However difficult it may be - given the calibre of our politicians and the dire state of our political system - Britain still has that right.
And maybe now, we’re finally starting to exercise it.
