Dear John,

Today marks nine years since Britain voted to leave the European Union. Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson, Lord Daniel Hannan, and others told us that things would be very different in Britain by now. We’d be a world-leading economic superpower, they claimed, revelling in our newfound sovereignty and celebrating our hard-won independence.

It was all of course, a lie. Lord Hannan’s infamous op-ed, proclaiming that Brexit Britain would be the envy of the world in 2025, with restored civic pride, far-reaching global influence and booming industries, reads today like tawdry science fiction. Objectively, Brexit has done the opposite to Britain over the past decade – we’re poorer, less proud, and less influential.

It’s why even Nigel Farage hardly talks about Brexit benefits anymore. Undelivered promises are swept under the rug, and new distractions are brought forward to swindle the disillusioned public once more.

Today’s Reform press conference didn’t mention the anniversary at all, instead unveiling the party’s plans for a ‘Britannia Card ([link removed]) ,’ a cheap parody of Donald Trump’s already tacky ‘Gold Card’ – essentially a plan to let foreign billionaires avoid taxes disguised as a populist “Robin Hood” tax.

But whether or not Farage’s new stunts ultimately pay off, the public are now clear-eyed about Brexit. The latest YouGov polls ([link removed]) show that a significant majority of Britons now want to rejoin the EU and view Brexit as more of a failure than a success. An even greater majority want closer ties to the EU.

Demographics show that Britain will only get more pro-rejoin as time passes. Young people – overwhelmingly in favour of rejoining – are turning 18 every day, while the core Brexit vote skews older and is gradually declining in electoral weight. The direction of travel is clear, and it isn’t towards isolation.

That doesn’t mean it will be easy. Rejoining won’t be a simple reversal of 2016. It will need to happen on different terms, with realism about what’s possible. The EU has its own challenges and priorities. But the question of return is no longer if, but how and when.

When that moment comes, we must ensure our democracy is fit for purpose. We cannot afford a repeat of 2016, where dark money, foreign interference, industrial-scale disinformation, and blatantly dishonest campaigning corrupted the outcome.

Even in Hannan’s deluded premonition, Britain was able to leave the political structures of the EU while maintaining free trade. That obviously didn’t happen. The Brexit campaign was a disaster because people were voting for conflicting visions of what Brexit meant. None of them were grounded in reality.

If there is to be another big decision on Europe, it must be one based in truth, fairness, and transparency. Our future deserves nothing less.

All the very best,

The Open Britain Team
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