A Taste of Brexit

         

                     The recent elections for the European parliament have been understood within the U.K. as a kind of long awaited reckoning for the major political parties over the handling of brexit. In the aftermath of the election there has been much talk about the failure of the governing conservatives to have a strong showing. Their support has been siphoned off to give a convincing win for Nigel Farage’s upstart no-deal probrexit party. 

                      While the conservatives clearly sustained the heaviest losses in this election, they were almost equally matched in losing by their main opponents: the Labour party.  The blood-letting for the two main parties was to be expected considering the road show spectacle of all things brexit.

                      Since the referendum which began this slow motion descent into political purgatory, both parties have been at a loss as how to proceed with brexit.  The conservative party has been divided in deciding how far the split with the European union should go: should it be a complete removal from all European treaties, followed by a renegotiation of particular deals that it would prefer to have with the European union; or should it be a partial split that would keep Britain in many of the preexisting European treaties involving trade and freedom of movement.  Adding into the brexit drama, it has been said that the former position would cost the country billions of pounds and cause severe hardships throughout British society, whereas the later position would keep Britain within the sphere of European control and thus negate the entire purpose of leaving the European Union. 

                      The difficulties for the conservatives in delivering brexit are obvious when it is clear that the party is divided in its view as to how to proceed with brexit.  Consequently, Nigel Farage’s new party has easily benefited when it has presented voters with a clear vision of a no deal brexit.

                     The most fascinating conundrum for those watching brexit unfold is the position of the Labour Party, or rather, lack of position.  The referendum which began brexit resulted in a near 50% split in voters supporting and opposed to brexit. The Labour Party, as the main opposition party to the conservatives that supported brexit, rather than offering a clear political alternative for the half of the country that opposed brexit, decided to support the idea of brexit.  As a result many third tier parties have gained an uncharacteristic level of support in the current European elections for the evident reason that they all oppose brexit.  

                     Interestingly, while Nigel Farage’s win as most popular single party is being celebrated as a sign that the people of Britain are demanding the brexit they voted for and have had enough with the politicians that seem incapable of delivering it; as the percentages of support for all parties in opposition to brexit are added together it becomes clear that a majority of the vote in this recent election was in fact against brexit.  With this in mind it becomes absurd that the main opposition party should not be clearly anti-brexit.

                     As a further development, Labour has finally reluctantly agreed that it will support a second referendum to allow the people to decide what the politicians have obviously been incapable of deciding on their own.

                       As anticipation of record setting negative results for the conservative party in this election prompted the Prime Minister to offer her resignation, it has come time for new leadership in the Labour Party as well. 

                      As demonstrated by Nigel Farage’s unprecedented win, the great lesson from this election should be that the people expect their leaders to have clear positions.