Also have strong universities (see results for Cambridge and Oxford.) Basically the M4 corridor voted to stay. Mendip is apparently an outlier but the balance was probably swung by the Eastern part which has a lot of university and NHS jobs, and borders BANES.
The place that does stand out is South Lakeland, but it’s Tim Farron’s constituency and is an upmarket retirement area for people from the cities which voted Remain, plus it’s a popular area for the people who work at Lancaster U (Lancaster itself was marginal, 51% leave). Go down the coast a bit and the pattern is different, e.g. Blackpool 67.5% leave…
I think it can really be brought down to age and education.
As agreed, the “New Settlement for the United Kingdom within the European Union”, reached at the European Council on 18-19 February 2016, will now not take effect and ceases to exist. There will be no renegotiation.
In the three minutes between the train station and place of work in those early days, numerous people walking on their own were set upon, severely, by thugs desiring nothing more than to harm.
Those are the angry people shoring up the UK’s exit.
Let’s not forget that the EU itself has a neoliberal agenda and also embraced austerity, the very things that have led to these deep divisions in society. These divisions are not confined to the UK, they run right across Europe.
I´m a bit torn what to hope for right now. On the one hand, I want a close relationship of the UK and the EU for the future, and I believe it´s going to be that way. On the other hand, I think the UK needs to feel the hurt to some extent that comes from their decision. If they don´t, if the UK walk away unscathed after decades of cherry picking from and throwing wrenches into EU policy making, Brexit will set too much of an example and other countries will follow. Reactionaries and nationalists all over Europe are already trying to set the tone for this to happen.
The political will of the EU remainder is probably low, the whole system is currently vulnerable and a too easy and fast new UK/EU treaty will give other *xit campaigns support. For self-preservation alone the EU has to be hard on the UK, in the current climate I don’t see the easy way out you’re outlining.
Because that’s really going to convince the sceptics in France and the Netherlands that the EU - which plundered Greece and did THIS (whatever it will be) to the UK is a place they want to be?
The UK is a rich country. It could easily supply health care for everyone - heck, it could easily drop tuition fees at universities and lift all Britons out of poverty if only it wanted. Just look at all the money they’ve wasted on useless wars.
But the Blairite and Tory governments have had absolutely no wish to do good by their people, they’ve preferred wringing their hands while the inequality rose & more & more children grew up in dire poverty.
… and in that respect, the outcome of this referendum is immaterial. It will not affect the British government’s ability to lift everyone out of poverty if only it wanted.
Convincing the sceptics is currently not the main issue. At the moment it’s more about keeping the EU from exploding, an imo understandable course of action.
Sure, if have the numbers to back that up? The current economic outlook is a technical recession at best. And even if you don’t look at the short term, how may I ask, is UK going to support itself when the majority of the population is looking at their pensions more than their working paycheques? Here’s a population projection of 2025. It’s not bad compared to other countries. Still the majority of the workforce is projected to be smaller than the non-workforce.
A lot could be achieved by redistribution, I think. The UK is a more unequal society than most. And withdrawing immediately from all wars.
As for being on the leave side, I’m not British and don’t live in the UK, so I don’t have that much of a right to an opinion. HOWEVER, I’m quite sceptical of the EU as a project. And my main disagreement with you is also, I think, that I think Britain’s being in or out of the EU will not make much of a difference, financially.
And the best way of keeping the EU from exploding is to come down hard on those who want to leave, just as the best way of keeping your wife is to bully her and let her know how painful you’re going to make the divorce. It’s really going to want to make her stay.
Actually, European companies are already dialling the hotlines to their leaders - VW can’t afford to lose the UK market, for instance!
This may turn into a situation where business leaders - who ultimately create the jobs that feed and house people - start isolating politicians and making publicly clear if they’re not being sensible.
