Brexit Optimism: Be Careful

As the trigger moment approaches, Brexit enthusiasts, including the government or most of it, glow with optimism at the great opportunities for Great Britain set free. Remainers, like me, who cherish being part of a free Europe and have immense pride in being a European citizen, look on aghast at perhaps the greatest act of national folly in our history. But there is another group, those who voted Remain but are happy to follow the democratic choice out of the union and into, well whatever, who are beginning to dish out real issues which have to be resolved. And those issues are piling up and will not go away. The time has come to pay attention to what they are saying.

Brexiteers point out that all the warnings of economic disaster proffered by the Remain campaign, together with the forecasts of their allies, were proved wrong. But wait. Those warnings were issued in the belief that Cameron, in the event of a Leave victory, would do as promised and immediately trigger Article 50, so that by the end of June or early July we would have started on our journey out. That has not happened even now, so nothing has actually changed and therefore apart from the fall in sterling, there have been no effects. But when stuff happens, the effects will pile up. Watch this space.

It has echoes of 1939. We declared war, not much happened, no bombs fell and life carried on as normal. Then came 1940. If you do not know what happened then, best to look it up.