We are a democracy. Sixteen and a half million people in Britain have decided to leave us with that and little else. A Tory prime minister will go down in history as the man who made the biggest mistake in his professional life.
He decided to hold a referendum to allow a crowded and festering island of grievances and injustice to take the tiller and steer the future course of a country l have always been so proud of.
He has divided the United Kingdom, destroyed his government and sowed the seeds for the end of the United Kingdom and the destabilising of Europe.
We have justed endured a ‘civil war’ of angry words and allegations – but no one has won.
This is not a bright dawn – it is the opening of Pandora’s Box. It is a walk into a dark night. The Right Wing is on the march. There are more horrors to come. After Farage and Boris Johnson – Donald Trump waits in the wings.
I have never felt so sad and so depressed about the future.
As my partner has just said – it feels like someone very close to us has just died. Yes – Great Britain.
Well said and well put. Scary times. Yet somehow we will all have to find a way to live with and in it. I don’t know how yet.
Thank you for writing this, Richard. Feeling exactly the same this morning. Bereft, confused and scared.
You are not alone. Even the sun has gone in now!
I agree with every word. I never met my Uncle Jack – he died in the war. I feel now his death was in vain. Hitler’s acolyte Farage has succeeded in doing what I believe he always wanted to do – drag this country down. But this has to be agreed by parliament. Let’s hope the MPs are brave enough to do what is best for the UK and vote to stay.
Dear Richard Thank you for expressing in such an eloquent way how I feel today.I am totally devastated and shocked. Best wishes Liz Hardman
Sent from my iPad
Exactly my sentiments. A very sad day. Very very foolish.
I have been asked to add this comment but to keep the contributor anonymous!
‘There are many who feel the same sentiment as yourself, Richard. Truly, the effects of this referendum vote will ripple out for years and decades to come. I felt so depressed this morning not even a piece of chocolate cake and a Mocha could help. What are we leaving for the younger generation? Short-term glory for a few strutting peacocks, but a bit of a mess for the rest, quite frankly. There will be turbulent and disturbing times ahead for us all.
Nobody knows exactly what long-term economic consequences Brexit will have, but markets dislike uncertainty. How could the majority of the public discount so readily the advice of so many financial experts and institutions? But I think the trump card played by the ‘Leave’ campaign (and I hate to use the word ‘trump’ when we watch what is happening in America), was probably the issue of immigration, but in terms of the referendum debate, immigration was a ‘cuckoo’s egg’ which nudged all other issues out of the nest.
What will be the incentive for companies to invest in the UK? None that I can see, yet we need investment. I work in a privatised industry in the UK, and have seen it finely broken up over decades to the extent that not one part of it is UK owned. You could blame the Conservative government for initiating this, and whilst this resulted in quick money for the few, in the end we are where we are and it resulted in investment. With the likely trade barriers to come, you can see that job losses in this industry will not be far behind.
On a local level, I’ve been saddened and horrified in equal parts. In a pub, shop and barber’s yesterday, I was deeply concerned to hear how many didn’t know which way they were going to vote, and were going to decide when they got to the polling stations. And an architect friend this morning has been summoned immediately to his company’s European headquarters to discuss re-locating to Europe whilst the UK office begins preparations to close. The day is filling up fast with stories like this.
Many parts of Europe have never really thought Britain as part of the ‘big family’. They say it has always been ‘take and leave what we don’t want’ such as with the euro. It’s not just the Channel that divides us, and even the reluctance to embrace other languages puts Britain in that seemingly Imperialistic position. We’re just going to end up adrift and exposed in the Atlantic. We could have done more to be inclusive, and history is littered with examples where humanity is stronger when we stand together. I was originally born in Bath, am a British citizen but felt proud to be European. I feel like hanging my head in shame this morning.
I think many of us would like to say, ‘Europe, we’re sorry. Many of us tried hard to stay’.’
thank you for a very considered comment on the referendum, exactly my sentiments.
Regards
Liz >
I was just having a clear out of my emails and found this …. it’s made me feel very sad – will we ever again be the country we once were….Sue