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Jack Smith's avatar

Something I'd also emphasise when selling the U-turn is the fact that the world is changing, and not in a way that benefits Brexit. The only kind of world the whole 'Global Britain' idea Brexit was based on, the globalised one, no longer exists, and instead we're entering an era of competition and rivalry between big power blocs. I thought Philip Hammond expressed this point really well recently when he talked about Brexit. The UK is obviously not powerful enough to stop this dynamic from happening, and in a choice between the US, EU and China we have to assess which one is in our best interest, and that's the EU.

I think selling realignment with the EU as a reaction to changing circumstances rather than a realisation that Brexit was dumb is the best option to mollify Leave voters. You could say in 2026 that, from the vantage point of 2016 Brexit made sense but it doesn't work a decade on, even if this isn't what you really believe. Bundled with the expert commission approach, it's also sellable as a national interest decision, which helps ward off accusations of being un-patriotic.

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Ben's avatar

"He is the living embodiment of a man who would put a £10 note in the bucket at the farmer’s market that’s collecting for refugees" 😂😂😂

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