When 17.4 million people voted for Brexit on June 23rd, 2016, they were not entering a public exam. This is the point a Question Time audience member made on last week's episode when lambasting Nicky Morgan and Rebecca Long-Bailey. Nowhere on the ballot paper did it once say 'please turn over to choose which type of Brexit you want: hard or soft.' Everyone knew leaving the EU meant ending the trading bloc's jurisdiction over the UK altogether. It did not mean opting to remain in certain European institutions.
The only party that fails to understand this is the Liberal Democrats.
During my interview with the Liberal Democrat candidate for Damian Green's Ashford seat, Adrian Gee-Turner, he said the terms of the debate have changed and that Parliament is unclear as to what type of Brexit it wants. He also said Brexiteers have created a mess. He is wrong.
"The only institution which is in a mess is the EU"
The only institution which is in a mess is the EU. The 2008 Recession shattered a common misconception that Britain's wealth is generated through EU membership. The trading bloc created the euro currency without laying down foundations for a political union alongside it. Because of it, larger economies had to bail out smaller ones. CityAM recently predicted slow Eurozone growth will trigger a recession next year.
Italy's economy is a ticking time-bomb, especially with Eurosceptic parties vowing to pull their nation out of the Eurozone via a referendum. That will have cataclysmic consequences for the trading bloc's survival.
Mr. Gee-Turner claims many Leavers want to remain a member of the Customs Union. Remaining in this protection ratchet is not Brexit.
The Customs Union prohibits the UK from signing trade deals with other countries. However, Mr. Gee-Turner was right to say the Norway deal would be a bad one for Britain. It would mean signing up to the Single Market and having to implement certain rules through the EEA Council. The Liberal Democrats want to avoid Brexit at any cost.
The EU will collapse at some point. I predict it will happen in 2022. There is no sense in remaining in a trading bloc with an overall aim of creating a federal Europe, or one that is close to collapsing regardless. This is something that does not fit the Liberal Democrats' vision for Britain. They need to stop patronising Britons- we all knew what Brexit meant. It's time to continue with this process and leave this sinking ship.
