“If a democracy cannot change its mind, it ceases to be a democracy.” These wise words were spoken by David Davis when he was a backbench MP.
In the wake of the referendum, it’s not just Brexiters who forget this core principle of a free society. Even some Remainers think we should lump it now the people have spoken. They are wrong.
A good example of the latter category is Philip Collins, who was once Tony Blair’s chief speechwriter. In his column in today’s Times, he writes: “We have voted to leave the EU so we must leave.” He adds: “It may well be an error but it is an error we must now make.” Collins’ reasoning is that: “It does not seem legitimate to discount a referendum, in the absence of overwhelming buyer’s remorse, before it has even been implemented.”
With the exception of the word “overwhelming”, which sets too high a hurdle, I agree with this last sentence. Unless the people change their minds, it would indeed be illegitimate to stay in the EU.
But acknowledging this doesn’t mean we should stop campaigning to change people’s minds. Quite the opposite. If Collins is right that quitting the EU may be an error – I would say it’s likely to be a historic mistake – we have a duty to try to wake people up before it is too late. And if we succeed, politicians will have a duty to reverse course.
Collins asks how we can know whether the people have changed their minds. The obvious answer is to have a referendum to check whether the people want to leave once they know what Brexit means. A petition on the Parliament website urging such a referendum had gathered 67,000 signatures by time of writing.
Collins is opposed to such a referendum on the grounds that “we are still in the period marked by the first one,” which he seems to think must last at least until after we quit the EU. By that time, of course, it would be too late to stay in and we’d only have the more cumbersome and problematic option of rejoining.
But there’s a flaw in this part of Collins’ argument too. If the voters really do change their minds, then surely the legitimacy conferred by last year’s referendum will have ended. We’ll be able to spot such a shift via opinion polls, attendance at rallies, lobbying of MPs and so forth. But we’ll only be able to validate it by a new vote.
All this, of course, will be immaterial unless the public will actually changes. That’s why pro-Europeans shouldn’t spend too much effort pushing now for a new referendum. They need to put the lion’s share of their energy into changing public opinion.
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Edited by Sam Ashworth-Hayes
You said it all in the first few lines off this story my friend, brexiters and a good number of remainers want us too get on with brexit, another way of describing these groups would be “the majority”. Hard line remainers don’t no what democracy means it seems? This would explain why your all so keen to stay in an undemocratic institution, allow me too assist, the majority of people want us too get on with brexit, in a democracy the will off the majority is upheld, this is the case, happy days.
‘no’ = know
‘your = your
I do hope your punctuation constitutes the standard in the post-EU world.
Hugh – this is a good piece.
And I agree with your admonition on priorities.
Which said, I am still waiting for you to tell us what purpose is served by having two anti-Brexit organisations: InFacts and Common Ground.
It’s bad enough having so many organisations covering the same ground and not joining forces, but having two of them run by the same person seens positively perverse and against your own advice.
I read that article and I don’t know where Collins suggested politicians stop being openly pro-EU or trying to convince us Brexit is a mistake.
I thought he was more concerned with proxy measures to thwart Brexit e.g. voting against the withdrawal bill even if appropriately amended.
He said we “should leave”, which may be controversial, but if it looks like the sands haven’t shifted and a majority still want us to, what else do you suggest?
Good point re the two organisations. However, the main question is how do we change public opinion re Brexit. I believe this can only be done if two things happen:
-a massive campaign to educate the British public on the EU, its origins, its functioning and its benefits for the UK. We need a ” EU for Dummies ” to be produced; the ignorance of the general public on the EU is overwhelming and lends itself to :
-the exploitation of this ignorance by the right wing Europhobic press with its abuse of press freedom, and its allies in the hard right of the Tory Party.
Until these issues are addressed even a second referendum might not be won by the Anti-Brexiteers
I fully endorse David Quinn’s comments above
So true. It’s what Cameron ought to have done but, as a complacent puppy, he failed to do it.
I voted for remaining in the the EU in the first referendum. By the time of the Maastrich Treaty in 1992 I had changed my mind as had many of my generation. We had to wait 24 years to express our opinion as a vote. Now you are telling us that if public opinion changes again we should have an instant rerun.