Five years ago, in my final speech in the European parliament as leader of the Liberal Democrat group of MEPs, I described Brexit as a “backward step” and a “vanity project that has no basis in reality”.
That’s a view that’s become more common in recent years. In fact, last month, my fellow MPs and I debated an e-petition calling for the UK to rejoin the European Union after it received well over 100,000 signatures.
Leaving the EU was a significant moment. We left a union of nations that was established to promote peace on our continent, that had seen the dismantling of barriers between nations, and that enabled trade and cultural ties to flourish.
Nobody wants to revisit the division and toxicity of the Brexit debate, and I understand the hesitation of the government to even go there. But we must not forget that the referendum debate was fuelled by misinformation and outright lies about what leaving the EU would mean for our country.
Five years on, though, no one is in any doubt. Just last month, when I visited the European parliament with many colleagues, I heard the minister for the Cabinet Office refer to research by Aston University finding that exports to the EU have fallen by 27% since Brexit.
That figure, unfortunately, will be of no surprise to businesses in my constituency of South Devon. One shellfish exporter recently told me that they must have 17 pieces of paper signed by a vet for every consignment of mussels they export to the EU, making it impossible to trade efficiently with their biggest customer.
Similarly, a small household product retailer has had to end all trade with the EU because of new product safety regulations; a delicatessen is finding it increasingly difficult to import small quantities of wines; and a precision engineering company has found its exports tangled in red tape.
On and on it goes. In every sector, you hear the same story.
But Brexit’s impact is not limited to trade. It’s a tragedy that our children and grandchildren will not have the chances we had to go to Europe, to develop skills, and bring all that experience back to the UK.
It is high time the government agreed a youth mobility scheme with the EU. Last month, I welcomed the EU-UK parliamentary partnership assembly’s agreement that said the government understood the need to establish a youth opportunity schemes, including apprenticeships.
We all understand the need; let us hope that the government will go further than that and address it.
I can’t deny, though, I have my doubts. Labour say they want a reset in relations with the EU, but no one I spoke to on the EU side in Brussels last month was clear what that really means.
Fixing our broken relationship with Europe is the most obvious way to boost our economy and provide much-needed funding to fix our public services. And in the wake of US tariffs, it is more important than ever that we shore up trade with our nearest neighbours.
The single biggest thing we can do to turbocharge our economy in the medium and long term is form a customs union with the EU, tearing down the trade barriers and shredding the red tape that is holding so many businesses back.
The Liberal Democrats have always believed we are stronger as part of Europe. It is a long road back, and, thanks to the Conservatives, it will take a long time to rebuild trust, but we owe it to future generations to make it happen.
Sadly, it is probably too early to campaign to rejoin the EU right now — it is not even an option on the table — but we must take concrete steps towards rectifying the damage wreaked by the Conservatives’ botched Brexit deal.
The time for repeating meaningless warm words is over; it’s time to put the work in to rebuild our shattered relationship with Europe.
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Source: Politics
