The Brexit effect: how leaving the EU hit the UK | FT Film

[@mrfarax4944]

As a Dutch person I thank the English for this experiment, we had some corners in our country who wanted that as well. But thx to you guys we don't even talk about leaving anymore

[@alanlynchireland1590]

Very well said

[@edwardburroughs1489]

Have you ever heard of Stockholm syndrome?

[@willia3r]

Dont speak so soon yet. We are still waiting on the results from the disastrous decision the European Union made to jump on board with the *_Economic Sanctions War_* against Russia and totally cut itself off from natural gas. Let's wait until springtime 2023 to see if being fully on-board with the EU was/is a good idea.

[@jonasmejerpedersen4847]

Same here in Denmark

[@guillermo2411]

😅

[@rikremmerswaal2756]

If you leave a union, you are no longer entitled to the benefits of said union. What a shock.

[@peterppp694]

Brexiters supposed to be special. Brexit hard truths are making them look like looooool. Brexit not going well at all

[@thewingcommander]

So why do you expect to benefit from the UK? Really can't see why you're shocked, the unelected officials were always going to make it harder for you.

[@thewingcommander]

@@peterppp694 it's working for us in the UK, though lots up do, first to make sure the EU sanctioned illegal migrants stay in the EU countries while they apply properly, wonder why they feel so unwelcome in the EU countries?

[@philippedefague3835]

Because the EU is an empire.

[@perfection_Incarnate]

@@thewingcommander how's that copium?

[@dimitrivforvictory271]

Hilarious, so worried about the Polish stealing their jobs now they just have the whole company in Poland 😂😂😂😂 😊

[@miguelfelix4492]

Ahahahah, exactly!

[@strategon28]

And even more funny: Brits can't work in that company in Poland, because of the end of free movement. They wanted it.

[@thethirdman225]

I had exactly the same thought.

[@strategon28]

@Jack Maguire Yes, and Suella Br did not like it ... Brexiteer vs Brexiteer, next round.

[@mrfarax4944]

😂😂😂😂

[@megaconstans2425]

So I divorced my wife but I still do expect all the marital benefits.

[@San-yh4zi]

basically what the brits always did even when they were in the eu

[@norm701]

theoratically if you didn't get married at the first place, at least you don't have to split up your assets when you divorced

[@jonsimmons4150]

Japan trades the world over, and can sell toyotas, hondas, suzukis, kawasaki, yamaha, sony, mitsubishi, nissan,subaru, lexus, fujitsu,mashushita,denso the world over and japan doesnt pay into a standover committee in a foreign land to do so, Japanese visa and immigration system isn't overridden by a standover foreign committee for 27 countries on the back of its international trading arrangements, giving 27 countries citizens unfettered access to Japanese jobs, welfare, healthcare,and housing and paying billions of yen for the privilege.. whilst handing over japanese fishing waters to forrin countries in order to "trade" with them.. ~Its "Project Reality" ~its how the rest of the world works in 169 countries

[@ayushkumar-bg1xf]

other 169 country have raw material , you have none, japan donot have raw material but they compensate that by working hard , you have only looted wealth whic h is getting used fast@@jonsimmons4150

[@Hanoitami]

No buddy, you divorce your wife, but she will still get the alimony, part of your house and keep the kid. You do not understand what the EU did with Britain.

[@user-ql5un6ng7x]

They were told, "We send so many million Pounds to the EU everyday. " They never asked, "How many million Euros does the EU send back to us? "

[@picklerick.n.666]

Exactly,agreed:)

[@we.are.all.pirates]

Because the amount given exceeds whatever EU "gave back". UK, Germany and France are/were net contributors. www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxes/publicsectorfinance/articles/theukcontributiontotheeubudget/2017-10-31

[@artbargestudio]

If people are so stupid that they don't even ask, then it's basically their own fault.

[@dee2251]

One huge problem with that is that it’s our money they send back to us. For every £10 we send them, they send £3 back and then tell us how we can spend it. Never once has the UK got back more than it put in.

[@rickymetz869]

@@dee2251 You missed the point. You can't just compare dollar figures sent back and forth between governments. There are economic benefits that were worth far more than the money sent.

[@allandnothing5338]

I have zero sympathy for the business owners who say "I was in favor of Brexit but didn't know that it would be so hard to export and import afterward". That was repeated over and over again during the debates before the vote. It's not that you didn't know. It's that either you chose not to believe what you were told, or you didn't care enough to pay attention. * edited to fix spelling *

[@mcr2356]

I get it though. I voted to stay, but brexit was never defined. A "soft" brexit within the customs Union would have meant minimimal disruption.

[@allandnothing5338]

@@mcr2356 A soft Brexit would have only been possible if the Free circulation of people was on the negotiation table. The UK government ruled that out (their right). And the EU ruled that free circulation of goods and people had to go hand in hand (their right). EU made their position clear from the very beginning. Yet, the Brexiters kept saying that they'd be able to negotiate a great deal. EU's jewels of the crown is its huge internal free market. What interest would the EU have to create a precedent where a non-member state participate without any significant counterpart (especially, if said non-member state has a government who's favorite pastime is to throw mud at the EU)? A soft landing was never ever going to happen.

[@yessum15]

@@mcr2356 This is like sealing the fire exit of a building on fire and saying _"I thought there was a chance we'd find another exit."_

[@monodeldiablo]

@@mcr2356 A soft Brexit required making demands of the EU just as the UK was on the way out. Sure, you can demand to continue using the exercise treadmill and pool when you cancel your gym membership... but they don't have to consent. They'd be stupid to let you. Ultimately, the UK opted to leave a club but continued to believe it would enjoy the benefits of membership. That's mad, and anybody who pointed that out -- and it was a lot of people -- was ignored, shouted down, or ruthlessly mocked. Hard Brexit was an inevitability from the very beginning.

[@sinisin2000]

I'm much more cynical. I think there was an option 3: they thought it wouldn't affect them somehow because they had money and "thought" that gave them some kind of power.

[@chenling2937]

One of my favorite quotes: "For every complex problem, there is a solution which is clear, simple, and wrong."

[@mcsmith732]

I'm stealing your comment! The problem is that too many humans love those simplistic "answers". It saves them from having to actually think. What's worse is when they are questioned on their wrong solution, they get so defensive that they become offensive. And not "just" verbally violent. Another thing I've been thinking about is that, since such a large portion of the population is affected this way, there must be a cultural aspect to it. Some kind of large scale mental/emotional glitch at work. I live in the U.S., and I have been continually derailed over how extreme right-wing We The People have become over the last 5 decades. I've found it confusing and increasingly alarming. Trump's election almost killed me. It did kill a friend of mine, who died of a heart attack within 10 minutes of the announcement that trump had been elected President. And now, we here in the U.S. are looking at a way-too-possible fascist coup via the Midterm elections. It's scary over here. I keep hearing David Bowie's song, "I'm Afraid Of Americans" in my head.

[@douglaspate9314]

Brilliant

[@Tryss9]

Brilliant; thanks Chen for your comment! The very definition of how populists operate.

[@safuwanfauzi5014]

Im happy for Brexit because its made UK economy become poor, its karma what they did to China[because of Opium war unleashed by UK and France to sell drug, to made China weak, refuse to sell with gold because UK gold becoming low, even with looting Java[Indonesian called it Geger Sepehi, tone of tone of gold, silver, jewelry, stonework, artwork, manuscript, burning of palace, destruction of city wall and fort, burning of manuscript and record, Looting of Native America, Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, India, Burma, Sri Lanka, Africa and middleeast/Oman, Trucial state/UAE, Qatar etc, but India, Africa and Malaya are were UK made alot of wealth, gold and money but looting and stolen resource, and build 1800s UK rapidly, building many grand church, palace, infrastructure, facility and finance of military and white british settler and affairs], Russia take advantage of military cripple China to annexed 10% of total China land, 1000x more than British who take by war who take just Hong Kong], Qing dynasty devastated because they lost more half of Manchu/Jurchen and cousin Tungstic land. today Primorksy Krai, Half of Khabarovsk Krai and Amur Oblast. British do to so many dispute and conflict/UK cornflakes, like India-Pakistan dispute of Kashmir, Southern Thailand 'Patani region or Malay majority province know as 'Patani sultanate', given and bless by British to Siam/Thailand in 1909, Kenya-Somalia dispute, Iraq-Iran war, Iraq want to take Khuzestan a Arab majority province in Iran, because British wanted Iran annexed Khuzestan or in Arabic Ahwaz because Anglo-Iran petroleum, even to this days, Khuzestan was the largest oil and gas province in whole Iran, about 2/4 of their reserved in Khuzestan, if not Khuzestan just like others gulf arab state like Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Cameroon English-French speaker problem, Mess of Middle-East beause of UK and France interfearing and draw border, just like Patani or Southernmost Thailand, France and British just lets Hatay province annexed by Turkey in 1939, it should be under Syria, and many of Arab move to Syria and many of Arab muslim, Christian and Alawi today lost their arabic and speak turkish, but older generation still speak arabic togther with turkish. British also created the most controversial conflict, Palestine-Israel, by help Jews a minority created a state in Arab majority land, then kick many arab as many they can in 'Nakba 1949', and bring many jews to made arab minority even today arab still a majority if included west bank and gaza about 52%, but in future, maybe Jews will become majority because everyday many jews migrated into Israel. especially european and america blone blue eyes jews. the ethnic tension in Singapore, Malaysia, New Zealand, India, Africa country, middle-east, Fiji, Australia, Canada its all because of UK. so Brexit thank you, its a Karma. hope UK will broke and scotland become own country and North Ireland merger with Republic of Ireland

[@ginabelisario9282]

Copy

[@jave2274]

As a EU-Citizen, i am so happy we didnt bend over for UK after brexit, just to keep them friendly or something. It was one of the few moments we really acted like a union and showed the rowdy kid the way out.

[@mrsentencename7334]

Goodbye 4th reich

[@aaronTNGDS9]

The 'rowdy kid'(The UK) was also immature and too full of itself.

[@Xanzia1972]

Not an accurate take on the EU's attitude at all.

[@shep9231]

Good riddance, if you ask me.

[@amparogonzalezalvarez2295]

They weren't invited to Davos? They sent D.Imain?

[@kdis1977]

As a Scotsman, I am so sad that Scotland was dragged out into this mess even though as a country we voted to stay in the EU.

[@lanzknecht8599]

Would be great to welcome Scotland back in the EU! Maybe one day......

[@ericshadee]

Funny that ironic cry of freedom whilst clawing at the shores of a federalistic state.

[@YouLikeDomi]

As a German, I would love to see Scotland in EU!

[@furrystep]

@@ericshadee Federalistic state? You mean the EU market?

[@ericshadee]

@@furrystep it's far from the initial concept of the EEC.

[@Nelson373737]

I'm a Portuguese Mechanical Engineer that worked 10 years for a lorry diesel injector industry in Suffolk, developing and improving the production system. The improvements that I developed had a return for the company of almost 1million pounds per year... although I paid all my taxes I had 2 English neighbors knocking my door to leave the country because I was taking English people's jobs. Good luck now.

[@walter3433]

Their loss then

[@Nelson373737]

Although everyone can be replaced, I brought with me the knowledge and secrets for developing the tools... Good worker, but not stupid...

[@Nelson373737]

@@walter3433 In 2018 the plant manager had told me that in the future major changes in the country could happen and probably I would had to return to my country... Everything is very well planned, nothing happens randomly...and is not conspiracy theories. Is reality.

[@joaquim02]

Brexit or how to shoot yourself in the foot without really trying.

[@dr.perfectsmile4175]

Dude, I’m sure you were « taking » Brits jobs - when they weren’t too drunk in pubs 😆

[@twofarg0ne763]

I'm a retired American who moved to France 6 years ago. Quite frankly, I have zero sympathy for the older generation Brexiteers; you made your bed, now sleep in it. I do, however, have great sympathy for the younger generations of Brits; they realized what the impact was going to have on their lives. Whereas the older generations only care about keeping their short-sighted sovereign greedy mentality in place, the younger generations instinctively knew that you need good business relations with other countries in order to get the things you want and need.

[@lauriemayne7436]

I feel the same way, as I'm sure many senior Brexiteers do as well by now. The whole saga, from the mindless referendum to the shambles overseen by Boris Karloff, teaches us much about the ineptitude of the modern British (post 1975) for self-government. The idea of taking a good look before you jump never came into play here due to Camerons' Calamity. We lock up people like Assange while the real crims walk free. We need someone to MBGA - make Britain great again, if it ever was great in the first place.

[@Koloviv48i]

@@lauriemayne7436 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@steelcom5976]

The young really took a hit on Brexit. Access to a career within a 28 country Union, along with free movement and free health care, shows how extreme the greed was among the older English generation. Let's take care of our up-and-coming was never on the table. Why Scotland doesn't separate is likely due to a number of considerations, but they were really pulled into the vortex on that one.

[@joepaluka9031]

Would you be happy if Mexico was setting the trade rules and USA was powerless to stop it

[@feraldrgn]

I just want to point out that it wasn't specific age groups voting for 1 or the other. It was people with foresight & people without, many of us did our research or just had a general understanding that pulling out of a union with so many benefits (like court of human rights & the free market) was foolish, that's why the vote was almost 50/50 & people like Nigel Farage should've seen consequences for lying to the public about the total exchange of funds with the EU.

[@Frantrek23]

I was working in Scotland when Brexit happened. The day after the vote, a farmer came to the bar I was working at and screamed at me for 20 minutes ("Go back to your country!" "We don't need Europe!"). Couple of years later, he had to sell his farm. No better deals for farmers. No more programs funded by the EU. No more money from the EU. Karma at its frigging finest. I moved back to Spain last year. UK economy was (and is) crumbling and they can only blame it on themselves.

[@soufiane4527]

wtf is wrong with people

[@johntse8655]

irony, if I am not mistaken, British citizens in Spain has to move back to the UK as well without anyone shouting at them to go back.

[@4plus20isHappy]

American here. It’s just like the idiot immigrants or family members of immigrants who voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and were then shocked and outraged when friends and family members were deported, just like Mango Mussolini spent his whole campaign promising to do.

[@Barristered]

Look up eu dam removal and weep for the people of the EU as it has destroyed their flood defences which has added billions to insurance bills.

[@robertoneill1979]

I was born and still live in Scotland. I'm sorry you were treated this way... I honestly thought Scottish people were "above" this sort if crap. It's embarrasing... the entire BREXIT fiasco is an embarrassment. My heart broke when the "leave" vote was the majority. It's hard to believe how much damage has been caused by the decisions of fools. I hope you prosper and flourish in Spain 🤩

[@CTFlink]

Voluntarily exiting the worlds largest trading union that others fight so hard to join is just another nail in the coffin of what was once the world's most powerful empire.

[@pseudonym3690]

Very well put.

[@analyticalmindset]

Never thought about it like that, but this will be a very great read in a history book where future generations literally won't believe why it happened. They'll try and think of logical alternative reasons, but lucky enough all of this was well documented lol

[@jaorlowski]

There is one difference between those that now try to join and Britain: Britain was a net payer. Even in Germany there was a small concern of now needing to pay more to upkeep the union financially. And that was actually a worry that it would make the EU collapse because the net payers would want to follow suit. Luckily they didn't and with the disaster that was Brexit probably never will. The thing that puzzles me is: shouldn't Britain (within the EU) have been able to sell much more to the EU and actually exert some economic or even political influence in these countries? Like the Poles often like to complain, that they are slowly being bought by Germany. (i.e. investments... with a return)

[@pseudonym3690]

@@jaorlowski They did have quite a bit political power. Their reps were obstructing many directives and regulations. Even when they joined in 1984, Margaret Thatcher managed to get a massive rebate allowing them to pay in much less than they would have had to due to their economic power. That rebate was in effect right until the end. All of that stopped with the Brexit. And yes, the UK was able to sell a lot more within the EU, but it's not just sales. Cheap imports are a thing of the past now. And so are business opportunities. In its attempt to become less dependent from Russia and China, the EU will move the production of many critical products such as pharmaceuticals back to the EU. The UK could have profited from that as well, but there's no chance for any EU critical industries settling there now. And then there's also the tiny issue of an entire army of skilled worker positions now being open that the UK can't manage to fill.

[@jaorlowski]

@@pseudonym3690 Yeah, that's what i meant. Why give up on the influence..? Also i meant direct influence IN a concrete EU country. Like a British Bank in for instance Poland, or telecommunications... Strangely enough the industry did not riot. They are usually the first to complain about any changes.

[@alexandrelarsac9115]

As a French EU citizen, i feel only sad for the Scottish taken away against their will and also for the young British generation deprived of all the EU benefits.

[@Untilitpases]

Well, the balkans have and are currently deprived of all these benefits for decades (while being far fewer in population & poorer than UK & being the region that gave birth to Europe) yet I don't see you nor westerners at large protest that one iota. I guess empathy doesn't stretch towards "the foreign" irrespective of truth... tribalism par excellence.

[@pascualmartinez9702]

@@Untilitpases look im spaniard , my country could not join until late cz the spanish dictatorship, solve the problems in those countries and they Will be accepted , they dont even haave the minimum standards required to be a member

[@cg986]

@@Untilitpases Your analysis is based on your feelings. Slovenia and Croatia(Balkan states) already are members, because they reached the necessary standards. Besides that EU-candidate states get billions from the EU to improve their justice system, fight corruption and improve institutions. Even Serbia gets billions. But that now ends, because they like to lick dictator Putin's boot and do not care about Ukraine. However, Bosnia and Herzegovina have gotten EU candidate status today! Once they have improved the level of their institutions and solved other problems like corruption, they are allowed to join. The EU sets a high standard.

[@bertiescunsbutch9323]

Hahahaha

[@Untilitpases]

@@cg986 You are both highjacking the topic. The topic is: falling on the wrong side of the EU walls has costs that bring a 1st world country to recession in under a year... well, guess what happens to poor countries for Decades. I guess when a change happens recently, we notice, when it's stretched over decades we call it normal. Normalizing decades of underinvestment, engineered disadvantaged position, double taxation... no wonder gray & illegal econ activity take root, you can't compete with anything else by definition. And let's not kid ourselves, it's all about money. If you are a rich country: you can have your cake &eat it too (money laundering haven Switzerland, Norway, rich microstates.) Enjoying the perks sans commitment. If you are poor, they take your lunch. Slovenia & Croatia joined for a myriad of reasons. 1, they've been invested upon for centuries (Austria), 2, rich countries share borders with them. Romania (geostrategic interest = $ & politics) joined w/o solving much. Also, it's not like corruption ain't happening in EU (hello $ bags), Belgium, Netherlands etc. Set an impossibly high standard until you grow rich enough for EU to care, then magically you are accepted. Those millions/billions go back to EU organisations & companies, and that's w/o counting all the revenue lost & humongous opportunity cost of being EU's Schrodinger's cat.

[@wassabi-g7p]

How anyone voting for Brexit believed that you can “divorce” but still remain “friends with benefits” is beyond any form of imagination. Childish actions often have bitter results.

[@michaelmouse4024]

The brexit Paradox is that any govt capable of delivering brexit wouldn't

[@gerardlefevre1768]

@@brmh1667 The comment by Wassabi really hits the nail on the head. Britain wanted all of the benefits of being an EU member but none of the costs.

[@leew1598]

Lots of the big players arguing for Brexit did try and make out we'd be financially better off, but for most of the people who voted for it at the time it seemed like it was much more about immigration with a bit of anti establishment sentiment thrown in too.

[@jozefk8948]

EU becoming Soviet Union... formerly it was an economic community, and today they tell you what you think about abortion, LGBT ... Brexit was the best thing for GB!

[@4lanimoyo553]

@@jozefk8948 proof????

[@diedertspijkerboer]

I used to buy products from Britain fairly regularly, but I've stopped doing that, because I pay a 25% import tax,which I simply am not willing to pay.

[@tenkloosterherman]

Correct. I stopped buying books and other items from Britain because of this.

[@Lamos01]

Same - i`ve never bought anything after the brexIt from the UK. Funny enough afer 2 years i saw many buisnesses just relocating to EU cause they had no chance to stay profitable in the UK. In he end UK lost workplaces and money from taxes from all that buisnesses - and that is still in the process! Many people wished, they will get back to profit after end of pandemic and stabilization on the postwar market, but they no longer can blame this situation on them.

[@froukkimomo9818]

I'm From Italy and i did the same, not going to pay for import taxes.

[@jonathansimmons5353]

i have stopped buying products in the EU and buy in the UK, thus keeping british products on the shelves and British employers employing.

[@froukkimomo9818]

@@jonathansimmons5353😂😂

[@michaelhope8899]

Wait.......leaving one of the biggest trading unions in the world has damaged the UK economy?! Who would've predicted that?

[@MINDYOUROWNBUISINESS]

Not that there was any spite and malfeasance on the part of the EU seeking to punish Blighty for breaking up with it, heavens no! They remain completely blameless. (You hear that Greece? Stay in line! We OWN you!)

[@obroni]

@@MINDYOUROWNBUISINESS Of course the EU punished the UK for leaving. Once a country has left the trading bloc, it becomes a direct competitor to the remaining countries. In addition, it's very much a deterrent against anyone else contemplating leaving. All this was entirely predictable, but Little Englanders got their blue passports back, so congratulations, I guess?

[@doctorfunkshock]

@@MINDYOUROWNBUISINESS Of course. You people didn't factor that into your nonsense, did you?

[@rikachu571]

@@MINDYOUROWNBUISINESS it's not really spite or punishment to withdraw the benefits of membership once we left. Why would the EU continue to give us free unobstructed trade, include us in EU schemes etc if we are no longer a member? These were all things that sensible observers pointed out but Brexiteers denied that it would be a problem.

[@MINDYOUROWNBUISINESS]

@@rikachu571 > but Brexiteers denied that it would be a problem. I'm sure some did. I'm also willing to venture that many probably considered it a fair trade for control of their local laws, boarders and currency, but thats just my take.

[@LutzHerting]

Looking at this whole mess from the outside, it is seriously weird to still hear people (including critics) say "We are treated as a third country now." ... You aren't "treated as a third country", you ARE a third country. Becoming one is literally what you voted for in the first place.

[@JorgeForge]

It was hilarious. UK called Poland and other post soviet countries "Third World". Now they know how it felt.

[@rogerk6180]

That was the whole point of the vote. Becomming a third country going forward.

[@ricardo8640]

it’s not a third world country though is it?

[@rogerk6180]

@@ricardo8640 nobody is saying it is a third world country. Nobody other then trolls anyway.

[@jonsimmons4150]

Japan trades the world over, and can sell toyotas, hondas, suzukis, kawasaki, yamaha, sony, mitsubishi, nissan,subaru, lexus, fujitsu,mashushita,denso the world over and japan doesnt pay into a standover committee in a foreign land to do so, Japanese visa and immigration system isn't overridden by a standover foreign committee for 27 countries on the back of its international trading arrangements, giving 27 countries citizens unfettered access to Japanese jobs, welfare, healthcare,and housing and paying billions of yen for the privilege.. whilst handing over japanese fishing waters to forrin countries in order to "trade" with them.. ~Its "Project Reality" ~its how the rest of the world works in 169 countries

[@benjicool2808]

I'm watching this video again, and I cannot fathom how businesses were so naive to think that Brexit would not affect their operation within the EU.

[@ChickenboneJohn]

As soon as we heard that Brexit had been voted through, as a small 2 person limited company we know this would happen. It was crystal clear that our trade with the EU would result in a serious fall in our income and profitability. We are not financial experts, but it was absolutely obvious that removing ourselves from a barrier-free market would be very damaging. Before Brexit, shipping costs to the EU were not much more than sending within UK, and we could easily travel to Europe for special events to work several times a year, so this gave us a very handy 20% of our turnover. These options are effectively removed (and it was obvious that this would be the case well before any details were announced) and the idea of alternative markets is ludicrous. Shipping costs to the other side of the world make our products economically unattractive, and of course they is no way that we can jump in our van and go to an event for few days beyond the boundaries of Europe. It was so clear that Brexit could only damage businesses who traded with the EU.

[@benjicool2808]

@Churchill canzuk is a market of 120 million people across several ocean. A logical person would stay in a union of 450 million people connected to his country. Simple math and logic, something that was never ever present in the reasoning behind brexit. Also fun fact the EU have more favorable free trade agreements with Canada, New Zealand and Australia, because interestingly there is more bargaining power as a union of 450 million than a single country of 60 million.

[@jeremysmith8035]

@Churchill mr Churchill the French are rioting because their situation is so dire that their wages are 25% higher than the uks, their pensions are 3x the uks,their fuel bills are 40 % of the uks, their retirement age is 8 years earlier than the uks, their health system isn't under attack by the government, their public transport is 6x cheaper than the uks, brexit is the greatest con ever pulled by a government of career criminals ever anywhere in the world, this is why I live in Madrid

[@MrZevv]

@Churchill Hahahahahahahahaha... what a bullsit.

[@benjicool2808]

@Invictus lol can't even get a visit to the GP in less than 3 weeks - oh have the mighty fallen

[@extramild1]

As an Irishman watching Britain turn into Argentina Upon Thames is just hilarious.

[@HistoryBuff_0]

Irish brothers enjoying the joys of republic and EU 🇫🇷❤🇮🇪

[@arbjful]

😂😂

[@Michael0697]

Much love to Ireland. 🇮🇪🇪🇺 Hopefully this results in reunification.

[@SkiDaBird]

Argentina Upon Thames! That's really good and I'm going to borrow that.

[@nadiaguerrero2307]

JAJAJA we have a joke about the failed british empire... But watching documentaries or news about how they have to choose between heating or eating is not fun.

[@dombaker1924]

The UK had it all - strong pound, free trade with the whole of Europe, growing economy. All buried in a single referendum.

[@miker3139]

So you are not old enough to have seen a weak pound or strong dollar before, I have seen parity

[@dombaker1924]

@@miker3139 I lived through the 1985 crash where we came close to parity. But the difference then was that the exchange rate only dropped below 1.45 for a period of 1.5 years and was rectified by the US signing the Plaza Accord. Whereas today the exchange rate has been below 1.45 for over 5.5 years and counting.

[@spaliverpool71]

And excellent banking sector dealing with Europeans and North Americans alike

[@spaliverpool71]

@@dombaker1924 Way below

[@ivanbrglez]

😢

[@robin-30]

As a British national, Brexit is a deeply painful embarrassment of Trumpian proportions. Please don't forget that there was a lot of English people that fought against this and lost, myself included. This resulted in families splitting and the ongoing anger and sense of betrayal I continue to feel as we watch the completely predictable results play out.

[@pseudonym3690]

That is absolutely relatable. It's a pretty horrible situation of having to lie in a bed that the other side made. I hope that at one point in time politicians and pro brexiteers will come to their senses.

[@jonasduell9953]

Seeing Biden, I don't see the particular embarrassment in Trump. But I mean Brits fell for populism, false claims and distortion of the truth, happens to the best of us.

[@pseudonym3690]

​@@jonasduell9953 Not sure if you're being serious, but if you are, the irony couldn't be any bigger.

[@latchmere100]

Cry puppet cry.😢😢

[@clovernacknime6984]

@@jonasduell9953 Trump presidency, like Brexit, marks the point of no return in the decline of a once great nation. Both are entirely self-inflicted wounds, caused by the citizens deciding they prefer delusion to reality, and are thus embarrassing in the same way drinking yourself to death is embarrassing.

[@eastexotic]

The best outcome to come from Brexit was the EU discovered that they didn't need the UK afterall. Having navigated two major crises, COVID19 and Ukraine War energy supply crunch, the EU looks very strong and united.

[@miker3139]

Really, change your news feeds

[@wodens-hitman1552]

If you don't need Britain why are you all still crying about brexit?

[@eastexotic]

@@wodens-hitman1552 Only people talking about Brexit are Brits, mate.

[@pmoohkt]

@@wodens-hitman1552 As a French, I don't cry about brexit... It's a real joy to see the arrogant "Perfide Albion" going down, making our actual problems feels tiny when compared with yours.

[@spaliverpool71]

@@pmoohkt La Sempiterna Pérfida Albión

[@demdguN]

Who would've guessed that leaving the EU would make it more difficult to do business with the EU.

[@williamyamm8803]

🤣🤣🤣

[@marianaalexandru6166]

😂😂🤣🤣👍

[@Flat-White]

Well it is the world's largest protection racket.

[@Blackswitch92]

Whenever I asked people “why do you want to leave the EU?” 99% of people said because of foreigners and taking back control. I asked them to elaborate more on this and they could never answer, I explained it would damage the British economy and there would be huge gaps in employment regarding low skilled essential work - now my neighbour who voted for brexit who’s a carer complains about all the hours she has to work and how they’ve constantly got no staff because the European staff have left. No words.

[@gezin82]

They were afraid to get invaded like how British empire did to others. They didn't like a taste of their own medicine

[@curryeire]

Trump, Brexit... The results of a significant dumbing down of society. People can't look past a slogan these days in some countries.

[@kaimalino528]

@@gezin82 The British Empire went home to Britain, with the detritus of Empire tagging along. There will be more to come. An amazing turn of events.

[@gogu449]

That's right my friend!!!!! The romaniens are comming.....watch out!!!!

[@JohnDoe-gc1pm]

Limited supply of exploitable and expendable labour you mean. There's loads of people trapped in "structurally unemployed" areas with no skills who need a job but they can't move out of the shitehole because of high rents. Immigration drives rents up and wages at the bottom down.

[@hotjacko]

I am from the UK and a business owner that specialises in medical equipment from the UK to the EU. We lost 50% of our clients due to Brexit and they are gone mostly. The reason being the wait on customs and paperwork, as they could simply find a product similar from Germany and not have to bother with waiting times and extra admin. Even at this very moment we have shipments stuck in Germany for 2+ weeks, circa 2 years later after this final stupid decision of Brexit. Also the impact on our own internal admin has tripled resulting in extra staff costs also with extra customs forms and having to itemise everything on the "commercial invoice", which we also have to share detailed information on previously considered "confidential" before Brexit. What is great about that video, which other great documentaries also exposed, is that smart UK business owners have had to set up an office in the EU, taking tax revenues and money out of the UK. I would love any Brexiter to defend that logic, that for UK businesses to survive in Europe, they had to move most operations out of the UK. "Taking back control" IDIOTS...

[@julesvahrman8852]

exactly our experience in the gift industry. all the larger uk companies now have warehousing in europe to bypass the uk

[@RavenRock88]

Thank you for sharing your experience. Keep strong!

[@zeazevedo]

@West can you tell us where do you got that data ? What is your source ? Where do you got your numbers and what EU law or regulation prevent EU countries exporting out of EU?

[@TheUmarsha2]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/b2WuaZSnm9aCqKs&ab_channel=Relaxwithme

[@jonsimmons4150]

My friend in Paris of 15 years died 6 yrs ago. He dint have life insurance, it was over in a day. His wifes job in admin of 25 years for a national home products high street chain store delocalised her job to poland because it is cheaper for them. She was 50. Never work again at that age in france. Doesnt matter, companies will delocalise your job if they can. They cannot now easily outta the EU

[@zaphodbeeblebrox6795]

From a customer perspective in continental Europe I can tell you that I never used to check where the goods I ordered via Amazon, EBay etc came from. After a few deliveries from the UK got delayed, stuck in customs or returned to sender by the carrier, I now explicitly make sure I’m not buying anything from the UK anymore. Just too much trouble. Casting your vote has consequences. And the best thing is: now that Brits got their country “back”, they can’t blames us anymore for all the problems they have, can they? 😂

[@RazorMouth]

They'll try..... Remember a while back they were saying we're punishing them 😂😂😂

[@aguyfromthe60s7]

Hahaha you’re Parcel get stuck in custom’s and you blame the uk? They’re you fcuking rules!!

[@thejupiter2]

If you buy from Amazon or ebay the odds it came from Britain are virtually nill.

[@thejupiter2]

@@ollimustonen That's not how Amazon works. If you place an order with Amazon outside of your country Amazon first checks for availability within your country first. If not it will either tell you its not available in your country or you have to pay further shipping costs. Brexit has NOTHING to do with it.

[@ollimustonen]

@@thejupiter2 I'm pretty sure Germany is the biggest hub for Amazon here in Europe. And when I ordered from Co UK they always came from UK warehouse. So... 🤷‍♂️

[@loneprimate]

I'm utterly stunned that so many people failed to grasp such a basic concept as "dumping the system that enables you to trade freely implies you will no longer be able to trade freely". I admit it's a _bit_ more abstract than "stepping off the building that keeps you from falling to the ground means you'll fall to the ground", but honestly, not _much_ more abstract. I do feel sorry for such people... but not so much for what's happened to them as that they're that lamentably stupid.

[@parafitality2730]

Not only that, they got to keep their own currency! They got given most of the benefits without much of the downside and turned it down.

[@Aurega88]

I think the issue is that people might have voted for brexit, but wanted a soft brexit instead of a hard one.

[@jonsimmons4150]

Name *ONE* trading bloc that has.. 1) free unfettered movement.of people 2) a flag 3) a hymn 4) a unique currency

[@andreabianchi6156]

​@@jonsimmons4150none. Thats why there's no multinational entity as rich as the EU

[@jonsimmons4150]

But it wasn't trade- *EU IS A POLITICAL UNION*

[@Frenchylikeshikes]

Thank you Britons...Many French people contemplated Frexit but your experience has scared them away. Today Frexit is only mentioned by a small fringe of political commentators, while it was becoming more and more mainstream prior to Brexit. If anything, I believe Brexit has made the EU maybe not stronger, nor perfect (far from it), but many anti-EU persons have completely changed their minds.

[@andreadalcortivo747]

Same in Italy...Now only 2% of foolish stupids speak about Italexit

[@Tridhos]

I have a French friend who congratulated me when the UK voted for Brexit, I will be meeting him again later this year and updating him on the reality of Brexit.

[@valerioborghese2916]

Time to Macron to kneel in front of Italy's Giorgia Meloni. ✌🏻 How do you French people feel when Germany prefer Israeli and American weapons to defend itself, than French weapons?! Very un-European to not buy from neighbor countries, right?! 🙅🏻 As it's very unfriendly try to occupy Italian territories like happened in 2015/2016 or send French Police on Italian territory, that's illegal. You French think you can control European Union or are the boss, but you clearly aren't and you and Macron will understand it.

[@maxsuicide4767]

Prior to 2015 the only people that mentioned Brexit here in the UK were also a small fringe of political commentators and a few Tory backbenchers. It was turned into a huge thing by Tory infighting. Literally just Tory infighting. And forward to 2022 we are *still* having to put up with Tory infighting destroying this country. All the while, the Brexit effect looms ever larger.

[@cyrneco]

@@valerioborghese2916 🤣🤣🤣🤣really?

[@anitagorse9204]

The great thing about Brexit is that nobody, NOT ONE COUNTRY even thinks about leaving EU any more. Poland, Hungary, France...as silent as mice. War in Ukraine has been another eye opener; united we stand, divided we fall.

[@poingpoing11]

Poland Hungary and all the other Eastern European countries are fully benefitting from free money. Cut off the cash flow and they will be out tomorrow.

[@aidancampbell208]

Did the EU not contribute to the reason Putin started the war? Secondly the EU don’t pay their fair share to protect Europe, they just don’t. Thirdly, how can you have an all inclusive foreign policy, you can’t. This is too one dimensional with pro remainders spouting remain I told you so and feeling sorry for the next generation. It is too early to dismiss Brexit as a failure, adapt to change we are not going back in.

[@caveman5187]

Well that's blatantly false. Plenty of countries are rebelling against the EU... Hungary and Poland included but also Italy just elected a Eurosceptic government. The war in Ukraine is an eye opener that the EU is doomed. This energy crises will destroy the EU and discredit the UN. Z

[@mike92574]

@@poingpoing11 Even then Poland and Hungary are making notions of leaving.

[@chemicalfrankie1030]

@@poingpoing11 not really - even without net influx of money from the EU, EE countries are the ones benefiting the most from the Union thanks to lower labour cost than WE. both entrepreneurs in the video set shop in Poland, not in Germany or France, just as an example

[@kman3545]

it is mind blowing to think ANYONE could possibly have not expected this exact result.

[@alembess9129]

Not ANYONE? Non-Brexiters have warned of this disaster.

[@Zxv975]

@@alembess9129 the point is they're questioning how Brexiters didn't see this coming

[@chezceleste]

@@alembess9129 Anyone...not No one.

[@tonganqueenb5517]

Right? I'm not an economist but why would you leave a system that gives you unrestricted trades and services with 27 other countries? The mind boggles!

[@whytortureiswrong]

Brexit opportunities are like the Emperor's new clothes: everyone pretends they exist, everyone knows they don't, but no one will dare tell the truth.

[@navi2710]

My family business immediately set up a company in Germany after the Brexit vote and we've effectively moved everything to Germany. We plan to close the business in UK as there is little benefit to have both now.

[@jonsimmons4150]

Good! Many companies moved to uk to trade.

[@adeodatus85]

@@jonsimmons4150 Are these "companies" in the room with us right now?

[@jonsimmons4150]

Good. As your customers are in europe then, that opens a space for a home grown uk company to fill your boots in the uk.

[@navi2710]

@jonsimmons4150 Good luck, with that. Oh right, we retained our clients who are primarily from outside of the UK. Our UK clients are still with us. But that might be hard for a brexit supporter to fathom since all you can think of is Nigel Farage and Boros Jhonsons does.

[@garryferrington811]

That's a very good idea.

[@DarylBaines]

Excellent video. I really get bored with those people who voted for Brexit and who now regret it and say "we weren't told". The fact is, they were told, they just chose not to listen. They don't have any of my sympathy. What Brexiteers have done to the opportunities for a whole generation of young people is unforgiveable. It's like shooting someone in the kneecaps and then saying, "I'm sorry you won't be able to run marathons like I did" and expecting to be forgiven.

[@pauls1969]

Exactly!!!!

[@marcuswalters8093]

*Thank you* I also want to point out that it doesn't take an economics degree to figure out that Brexit was complete moronic at conception.

[@jackcollins7061]

Sorry...but historically that is always what is done. (The shooting in the kneecaps of the next generation). If Person A makes ALOT of money they normally transition into a position of power then create beauracracy to make the route they got to wealth harder for Person B-Z to copy so they can continue making money from it in a monopoly format. In the brexit example it is the same but completely reversed. Saxon Trusts vs Clamping down on tax havens. That's why we left. The rich were having a way they keep rich deconstructed. Couldn't have that. All the rest is just guff to distract. Most wealth is inherited; they dont need your small business to succeed nor do they need the country to prosper; these are now global instruments. The impact on the poor within a nations borders has 0 impact on the decision making of wealthy globalist interests. I mean we have a King; wake up(how many kneecaps you reckon that took?). On a long enough time line we praise wealth to a God like level and forget where it all came from and how many people were trampled on or kneecapped to get it.

[@reuireuiop0]

We'll get the same words - from climate naives, look-awayers & deniers, in a lot shorter time than even those in the know realize. _noone told us it would get this bad - before 2040_

[@willofirony]

I am in my 70s and I don't know anybody in my generation, apart from myself, who voted to remain. Almost all of those who voted to leave had no idea what The E.E.C was and, so, believed it was responsible for interfering with the shape of our vegetables and interfering with our government's policies via the the European Court of Human rights (you couldn't make it up). However, we Remainers shouldn't be so smug. We totally failed to make the public understand what they were voting for in the referendum and failed to address their xenophobia and racism. Ironically, it now appears the brexiteers now have to disappoint those who voted to leave by dealing with the labour shortages with foreigners. I am ashamed of my generation; we voted to leave when most of us had less than 10 years left, to tolerate listening to alien languages in public transport. Our grandchildren have to live for decades in an economy worse than India. Fortunately, they won't be so offended by foreign accents.

[@dextercool]

This video is the best summary of the Brexit ‘benefits’ so far. Anyone saying you can’t separate the effects of Brexit from the pandemic/war etc. needs to watch this.

[@nikoladd]

Naah there is too much of the same British exceptionalism that lead to Brexit in the first place. They said "remainers attribute everything to Brexit" as a EQUAL counterpoint to denying the effects of Brexit. It's really pandering to reality by the same people that pushed those lies. Exactly like the odd articles in the Daily Fail pointing problems with Brexit..

[@coreyham3753]

Right on ... rational analysis of the Brexit issue.

[@Cw-wi6uj]

Why because this video blames everything on brexit 🤣 no one cared about brexit until fuel prices went up now everyone blaming it

[@andreasottohansen7338]

They won't believe it, unfortunately.

[@happys6057]

SAY no to EUSSR.

[@Osquar]

Never seen so many people get exactly what they wanted and still complain.

[@JeanClaudeCOCO]

Like one of the guests on the program said the poorer britons are going to get poorer. Those who voted will now have to get those jobs they heckled those immigrants who willingly took it back in the day.

[@comet315]

They didn't get what they wanted. They wanted unicorns and fairy tales but were too naive to realise their expectations could never materialise in the real world.

[@alinpacurar8691]

That's the English way :))

[@declanmurphy6427]

😂😂😂

[@JohnnyinMN]

I’m from Minnesota (US) and this is mind-blowing. It’s like the EU has re-awoken to how strong it is and I cannot understand how the British don’t understand international border recognition, political coherence, and business operations. My 17 year-old high school daughter foresaw this.

[@silviuhanzi2221]

That happened because there was a lot of disinformation and misinformation about the aftermath, and because the majority of leave voters was old brits that in the best case are drunk in some pub 8 hours a day...

[@jonathansimmons5353]

EU is falling apart- because they tried to hide a political union with unlimited immigration behind a trading zone.. say, you from USA.. why wont USA open up its borders, visa free, to any countries population to which the USA trades with? unlimited, no vetting no background checks- in on a plane ticket, into USA jobs, and free medicare from day one. if not, why not?

[@stobeszx9674]

@JohnnyinMN there's a whole world of differences in political coherence compared to political union.......... How do you think US people would react if FJB signed over political powers to Canada, for example, without any vote being given to the American people to decide on the matter....?? This is exactly what happened in the UK. John Major signed over political powers to the EU (which the British electorate did not have any voting power within at the time). Such an act, under the Brisish constitution, is called treason. Bliar and Brown also subsequently signed treaties in the same fashion....I.e. without any public electoral vote giving further political power to the EU....again, an act of treason, under the British constitution. We were even taken into what was then called the EEC by Edward Heath, without a vote. The subsequent public vote was made under false pretences.....as the future aim of political union under the EU was kept from the British public.....thus the vote was conducted without full and frank disclosure. So, how would you react as an American to Canada being given political powers over the USA in this fashion...??

[@quasij]

​@@stobeszx9674 Canad id a foteigners country, the UE isn't, and the UK government participated in EU's governance as much as any other country

[@stobeszx9674]

@quasij you misunderstood my point re differences between political coherence and political union. The UK got taken into political union without the people being asked (as govt should have done under the British constitution). In doing things as they did, they committed treason against the people. Political coherence, means alignment with the EU, not union, where we signed over powers to the EU......biiiiig difference. Now while the UK may have had a small sliver of participation in governance, they UK didn't have sufficient clout. The Brexit vote was seen by many as the opportunity for revenge for the treason the government committed by taking us into union without asking the people of that was what we wanted. There's also a much larger backdrop to this I won't go into here....but suffice to say....Brexit was the culmination as it was the first opportunity the people had to voice their opinion on EU membership...and Brexit was the result.

[@MrPedur]

GB has clearly shown other European countries that you do not leave the EU without major problems and huge costs. Thanks to Great Britain for sacrificing to help us understand.

[@gengis737]

Yeah, Europhobic movement in France was at its peak until post-Brexit negotiations.

[@thespanishinquisition4078]

Yeah, even in Spain which is about the least europhobic country in europe, anti-EU sentiment was at its relative peak before UK left. And I for one actually know why. There's two reasons. One is, quite simply, that UK was the very source of most issues the rest of Europe had with the EU. I mean, I honestly believe if EU had a way to kick members out, many would have asked us to trigger it before UK just Brexited itself. The second is that UK was by far the worst country to try to leave EU and did so in the worst way. So let's examine that. First. Why was UK such a cancer within EU? Well, to put it simply, UK was a priviledged entity. And it wasn't even trying to hide it. When UK joined under Thatcher it lobied not only its own economy but massive pressure from USA to ensure it would get priviledged. Literal ones. No, seriously, look it up. There's a ton of EU laws that simply didn't apply to UK. And notably, EU clearly lamented this, because UK was THE ONLY country with priviledges within EU. And indeed EU has pushed for symetric federalism ever since, which since Brexit has almost been accomplished. So how did this turn UK into a massive cancerous growth? Well first of all, the fact that a lot of Europe knew that for all intents and purposes we had 2 types of countries, UK and Everyone Else, and they were on the receiving end of this dynamic, didn't exactly foster feelings of goodwill towards the institutions. I mean, we were literally all second class citizens under the law. That's pretty fucked up. Secondly, UK benefited from things being slow and overregulated. Ironically while UK was the first to denounce this overregulation during brexit, they were the ones lobbying for it, and actively vetoing chances to fix it. They intentionally clogged the EU's bureaucracy. Why? well let's go with a practical example. Docks. UK literally doesn't even have the infrastructure needed to control its own docks. But why? Well, because under EU priviledges, they could set their own rules for dock transport. And how did they abuse it? Well, Thatcher called it the "gateway to europe" plan. You see, UK lobyed for extremely strick dock regulations in EU, then literally had practically none itself. The result was a massive trade syphon, it was exceedingly profitable to take the longer route to UK to push goods without controls than to have to dredge through all of what the rest of the EU had to go through to let you in. That is indeed precisely why the countries that have historically been called the gateway to europe (spain and portugal) had far less trade than UK which is way worse located for it. Our trade was being actively sabotaged. And not just the trade! Because with it comes the tertiary economy that follows, the financial sector, and oh what a surprise that such a sector was capped on affected regions while being by far the largest sector of the UK economy due to this. The UK were for all intents and purposes EU's backdoor, an actual den of smugglers. The impact of this trade deficit was so great that spain's docks have been in constant growth through the entire Covid season, with the most drastic impact being on Cadiz, a province that has seen such massive economic growth since Brexit that it has gone from a net receiver to a net donor within Spain. Not to mention the growth in transport infrastructure that followed. Think about that for a second, UK's political games were so bad for us that even Covid and the Russia-Ukraine war aren't enough to offset our economic growth simply from being free from the UK. That's how good brexit has been for us. So now as to the second point. Why was UK literally the worst exit candidate (for itself) and brexit has been the worst way to do it? well simple. Just think about it. What sectors have completely collapsed since brexit? Trade and finance. Exactly the sectors with the most notable priviledges. UK economy was actually CRASHING under Thatcher before it joined EU. The loss of the British Empire was destroying it. Joining EU saved it precisely BECAUSE of the priviledges. Without them, UK doesn't have much in the way of natural resources, nor infrastructure. It is an economy that simply can't sustain itself in a fair world. And by exiting it has renounced its priviledges. And now... it must crash. And it could have been less brutal for them, if at least they chose a less drastic brexit. Hell EU went SOFT during negotiations, allowed them to keep a lot of trade benefits if they simply followed fitosanitary standarda and played by the rules. It was going to keep parts of its priviledges intact as a member of the economic area. But no. It is UK that sabotaged those talks and actively pushed for the harshest brexit. Well good riddance I say. Thanks for being so stupid, england. You doomed yourself snd the rest of the UK. And I couldn't be happier for it. it's not every day that a tumor heals itself.

[@MrPedur]

@@thespanishinquisition4078 hear hear 👍

[@orlatoner4630]

Sad but true

[@artcafe2684]

😅I'm sure the British are really happy to have fallen on their own sword for no good reason.

[@lowtonforge6333]

This film reflects my own experiences as a small business operator. 40% of my sales were direct to the EU. Goods were shipped from our door and delivered anywhere within the other 27 within three to five days. Post Brexit - 12 weeks! Sales to the EU have vanished, and I've thrown the towel in.

[@jerryorange6983]

How did you vote?

[@altumurnemtzra2026]

@@jerryorange6983 stay

[@jerryorange6983]

@@altumurnemtzra2026 so join the rejoin march tomorrow Sat 22. I will be there :)

[@RoshanDixit]

No offence but the British pioneered divide and rule this time they did it to themselves. United you stand divided you fall even Putin took advantage of the very same thing; Politicians don't really care only thing they do is mess things up be it from any side of the political spectrum they never care about the population.

[@Bertrum123]

@@jerryorange6983 i doupt they will allow us back in now .

[@Apollo9000]

After the vote my wife and I decided it was time to move back to Ireland after 24 years of contributions of tax as a high wage earner. It was so obvious this was going to happen I am surprised that it’s only through the FT that this has honestly been discussed.

[@dubbaphatt3368]

@PGH Engineer id have my money on the UK going back to the IMF before Ireland does.

[@heffo67]

Welcome home Paul. 💚🤍🧡

[@tomedwards4235]

You're very welcome to leave. I think you barely had a motorway in your country until the EU came and paid for one using our money, so your loyalties are really no surprise.

[@SparkWah]

Yes the FT is an unbiased source of information😂😂😂

[@MrDenisMurphy]

​@PGH Engineer What are you talking about the Debt-to-GDP ratio for Ireland 58.8% vs UK 85.4%. Ireland has €6 billion surplus vs UK £99.1 billion deficit

[@ChaosAngel667]

Every interview there can be resumed in one simple line. "We were told that we could have our cake and eat it too, and we believed that."

[@mariobosnjak99]

You can have your cake and eat it too but you have to share the cake. If you try to hog the whole cake to yourself then your mom will take it away from you

[@snaggiz]

The naivety is absolutely staggering.

[@midnightbeauty-bx7su]

"We were told that we could have our cake and eat it too, and we believed that." Are you not familiar with the history of the UK?. How sucessful could you be at kicking people out, giving away land that is not yours to begin with, incite the landless kicked out to steal, while forcing them to pay the governement for land that was never really granted in the first place because it is not discovered it if people were already there. It's like coming in second at a 100 yard dash and claiming first place. Maybe I got the story wrong I heard it happened to a group of about 13 folks in North America that paid the UK for land it didn't own for over a hundred years. Not the best folk they are apt to duplicity with the aforementioned and issues like freedom maybe self reslection will help them get there. Back to the story, then rinse, repeat, it happened again on other continents. I'm probably just vexed I didn't thing of it. Enjoy.

[@CalimeroDu64]

This should be mandatory viewing everywhere in the UK!!

[@tooshlong]

Another simp for the mouthpiece of corporate leeches and megabanks at FT. Its actually tragic lmao

[@mh8748]

But sovereignty and a blue passport

[@tooshlong]

@@mh8748 yes. Sovereignty. Its important. Dunno why you're so obsessed with colours of passports though. That's properly unhinged.

[@mh8748]

@@tooshlong sarcasm, my friend

[@tooshlong]

@@mh8748 aimed at what. A parody of the nutters who are obsessed with Belgium for some reason?

[@erichodge567]

It's easier to fool people than to convince people that they've been fooled. - Mark Twain

[@citixenpips]

yeah - thats why we left ...

[@botany500kojak]

Wait until the EU rolls out its totalitarianism technocracy social credit system. By that time, you will be fully onboard.

[@jocosson8892]

@@citixenpips you left because Farage told you that you were exceptional

[@joshl6275]

@@citixenpips You only serve as a case example to reinforce Twain's point, lmao.

[@countfosco8535]

What convinced me how effective the Brexit campaign was, was the fact that the majority of British ex-pats in Spain voted for Brexit. It is inexplicable.

[@theon9575]

The sad and strange part of all this is that nothing in this 30min program was not predicted or predictable already in 2016, and yet people in the UK voted for it.

[@peterppp694]

Brexiters are blind and poorly educated. They are learning the lesson the hard way.

[@JayForsure]

Out of curiosity, why did they vote to leave the EU? Like what were their mains point? Was it like a racial thing, they didn't want other people coming in and stealing their jobs? Or was it another reason?

[@mattsyson3980]

@@JayForsure The Leave campaigns promised a huge variety of (uncosted) benefits so there is no one reason. Announcing you can have cake tomorrow but deliberately NOT saying the Tories will evict you from your house the day after or as it seems now, you will freeze this winter.

[@staceyraven3058]

@@JayForsure the reason was blue passports and bent bananas

[@billaitken2989]

@@JayForsure 2 reasons. Immigration ('too many foreigners') and the lie on the side of the bus about NHS finances.

[@Iansco1]

To summarize. "WE THOUGHT IT WOULD GIVE US FREEDOM! We can do as we please! Wait, what? We dont get Political Freedom but keep all the Economic Benefits with Europe?" Also. I think SOME Brits, especially older, forget they are not the EMPIRE and have not been for almost 80 years now.

[@stobeszx9674]

@Iansco1 neither is the EU.........its just that the EU is a protectionist racket...

[@wrestlinganime4life288]

That's the problem it's that nostalgia of that empire that has clouded their judgement

[@summess5567]

Yes. But, speaking as an older person, I have to poihnt out that even in the '40's and '50's, there was no enthusiasm for 'The Empire' (which had destroyed so many countruies and done sodd-all for the people of Britain). 'The Empire' was lost during WW1 and obnly the very rich saw any use for it. In the '50', we were excited by 'The Commonwealth' - and even by the early '60's, the Commonwealth wasn't working for us. We'd been desperate to join the EU since Churchill first proposed it and was refused entry by DeGauklle. The general feeling of entering the Common Market was generallyn one of 'this is going to be a bit weird' and the main concern was that we would be faced with the 'Euro Juggernauts for which our roads were NOT designed. Any nostalgia for 'The Comkonwealth' is held by only those who have no clue as to how much it wasn't working. NOw... why aren't UKIP/Refore/Conservatives/The Stabour party (they're all 'Brexit' now) promising to ban the Juggernauts?

[@MexxProtect]

I find it strange that absolutely no one is holding Nigel farage accountable for his role in this terrible mess..

[@IndustrialBonecraft]

The man was an obvious charlatan. The only way he could have made that clearer would have been to hang a giant sign around his neck and yell it through a megaphone. If people were taken in by him, then they were fools. And they hold responsibility for the results of their ignorance.

[@Jay_Johnson]

don't worry, at the current rate he will be the leader of the opposition in Westminster given the tory polling

[@mogreen1249]

I think its rather Boris Johnson who facilitated this "Brexit mess" ,Nigel Farage has been anti-EU since Blairs days but BJ made Brexit possible & recently said & thinks it was one of his achievments

[@bonbiskadafi9423]

He conned you guys!

[@davidburrows4801]

we need proper Brexit and proper seperation from EU.

[@Manski_123]

I'm a Brit living in Germany since 2010 and I run a small business here. Before Brexit I would order materials from the U.K. , the prices were competitive and delivery was quick. Since Brexit, it no longer makes sense to order from the U.K. The prices are not as competitive but the most problematic part is that delivery is often delayed considerably, due to customs issues. I can't rely on receiving orders on time. This causes real problems for my business as I order materials for specific projects with tight deadlines. The same products are available within the E.U. without the added hassle. The result: I now spend tens of thousands of euros a year in the E.U. rather than the U.K. I know other companies are doing the same.

[@invalid8774]

How was that personally for you? Did you need to get a visa to be allowed to stay in Germany?

[@cpp12anm]

You do great sir. We really want Briton to see the consequence of their ignorance

[@johnnyjrotten59]

Awww - Didums

[@mrkkopola]

@@johnnyjrotten59 Yeah, diddums for those British suppliers who've had the bottom fall out of their business...

[@coooolibri]

im not a nationalist, i dont care where anybody comes from besides my interest in languages and cultures. but i think what they did was bad timing right before inflation.

[@DavidKnopflerReal]

This is an excellent program. It makes the silence of the BBC all the more embarrassing

[@revellen]

BBC is a conservative media outlet for the elites.

[@tomfurstyfield]

Well the Tories have scared the crap out of the BBC, so they'll not say anything

[@alexspiers6229]

Totally agree!

[@lindaj5492]

BBC should make a Panorama on this. Or Channel 4, before government silences it.

[@JJ-zg1hh]

Could not agree more.

[@jannisarie]

Living in Ireland, I always ordered from the UK. It took so long to deliver, and I always had to pay tax, even on small items, so I just stopped. I always check now to see if something is coming from the UK, and I don't want to deal with it anymore.

[@JoshMathewsofficial]

This vote happened when I was 15. We need to reverse this decision as my age group are the biggest supporters of the EU. Yet, we were robbed of the ability to decide. 🇪🇺

[@peterbroad1772]

You were robbed by a load of people who enjoyed the rights and freedoms that came with EU membership their entire lives and yet decided you shouldn't. I'm 50 with a young child and I'm happy to despise them for you. I'm not going to call them Baby Boomers, it was generation take, take, take and give nothing back.

[@philjames6206]

Apologies but your generation is screwed.

[@heleneculioli-atwood6997]

You are right. You should fight to come into EU. EU is not perfect but England on its own will sink with your generation on board. Hello from Paris. So sorry it is so complicated to go back to GB where I got married.

[@JwayT]

Haha! Lol! So 15 year olds should be allowed to vote? Hahaha!

[@v16bt]

I don't think EU will accept you back, UK is a country, not an 8 years old kid who changes his mind every 5 minutes

[@detlefalbrecht6900]

„We didn’t start to dig into the questions until Brexit was done.“ Even for a lay person the fundamental economic questions were clear in 2015 and the lack of answers was evident. The young generation of Brits were royally screwed by the pro Brexit politicians and the xenophobic retiree generation that feared the impact of cheap non British laborers.

[@voice.of.reason]

It was totallly clear, our PM wanted us to stay in, annd produced a leaflet telling us why we should stay in and all the bad things that could happen if we left. Yes they were a drawback, but despite this most people voted to leave. Most of the bad things they said that would happen turned out to be scare stories in the end. It was a win - win for the UK! And we would leave again

[@alex.velasco]

@@voice.of.reason No reasonable discussion is possible with people, like you, who are immune to evidence.

[@aw2584]

​@@voice.of.reasonI'm not a fan of EU but have you like... looked at any economical statistic about this? I was actually rooting for Britain to succeed simply to push EU into reforms, but so far its been an economic disaster... now Poland is predicted to have higher average household income than Britain by the end of the decade, Poland that British nationalists blamed for all its problems as the immigrant scapegoat... the irony is just hilarious

[@saftsuparn3222]

Im pulling my hair out thinking about it, how did they not for a single second think what actually would happened if they left the EU? It was obvious from the start that they would get shafted if they did, its such a weird thing to just say "well we didnt know what would happened" like holy hell your a business owner, its your job to think about these things..

[@lenawagenfuehr53]

Because they were impossible to talk to. We all tried, and got petulant forced laughter or just stubborn "no, YOU'VE got it wrong" in replies.

[@tosvarsan5727]

I can 100% confirm. I was buying so many products from Britain, after Brexit I tried to continue. It was such a horrible experience, that now I always make detailed research to make 100 % sure that the product is not shipped from Britain.

[@jonsimmons4150]

i do the same- but from Europe.

[@macker33]

Same,

[@timbobill7279]

Same here: I have not been able to buy anything from the UK since the agreements came to an end. All that money no longer goes to the UK. The UK lost.

[@Whoami691]

I do the same, except i won't buy anything from BMW anymore. Ford all the way. :)

[@Whoami691]

@@timbobill7279 Of course it did.... Remember that pesky pandemic? Who begged who for the vcaccine?

[@markusfpv1349]

Well done UK, you shot yourself in the foot and blaming EU anyway

[@kensaiix]

of course.!!! bloody EU not letting brits have the cake and eat it !!!

[@retrovideoquest]

I am baffled that *business people* seemingly didn't see this coming. How could they possibly believe that the UK would be able to "eat the cake and have it", as Brexiters basically claimed...? It seems to me sheer British arrogance to firmly believe that the EU would bend over backwards and keep in place all the privileges the UK enjoyed when it was part of the EU... It says a lot about British society that so many people were so easily convinced that the UK was better off out of the EU...

[@mikariekki5708]

Imagine how different UK trade treaties would be, if they had never been part of the EU to begin with, like Norway or Switzerland.

[@sandysimpson4785]

All those immigrants taking up their jobs!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@aries6776]

Many did. They were warning us but they were labelled Project Fear. They were drowned out by the massively dominant right wing UK tabloid press. And also they had no idea that the Brexit negotiators would leave the table with such an awful deal (remember Liz Truss was the Chief Negotiator to get Brexit Done and we know how competent she proved!). I think generally remainers all round were far too complacent and assumed the general public would actually work out for themselves the obvious truth that the rational voices were putting forward. However 52% of the country weren't listening or acting rationally. The arrogance wasn't the whole of the UK but a bunch of elitist conmen at the top of the Conservative party who had desperately competed for votes with even an even bigger conman like Nigel Farage and sold us on the idea that we could have our cake and eat it. Who honestly believes a word that comes out of any of their mouths now?

[@YankaYoga]

Financial specialists warned about this before Brexit but weren’t listened to.

[@t0pz87]

Some did, some didn't. In either case, business people make up a fraction of the votes in a referendum. I specifically remember some business people whose primary business was export of fruits, and sheep farmers whose primary export was meat, talking about how they voted Leave. You trying to sell FMCG (Fast-Moving-Consumer-Goods) across borders without a post-Brexit trade agreement. How on earth is that going to be fast when things need to go through various customs? Your fruits and meat is spoiled by the time it'll arrive

[@DisneyJF]

The rest of Europe has to thank the British people for being the sacrificial lamb to show them the trouble of leaving the union. 😊

[@botany500kojak]

Yes, the EU Davos technocrats gangsters don't want people thinking for themselves.

[@Odin029]

@@botany500kojak The main issue with people who say statements like yours is that it assumes other people haven't thought about a problem too and just concluded that the conventional wisdom is correct.

[@botany500kojak]

@@Odin029 Most people are muppets with no inkling as to what Davos is, and think voting in corrupt gopher politicians every 5 years will change things in a rigged casino. Conventional wisdom indeed.

[@Odin029]

@@botany500kojak Believing in conspiracy theories or believing that the world is run by some ultra power cabal is comforting to some people. It means that the world we live in is controlled even if its by people we don't like. The alternative is that we just hurdling through space on a rock and that humans are more like cats than sheep. You can lock cats in one room, but you can't predict what they're going to do.

[@dragonmartijn]

@@Odin029 Yes most people don’t think critically themselves and follow the “conventional wisdom”. Absolutely true. I you want to have success in life, you just have to do that. If you want to be Jesus, you will have to do the opposite.

[@juusokuikka594]

This is what the brightest minds of Conservatives have brought to Britain. Well done. And people say Tony Blair was bad. During his term life got better for most Brits. Now it's the opposite.

[@genome616]

Yeah Blair killed our servicemen and women in a false war, cut all the red tape on legal EU migrations that saw a decade of immigration of over 300,000 + per year, this consequently meant our services simply could not expand fast enough, our school education levels suffered, housing suffered and the same benefits had to go further reducing the help, not to forget also the impact 3million plus had on our NHS - remember been able to walk in a doctors surgery and getting a same day appointment, remember how it changed through 13 yrs of Labour, remember how Labour brought privatisation into the NHS, remember Labour introduction of Student Loans, remember how Labour threw bad money after bad money at badly run services and ran out, remember how Brown sold off our Gold to prop up a foreign bank and also did a full raid on everyone's pensions effectively wiping a 3rd of their values - seems some people have a short memory.

[@nickgreu4ever]

Ye I’m sure the dead children in Iraq are very grateful of him 😒

[@genome616]

@Protista protista Brexit a Russian funded project lol, and you evidence for this? In fact Russia most likely was against the UK leaving, it was relying on the unity of net zero and push for green energies driven by the EU on its members so the EU members became more reliant on Russia gas and oil, Brexit actually delayed Russia goal and may have ultimately delayed its war on Ukraine as Germany got nervous about the loss of the UK and its financers and put the brakes on the 2nd pipeline coming into service.

[@ajax2.087]

Helped make the world more dangerous 🤣 more like

[@gordonadams5891]

Clearly, nations should closely examine all drastic changes proposed by politicians.

[@andreribeiro3476]

I was studying international relations at this time and I remember that no one I knew thought Brexit would happen because it was clear that it would go wrong

[@dremspider]

It is almost like experts told people this would happen and people ignored it due to blind hatred and isolationism.

[@Aladinyo_93]

Exactly British people destroyed their economy because of their racism and xenophobia

[@kaimalino528]

Its the classic, people want to hear what they like, not what they need to hear.

[@the80386]

very few will outwardly admit this but a major driving factor behind brexit had less to do with economics and more about the belief that by 'taking control of their borders' (which they already had), they'll keep out the 'lesser' people with the 'wrong' skin colour.

[@jonsimmons4150]

*its almost like one man band companies believe they are in the right and can steer the country to a different destination than one which was voted through in the biggest referendum turnout in history*

[@The_Phoenix_Saga]

Pathetic capitulation.

[@annalang5687]

It's mindblowing that people believed they would keep all the advantages of being in the EU without a membership. It's not like people weren't excessively warned about what would happen.

[@marcbiff2192]

We didn't believe that you flaming maroon.

[@shhwinner6663]

except if yiur switzeerlans

[@joostvanlinge263]

@@shhwinner6663 Switzerland follows EU rules, as does Norway.

[@gwaponobby]

We knew yet the majority still voted leave. That tells you how unhappy the majority were.

[@gwaponobby]

@niels lund Where is your proof? You are making things up. Show me your evidence.

[@russellmoore8187]

I'm not from the UK and I'm sad to say it but *we all* saw this coming. The Leave movement achieved one of the most incredible snow jobs on the British voters in modern history.

[@JwayT]

I've beenfitted from the labour shortage, please tell me what I got wrong?

[@frostysfreeway2320]

He who laughs last, laughs the loudest. With that Orban bloke and that Italian lady….you’re going to need all the luck in the world

[@sjsomething4936]

@@JwayT what you’ve got wrong is that while you personally may have benefited from Brexit, the country as a whole has suffered economically. Which means that you as well are suffering economically, it’s just not as evident because your own personal employment situation improved. I feel like you either didn’t watch the entire video or didn’t absorb what was being said, it was made quite clear by the people being interviewed. I guess the other possibility is that you simply are choosing to believe that Brexit has been nothing but a success because it suits your predisposed ideas or you voted to leave and don’t want to believe that you made a bad choice. Truth is a bunch of public school raised snotheads like Farage, Johnson, Rees-Mogg, May etc. sold people a fake future that suggested that Britons would no longer have to follow Euro-weenie rules. It was always an appeal to emotion but of course that’s what usually wins elections and public campaigns in general. I personally know 5 young people (ie under 30) who have come to Canada for better job prospects since Brexit, so as a Canadian I thank you for voting to leave because it has helped Canada. Britain no longer have easy and direct access to a large pool of less-skilled labour and now also have to contend with the loss of a number of skilled and educated workers who liked the freedom to travel or work across the entire EU - congratulations.

[@BaumiTor]

@@sjsomething4936@ Scott Jefferd I want to add that the EU was not only providing a pool of less skilled workers for the UK but also highly skilled ones along with important pre-products. As one of the countries with the highest purchasing power within the EU, all these resources naturally gravitated toward Britain. The Brain Drain from Eastern European countries e.g. is a real deal. Anyways, greetings to Canada from Germany

[@Abteilol]

the very same people who advocated for brexit saw it coming.

[@robsucher9419]

Excellent summary. At last, many people have woken-up to the reality of Brexit. Now we 'just' need a political party with the courage to help fix it.

[@askinator7850]

I'm a british citizen 25 years old. To this day it still sickens me that as a populous we left the EU. The fact that the politicians were able to lie and go unpunished is disgusting. All we can do is hope that a party comes to its senses and sparks the debate for another referendum. I would give anything to have my EU citizenship restored.

[@GCS88]

UK did got punished but sadly did not land solely on politicians but for the working class citizens whether they voted for brexit or not and unfortunately for the UK citizens who wants to rejoin it seems like that majority of us in the EU dont want you back.

[@askinator7850]

Yeah I completely agree, the population bought a lie that was sold to them by idiot politicians with an agenda. Unfortunately most of the British population didn't take the time to research the implications of leaving the EU.

[@DAN420.]

@@GCS88 Please learn basic grammar and try again.

[@NeroNemion]

I can share the sentiment, however I see a second referendum just as officially saying "we fucked up". As a european, it would be the worst signal to the EU as a whole, of GB gets back to the Union quickly. Too many EU citizens take its benefits for granted, and do not realize that nationstates just limit trade. Another Reson why I'd personally would be against GB rejoining is, that GB Ministers always resented more EU integration and stopped various initiatives. If GB ever wants to join the EU again, in my opinion it needs to leave its too profitorientated reasoning behind, and need to adapt the Euro and in general need a way more positive mindset about the Idea of the EU, instead of seeing it as just an opportunity for cheaper trade.

[@casey2782]

@@NeroNemion I agree. If we do have a second referendum, it's a decade away at the very least, but even then, I don't think the EU would even consider it until the current generation of politicians are out of politics.

[@pseudonym3690]

The problem of why the Brexit happened is not the obvious fallacy of thinking that the EU had the UK under control, but the inherent racism and sentiments towards foreigners in general which is the underlying cause for this entire mess.

[@Tdot6]

It was really the UK's own doing... other EU countries had strict rules on residency in their countries, but the UK didn't implement anything and just blamed the EU for all of their problems. You're right Brexit was the nationalistic triumph of anti-immigrant, English exceptionalism (empire 2.0), and 'sovereignty' ideologues.

[@GrosFred]

The famous British exceptionalism. Feel sorry for the one who voted to remain. The remainers should have won by over 60% if only so many of them could have been bothered to vote.

[@GrosFred]

@@Tdot6 So true. And the sad irony is that they never had so many immigrants coming to the UK since Brexit. It is going to turn ugly in the not too distant future. The -4% GDP we keep hearing about is in my mind grossly underestimated. Lately I heard -5.5%. I fear that it will be a lot worst than that.

[@Liz-sc3np]

The ill effects of racism

[@LonnieHalouska]

As and in-and-out member of the EU, Britain had the best of all possible situations. It had a major say in regulations. Brexit threw that all away. Just recently, the U.S. rejected a deep trade deal with the U.K. Brits don't seem to understand that so far as the U.S. is concerned the U.K. is nothing, but a convenient forward staging area for the U.S. military. Nothing more.

[@alex.velasco]

Brexit is a wonderful soothing tonic! It raises my morale, bolsters my confidence in my own grasp of current affairs, and confirms my sanity - simply because it is going exactly as I thought it would.

[@amrell2240]

You had me in the first half, not gonna lie

[@angelachanelhuang1651]

was Brexit the solution? I could have answered that one

[@alex.velasco]

@@amrell2240 🙏🏽 Look on the bright side… 😂

[@mzimhlemosiwe5047]

When you over estimate your country in a world stage thinking you still a superpower from the 1900s..

[@rotvonrat]

that's the real problem

[@Lzrdman91]

Bingo!!!! UK got complacent and stop investing on itself. UK needs to go back to the EU.

[@Sasha_Blue_music]

I’m french but I’ve been living in the uk for the past 5 years. There was a time when we got really close to leaving the EU as well. I’m both saddened and thankful that the uk serves as a good example of what the wrong decision is …

[@freedoo69]

Exact, les plus grands partis qui étaient pour la sortie de l’UE se sont, tous ravisés.

[@MrDanisve]

Indeed, alot of Norway want out of our agreements with the EU aswell. Cause of our crazy electricity prices after we made cables to the EU/UK. And we have no way to regulate how much electricity we export so we can controll the price. Cause we signed an ACER agreement. And we cannot only leave the ACER agreement, we have to leave the whole EU deal. So our options as Norwegians is mayhem for our industry (Who is very energy intensive, Norway has lots of cheap energy. And they are used to cheap electricity prices. We have too high salaries for an foundery to operate in Norway with European electricity prices. Or leave the EU deal. Or EU lets us out from the ACER agreement (Which is unlikely) Actually have a French owned foundery close to me ive worked at, the Elkem/Eramet cooporation. They might be looking to move operations now to China or somewhere else with cheap energy and cheaper salaries. They have electricity agreement untill 2030, so they are safe untill then. There is lots of benefits of being in the EU marked. But electricity cost is so high that it actually might be cheaper for the Norwegian to leave the EU marked atm. Alot of people demand it now. Since we cannot controll how much we export. We are in a much stronger position to leave than Britain tho, our economy is in much better shape. I must say i kinda want to leave and take the economic hardship. Cause i want to controll how much we export. I dont like EU having such controll over us. We are a soverign nation, and i have not voted for any of the EU politicians. EU needs a more direct/better democracy if its going to win my heart. Today its like leaders elected by elected leaders. It becomes a psudo-democracy who is very influenced by lobbism instead of democracy.

[@johndoe-ss9bz]

@@MrDanisve :: Lobbism = Corruption...

[@Playjames]

@@MrDanisve doesn't really make sense tho. When u export energy you make profit, especially when prices are high. When you do not export it, you have to turn off generators and make nothing... Energy cannot be stored. Therefore, you cannot (!) regulate the amount of export of energy . In fact the European energy grid makes energy prices cheaper, as its decentralised across I think 30+ countries (including uk, norway and other non eu countries). Furthermore, the size of the grid makes it very robust against blackouts. I mean if Norway wants to leave EEA, they probably stay connected in the European continental grid (cuz stability, duh) as its not tied to the EU or EEA. Btw energy is expansive everywhere in continental Europe, the time of cheap oil and gas is over

[@K0msur]

The UK always serves as an example of what not to do because (don't ask me why) we're deluded as a country into thinking that we're A. not an island nation (island nations have it harder for obvious reasons (transport mostly)) B. the greatest island nation (that's probably Japan at this point) C. a strong, high growth country that everybody loves (we're a laughing stock that outside of London is probably about as well off as Romania) D. a world superpower (because the US speaks English we think we're as important as #1) I don't understand it; we're an irrelevant, post-Empirical country with very little to offer at this point beyond maybe the technology we produce? (I'm not even sure on that one anymore). I usually compare the UK to Denmark. Both were important Empire nations a few hundred years ago that have both become less and less relevant as time goes on. The only difference between the UK and Denmark is that Denmark is aware of its smaller role to play in the modern world than the UK. Basically, the UK still thinks it's either the height of the British Empire or the end of WW2 where the UK was at its peak. We're not there now and we (as a nation) need to grow up and accept it. France and the UK should become closer trading partners, not more distant ones. We should be looking to mirror Germany's economic model (not because I agree with their right-wing politics, but because they're Europe's powerhouse country) and we should be looking to get on board with other EU related things. What's next? Do we vote to leave NATO and the UN?

[@carringbushpet]

I'm Australian, but I was horrified how I needed to remind friends from the UK that brexit was the most backwards thing ever. It's easy to see how the Scots would feel cheated. England will be a lonely island on the British Isles before too long

[@akulaa4853]

"I'm Australian, but I was horrified how I needed to remind friends from the UK that brexit was the most backwards thing ever." Do you always feel the need to tell friends that self determination is "the most backwards thing ever" and are you always "horrified" that you "needed to do it? Do you believe that 1st Jan 1901, Australia gaining sovereignty from the UK was a "backward thing" or is it only the UK regaining its sovereignty from the EU that's backward? " It's easy to see how the Scots would feel cheated." This may interest you. If every Scot who voted leave, had instead decided to vote to remain, then the UK would have remained in the EU. "England will be a lonely island on the British Isles before too long" Strange. We left the EU not planet earth or even Europe for that matter. Do you believe that all the European countries that aren't in the EU are "lonely" places? Incidentally the UK is still a member of NATO, the UN (with a permanent seat at the security council), the Commonwealth (which consists of around a third of the worlds population and who's ceremonial leader is King Charles), Five Eyes (which is an intelligence alliance), WTO (World Trade Organization) , G7 etc.etc.etc It also looks like the UK are about to join CPTPP as well :)

[@aadesina163]

@@iberian5319 I think @carringbushpet meant that the UK would be relatively geopolitically lonely and isolated. Not that it would be literally isolated. Also the countries in Europe that are not part of the EU or eea are Russia, Belarus, turkey etc. Which one.of those would the UK like to emulate?

[@allisonshaw9341]

I'm hoping that Scotland and Wales will be able to gain independence from England and join the EU as independent nations.

[@allisonshaw9341]

@Simon Then may it happen soon. I'll be celebrating with my Scottish and Welsh relatives when it does. The EU has already stated that it will accept them as member nations, so it's a win-win as I see it.

[@PanthroSamah]

​@@akulaa4853 You understand that independence is a desire when you don't have the power to vote?

[@FarmerSchinken]

How can anyone expect economic growth from a society that identifies Boris Johnson as the smartest member and fit to lead a country.

[@archvaldor]

You forget we replaced him with the genius that is Liz Truss....

[@tuberjr]

all politicians are crooks and only recently 4 european parliamentary officials were charged over qatar bribery issues(bribing eu officials) again blow out your emotional candle and fix in on some facts..................park that emotion.

[@attilatormasi1733]

@@archvaldor at least she is not a quiter... oh

[@whogivesaflyingfock5401]

Oh Liz was the best. When i realised shes going into office i got me popcorn and sat back watching the circus catching fire. Shame it burnt down so quickly, still had half a bucket left by the time she was gone.

[@whogivesaflyingfock5401]

Oh Liz was the best. When i realised shes going into office i got me popcorn and sat back watching the circus catching fire. Shame it burnt down so quickly, still had half a bucket left by the time she was gone.

[@ciprianpopa1503]

As an outsider I watched from the times Farage was insulting all the members of EU parliament and its leaders and dreaming UK will have the same advantages of Norway. When you want to obtain advantages from someone, the first thing you do is to avoid insulting them.

[@stephencheung9877]

The crux of the problem: no penalty for those who spread outright lies.

[@DarkAngelEU]

Worse: they got rewarded.

[@BommeltjeNL]

And Boris is probably coming back as PM. How sad that you need liars like him to lead the country.

[@Kamfrenchie]

So, those who said the Uk would immediatly collapse the day the vote leave won ?

[@huzarion3814]

... brexiters got help from putin & his trolls , no secred there .

[@beatseed8278]

My thinking was similar: what can we learn from this moving forward? Clearly one lesson is that we must upgrade our monkey brains to not keep falling for manipulative one liners and learn to see through emotion and nationalism. Learn to listen to boring people telling realistic and balanced stories rather than being flashed by the strongest monkey who fought its way to the top of the tribe.

[@albertorodriguezfernandez5956]

And the craziest part, to me, is that NOBODY in EU wanted UK to leave. This has to be the biggest economic Harakiri of all time.

[@rast]

Yes, cause we, as Europeans, should be working together as friends and not against each other. But the UK betrayed Europe.

[@enforcer9381]

We were the second largest contributor that is the main reason most didn't want us to leave no other reason and we are still paying into the EU's coffers!!

[@enforcer9381]

@@rast Howso?

[@ZsuzsaKarolySmith]

@@rast "the UK betrayed Europe" seriously? 😂😂😂

[@Thatslifebro_]

Well, at least Brexit had the positive side effect of demonstrating why leaving the EU is a terrible idea therefore dissuading others from doing the same. In the long run that will increase stability of the EU since the terrible side effects of leaving can be viewed in real time.

[@TheCzechLad_]

I’m from the Czech Republic. I lived in the UK for 9 years between 2010 and 2019. I went to school and college in the UK and I’ve worked in the UK as well. Whenever I asked someone why they votes to leave the UK it was always about “immigrants taking our jobs” etc. Whilst these English people that never worked a day in their lives because they had 3 kids and got enough benefits from the government to survive, if these people got up of their arse and applied for jobs they’d probably get the job before an “immigrant” from Europe would. Wherever I went in the UK, at school, college or at work, I encountered racism every day. And I never really thought much of it, I didn’t let that affect me. I had friends who are English and I’ve met some nice people too, but when you have these old English people who remember the war sitting at home screaming “bloody immigrants taking our job” and you have kids who hear that growing up, you have a serious problem. I worked in warehouses and factories in the UK, before Brexit it was filled with over 90% of people from Europe. And I’d tell my friends and family “what are they gonna do after Brexit when most of these foreign people leave the UK and go back home?” And it’s happening. I wouldn’t be surprised if the UK economy was on a brink of collapse… empty factories and warehouses that used to be filled with foreign people who basically held up the UK economy. Uneducated people that thought Brexit would mean the foreigners would leave and they’d all sign God save the Queen all day at their local pubs…🙄🤦🏻‍♂️

[@prokkle4765]

I think the intention was that people on benefits would take the place of immigrants, thus saving the country millions of pounds. This was never explicitly stated though, and those on benefits have remained stubbornly uninterested in working for a minimum wage.

[@nathanahern3278]

“what are they gonna do after Brexit when most of these foreign people leave the UK and go back home?” They will be forced to pay a living wage to other humans, instead of slave level wages, that's what they are going to do.

[@Brad-lt6mr]

@@prokkle4765 for a lot of people they literally can't afford to come off benefits and work.

[@dynamicascension981]

@@prokkle4765 despite the fact that minimum wage where you are is probably better than 90% than the rest of the world

[@robertsteinbach7325]

TL:DR, These BREXITers were thinking with their Pints and Emotion and not with Pounds and Reason. Now they are making the UK go broke.

[@neilmakohoniuk3768]

all because they did not want more "foreigners" coming into the UK - that's really what it boils down to

[@jonathansimmons5353]

good! it was rammed solid!- i lived 23 years in Europe, and in Switzerland. never seen so many people from other countries than in the UK.. it was shocking

[@granolasoos]

I have a small business in Portugal and before Brexit we regularly bought from UK suppliers. We knew it would be more complicated to keep purchasing from them, but thought it could be possible. But after looking into the paperwork, timeline and COST, it's a terrible investment. Have completely cut ties with those suppliers.

[@uweinhamburg]

If you allow the question - which suppliers have replaced them for you? What are your experiences?

[@midjehunt7424]

Your new supplier was always there in the past. You must have cut the quality or increased the cost to end up with better product. Good luck with that.

[@REDnBLACKnRED]

@@midjehunt7424 How do people not understand competitiveness? Generally most suppliers keep their prices competitive, meaning the difference in price is not massive. And who you bought from had a lot to do with things outside of price, like trust, reputation, experience and the like. But suddenly post-brexit the most fundamental aspect of competitiveness is gone, British suppliers are simply that much more expensive than anyone else within the EU, so businesses naturally have to move on and invest in building new relationships with other domestic players. Would they prefer to keep existing relationships, absolutely, but not at the cost of their bottom line. It doesn't actually affect the quality of the end product or the price as much. We are after all talking about other EU manufacturers, not China. The UK is not that much better at anything than its EU alternatives.

[@gwaponobby]

So your small business got smaller or it is now a blue chip company since you stopped trading with the UK?

[@khalidalali186]

Good luck 🍀 🇵🇹

[@alanhindle3149]

I believe it was 72 times that laws were passed in the EU parliament which Britain voted against but was obliged to take on board when it was part of the union. 2,466 times, on the other hand, when Britain got what it wanted, what it voted for. More than 97% of the time. And then, it was British lawyers who jumped on writing the laws into useable form- the other countries called the Brits "The Law Writers", and simply translated what was set out for use in their own countries. Those 72 laws "forced down Britain's throat" were mostly concerning financial transparency regulations, which UK corporations, financiers and the wealthy absolutely didn't want. As I understand it (and I am very possibly wrong) THAT is why we had Brexit. Feel free to correct me if anyone actually has better numbers.

[@kolerick]

main motivation of the brexiters: xenophobia and "sovereignty"... main motivation of those who funded the brexit campaign: avoid the tax regulation hammer that coming down to reign in the taxes fraud schemes (that benefit the UK financial system so much) main motivation of the brexiter politician: get elected to benefit from the comfy job paid by tax payers and also graft a few more millions on public spending main motivation of the brexiter medias: sell paper... angry people are easier to feed adverts and to indoctrinate so they keep buying the paper...

[@ThoseWhoHeedTheCall]

I believe you are absolutely right. Since the 2008 recession, European financial regulators and financial authorities have constantly asserted that the U.K banking sector and predominantly the U.K central banking sector - conform to the same standards, the same audits and the same transparency agreements as the rest of Europe. I.e U.K central banks and private banks (the money laundering center of the world) did not want to be regulated. As i see it, and as you do too. THIS was the real push to leave the E.U. Everything else is just icing on the cake and the poor-mans folly squabbling over useless points. You'll also note how shortly after 2008 is when this tide of anti-E.U rhetoric and anti-E.U sentiment was consistently and unanimously pushed by practically every news paper and media outlet, in lock-step tanndem and perfectly synchronised. The entire "Brexit" movement was yet again, another bankers ploy. They spent a decade changing the narrative and impacting pleblic opinion until they got what they wanted - on a 4% marginal vote. Disgusting. A hundred years from now, the history books will look back and talk about this chapter in history. When central banks ruled nation states.

[@V3rciS]

What a perfect comment from both of you. Finally people who see the real picture. It's just sad that the majority like sheep we are, did not.

[@fxhzwingzero]

You are 100% correct, so many people are out of touch with polotics and how things are actually run, that they didn't see it at the time! They saw brexit as a FU to the establishment and the rich, when really it was about saving their money in offshore tax havens,. and not exposing them for the criminals they are! We tax dodge we get sent to jail, they tax dodge they get into government or lobby for more corrupt polocies to further their own agendas! The system has become corrupt and dispicable, it also feels very one sided towards the rich these days.... Maybe it always was, i despair for the future... I wish people would unite and do something about all this...

[@mattsyson3980]

@@ThoseWhoHeedTheCall And the irony that as many of the UK banks are untaxed and secretive the citizens of the UK don't gain from the process at all.

[@kwaks9486]

Napoleonic France and later Germany both tried to block UK from trading with Europe and failed, and now brits have managed to do it themselves. oh the irony

[@saltymonke3682]

Historically, British was well off when they're trading with other side of the world not just Europe. From the age of Merchantilism to 1930s.

[@jonsimmons4150]

*"Europe is France and Germany* *the rest is the trimmings"* -*Charles De Gaulle*

[@marcofava]

@@jonsimmons4150 The UK trimmed itself out if Europe

[@Kaizen917]

Its been a long process of decline for Britain. Some people think it happened after the war with the gradual loss of the empire, and that it has been long done (possibly slightly reversed) but there are ways to dig even deeper down...

[@kaimalino528]

@@saltymonke3682 Unfortunately for Britain, it no longer has Mercantilism to support its industries. They cannot compete with producers from China, India and other former colonials. More unfortunately, the British cannot sell illicit drugs (ie. Opium) to countries like China any longer to balance their trade deficits.

[@MrJumper68]

When UK was in EU, i bought things in UK. I live in Denmark.... now thats over.

[@sitatt]

My heart bleeds. The delusion in this country is immeasurable.

[@wodens-hitman1552]

There's plenty of airports. Feel free to leave if you haven't the balls

[@LonnieHalouska]

Not to mention the cupidity.

[@wrestlinganime4life288]

@@LonnieHalouska and the obsession with the Royals

[@LonnieHalouska]

@@wrestlinganime4life288 "Obsession" is the right word alright. Queen Elizabeth is a tough act to follow. Gave her whole life to her job with courage and dignity. Now that is being squandered by her family.

[@OumuamuaOumuamua]

American delusions 🤝 British Delusions. 200+ years later and we are still just like father and son

[@googleuser2571]

Most of this stuff was raised pre-referendum, but was dismissed as “Project Fear”.

[@NoMuse13]

Retitled Project I Told You So

[@T61APL89]

if u shout "No REGS!" loud enough people kinda just figure reality will sod off. unfortunately lizzies "Growth, growth, growth" doesnt work like it did in oz...

[@dutchman7623]

@@NoMuse13 "Project future", and get used to it.

[@jayboy8080]

that's why i voted remain.

[@ziziroberts8041]

And Project Fail moved forward.

[@luisdossantos6120]

Well done FT. This debate needs to happen openly.

[@jorgecarrillo2]

the debate is over unfortunatelly there is no reason for the EU to admit UK again.

[@tooshlong]

Debate was had. You lost. You are now pretending that international issues surrounding energy, currencies, inflation and stagnant growth which impact every major economy on the planet, are due to Brexit. You are outrageous lmao.

[@davids8127]

Thanks to Boris and his brilliant lies that debate is in the past. All those poor bastards who he conviced that its gonna be better will suffer dearly. Talk about karma

[@LRRPFco52]

This isn't a well-done piece. It's a thinly-veiled hit job on the UK, which operates on the premise that the EU is above critique, the only valid way moving forward. Hit pieces like this always make me look at who owns the particular corporate whore ad agency disguised as a news service. In this case, FT was bought by a Japanese media conglomerate in 2016, which has huge vested interest in EU financing. "Extreme bias" is what we call information like this. The message is simple: "Stupid UK now reaps what it sowed."

[@alexpetrov9911]

@@jorgecarrillo2 real life. some decisions is irreversible

[@Klaatu-Gort]

As a European unionist, I would like to thank the British who voted for Brexit. I am sorry for their sacrifice, but they did us a great service. One would say they have been secretly working for us

[@jakeharries8097]

First step in fixing a problem is recognising you have a problem; we're not quite there yet here in the UK

[@frogexpat]

very very true

[@stevehart1395]

As usual with us, it will be too late. Then have to go back, cap in hand, to have a slightly worse deal than before, just to teach us a bit more of a lesson.

[@_Jax_55]

🎯

[@monicap7941]

@@stevehart1395 Significantly worse, because we really had a *very* cushdy deal. They currently have no interest in readmitting us obviously, but even if they did, we don't have a written constitution so we wouldn't even be eligible!

[@tk3141]

The UK will need to go through more serious economic decline and right wing Tory policies, and for people to suffer - until they come to see that they’ve lost a good thing. I’m afraid it’s the most vulnerable people and the working families that will suffer the most in this process, which is the biggest shame.

[@LarsPallesen]

"We were treated as a third country". Ehm, yeah. That's what you wanted to be, wasn't it? You wanted to be OUTSIDE the EU.

[@jjbarajas5341]

This whole situation has the same energy as an arrogant teenager who is tired of living with their parents and think they can do better by themselves, only to find out that paying their own rent and running their household is way harder than they thought, and turns out living with the folks wasn't so bad after all. Edit: It seems some of you have taken my funny throwaway comment waaay too literally and or seriously🗿

[@Karma-qt4ji]

The fact that the Leave campaign turned 180 degrees within an hour of the announcement, trying to deny the very message they had printed on the side of a f***ing bus.....

[@MayurMisra]

Perfect analogy

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

the problem with the analogy is that the teenager can eventually grow and learn from his mistakes, and at some point become a full fledged healthy adult. This is more like an arrogant teenager quitting school, moving out of his home with his friends into a single apartment with the ambition to become famous on youtube.

[@jubb1984]

Couldn't have put it better

[@joshuadelisle]

However it's good for that teenager to learn to be self dependent, toughen up and stop asking for hand outs. Same goes for this country

[@tuqui]

Brexit was Putin's greatest achievement.

[@justinhuizinga4443]

I'm from Germany and it still makes me sad that the uk left. I think we're all stronger together

[@michael1345]

The French however haven't got a problem. In fact I think they have the "I told you so" gloat. As an Australian I am truly amazed at the whole thing. All because and lets be honest, the Brexiters played the xenophobic card. You can tell this because there was little to nothing about the economy and a lot of lies concerning their NHS. Any rumblings from those NATIONALISTS on the continent have been permanently silenced.

[@mokhan7008]

Believe me it makes many of us sad that we left. However I personally remain optimistic that we will return and once again be with our European brothers and sisters, because we are absolutely stronger together.

[@husbyhogan]

Same here, I am from Germany and I am sad, that people are so easy mislead by populism and obvious lies. Now UK is an island even with a border fence around. They did not know, what the Brexit will lead to and the effects are eye opening for all sides. I hope we will reunite in future.

[@warnasamika]

"Divide and rule..." Looks like white asswholes starting to taste their own medicine. I wish Russia unleash half of all nuclear weapons into Europe and Britain. For what they did for the last 600 years to the whole world.

[@Ryuzaki236]

Of course u said that, Germany is the only country who benefits with UE. Germany rule all over Europe and countries like France, Italy, are loosers. We will see in the next year what is coming.

[@Larsykfz303]

My dad works as a salesperson working from the Netherlands. Just recently he had a phonecall from a british distributor crying on the phone. His family company that was open for over a hundred years went bankrupt. I honestly thought it was all a bit funny, brexit and these truss "trickle down" plans, but than you hear a story like that and realise how harsh some people are hit by all that, and its just really gut wrenching.

[@brokenrecord3095]

It's really terrible. I don't particularly blame Truss, she's too dim to really comprehend what she was up to. Possibly she even believed it. But people like Boris, well, he's smart enough to know what a colossal mistake Brexit was but he just saw it as his ticket to #10 Downing St. What a pathetic cynical man. I'm sorry for your dad's friend, and all the others hit by a catastrophe not of their own making.

[@patrik3482]

Why? You don't know what he voted for. Business comes and leaves. Just because your grandfather created some business doesnt mean you will still profit from it. You can and will be replaced by a better businessman. There wasn't any EU 100y ago. How did his grandfather made the business then, huh?

[@MA-kr6yv]

@@patrik3482 the business model most likely completely changed tf it’s been 100 years afterall😂😂

[@MrDecessus]

Saddest part is many who voted for this nonsense have died of and never really had to worry about the consequences. Should not have the geriatrics of the country dictate the future.

[@wolfeflambe]

@@brokenrecord3095 truss was the useful idiot for the hedge fund managers and bankers who bet on the pound tanking after her announcements.

[@jfcfanfic]

I honestly feel sorry for the younger population most of all, as they are the ones inheriting all of these problems when they voted against it in the first place.

[@JayTraversJT]

True. The funny part about brexit is how allot of us younger folk don't even remember a single soul of the public discussing any issue with the EU prior to Cameron mentioning such. Honestly, I really do not believe that the majority even knew if we were part of the union. Just some trendy heard mentality.

[@Robert-cu9bm]

Are you going to feel sorry for the younger generation that can't vote now for the decisions your votes make?

[@jfcfanfic]

@@Robert-cu9bm Doesn't apply to me, I'm from Puerto Rico. I just love to read about economics and projects across the world. ;)

[@Robert-cu9bm]

@@jfcfanfic Ask yourself this then, would you want one of your neighboring countries deciding what you can or can't do in your own country?.

@@Robert-cu9bm That's why we kept killing you. The EU is not that.

[@edmundcasey7765]

BREXIT MEANS ISOLATION. . .. ARROGANCE DOES NOT PRODUCE DEVIDENDS

[@chiragarora2827]

Thanks Britain you are a great lesson for what not to do. The EU is stronger than ever.

[@arranchace1306]

Yeah, in my country (Netherlands) there where then some people making a Nexit Suggestion, now 2022 you hear absolutely nothing on the Subject anymore, maybe if you search deep on some obscure website of a couple of angry idiots, but anything serious.. nope that fully got silenced.. Really glad UK did the experiment, and showed the rest of the EU, that dispite it flaws, we still better off in it.

[@stewartroberts5817]

Yes, very united on the subject of Russia......

[@MetallicReg]

@@arranchace1306 They never were a really established member considering all those benefits and exceptions along of a disconnected currency that they enjoyed. So it was really the absolute best-case example of a country going against their regional interests that you can imagine.

[@allnamesaretaken]

The EU stronger than ever? that why they are sanctioning Poland and Orban demanding the EU lift sanctions on Russia. There are countless examples of disunity in the EU. Nowhere is perfect.

[@Victor-07-04]

@@arranchace1306 Niet dat ik het mis hoor

[@notbugs]

I remember that in january 2021 i went about and deleted a folder full of bookmarks to UK-businesses that i used to order stuff from. It just did not make any sense to keep them since the hurdle to get stuff delivered had become enough high that it no longer was worth spending time and money on such orders. I have now found replacements in other countries within the EU so i can keep on buying stuff without any hassle. Just feel sorry for those UK- businesses who are missing out on what was a first choice of business before Brexit came and messed it all up.

[@Solid_Snake99]

Same i did on Ebay, the expenses went up by 30€ !!!!

[@fjuvo]

I feel sorry for Scotland. They didn't vote for Brexit and still got dragged out of the EU. Hope Scottish independence success, so they can rejoin the single market

[@mickeyfilmer5551]

The British people believed the lies of Farage about Eastern Europeans taking all our jobs, and The #LiarJohnson telling people that the UK gave £350 Million to the EU every week, and by leaving he said all that money would go to the NHS- a massive lie. Brexit was a huge scam that preyed upon the weak minded, the racists and the ignorant, who couldn't see the truth behind the façade of lies spewing out from Tufton street and Bannon et al ! 😠

[@watchlover7750]

I also stop buying stuff from UK

[@marcusgarvey9933]

If were not under Rothschild's usury system, all of us would be way more wealthy.

[@gabrielna5968]

40 years of staying in the UE had been an extraordinary succes for Britain: with a giant market at its disposal, being able to keep the Pound (and to control the EU evolution from inside), in an strategic situation, between the US and the EU, and all that without any sovereignty loss, as the Brexit itself proves.. all that was lost overnight because of a ridiculous little man and also because of an ill nostalgia for a long gone Empire..

[@philjames6206]

Also Farage played the racist card. Johnson wouldn't have been allowed to.

[@hughjohns9110]

@@philjames6206 I think you will find you are the one using racism to further your point (whatever that might be).

[@gwaponobby]

You are obviously not from the UK because you're talking crap. So where are you from and we can discuss how great your country is?

[@razvanclaudiu1979]

The real benefits of Brexit are the continuation of tax avoidance schemes (but only for the few) and the reduction in workers rights that big corporations dream of. It was never meant to benefit small companies or the people of the UK, that is why the politicians that pushed Brexit are struggling to find an upside that they can sell to us.

[@gabrielna5968]

@@gwaponobby Britain is (nevertheless) a great country, and crap is what brexiteers have let their minds poison with..

[@MRiitta]

As a matter of fact, people in the EU said good bye to the UK the date of the Brexit. The products and produce of the UK are almost forgotten here.

[@paulkerr3863]

I was in Milan, with all these guys from England who voted to leave. It baffles me the extent of arrogance many Brits showed. They assumed that all would remain the same. None of these Guys have been back in Milan since Brexit due to the red tape. I believe the old imperialist was brought out in many people and this blinded them to the stark reality of their regrettable choice.

[@AXFN_]

Most people on the street don’t connect anything bad right now with Brexit though…it all gets blamed on Covid. I don’t know if those guys you mentioned even know or care if Brexit is going badly. To people like them being a Brexiter made them patriotic, and remainers warning against it simply “didn’t believe in Britain”.

[@debasishraychawdhuri]

" I believe the old imperialist was brought out in many people" - absolutely spot on. One example of that mentality is just the assumption that labour from other EU nations are lesser skilled than the Brits.

[@kaimalino528]

Unfortunately you are correct. Brits are not yet convinced that they are just another middling European Country; their Empire is gone. Correction: Their Empire has came home to roost, much to the discomfort of the locals.

[@danieleyre8913]

Yes you encountered an element of the British who are still very imperialistic and arrogant. It’s ingrained into their mentality by the section of the education system that they went through, many channels of their tabloid media that they subscribe to, and their general peers. It goes hand in hand with also encouraging that fake outward confidence “Jack the lad” attitude. Beneath it all is a subconscious beliefs that they are better than the rest of the world and are entitled to what they want from the rest of the world. It probably never crossed their minds that they were in Italy as guests and were being down a favour, they probably thought that they were entitled to do what they want in Italy by their rules.

[@ekaterinastaneva9922]

I knew this British woman who lived in eastern europe and voted leave because of unhealthy emigration from....eastern europe. She has been living in Bulgaria for a decade, didn't know the language, was only hanging out with other expats, but claimed all them Polish, Romanian, middle eatern and Africans ( who knows what they have to do with the EU) are coming to England to work cheap jobs, live in a bubble and don't even know the language. Her eglish expat friends did the same. What the hell? PS. Bulgarians in UK mass voted leave to prevent "more mokeys holding to their branch".

[@Samgurney88]

I recently spoke to a small business owner who was a hardcore Brexiter. He admitted that Brexit has been an obvious disaster, but he blamed it on not having a hard enough Brexit! He complained that people are just too lazy to do extra paperwork - as if our European trading partners owe us a favour so that Brexit doesn’t hurt us. (I know European business owners and people who work for European companies - they are sympathetic to the British, but none feel that they owe us any free favours. Shocking, I know.) There is absolutely no reasoning with people who refuse to see reality even when it is staring them in the face. These are the same people who think the UK had almost infinite bargaining power relative to the EU, who think expert opinion is less valid than wishful thinking, who think all statistics are lies, etc.

[@davids8127]

It's the good old Tribalism, they abandoned logic and choose ideology.

[@kaimalino528]

The Brits are not alone in their delusion. Millions of Americans still believe Trump lost the 2020 election because the other folks Cheated.

[@danieleyre8913]

Well he probably still reads tabloid newspapers, and is subject to their brainwashing.

[@-JayStar-]

Hey Gurney’s - Brexiters ideological cousins here in the US are MAGA/Trumpanzees. They believed so strongly in their faith that Trump’s election was stolen from him (as if Trump himself didn’t have the keys to power to prevent the election from being stolen) that they attempted a coup on Jan 6. There is no getting thru to these people as I think and have read they simply despise their fellow countrymen whom they’ve never met but nonetheless they would cut off their nose to spite their face. It’s really a dangerous situation here - I blame the outsized influence of Fox and other right wing outlets here - I am not sure why the UK wanted to inflict pain on itself…

[@auggieeast]

They sound like our MAGAts.

[@aspanon1560]

Moved to Germany from the UK in 2020 to avoid this mess. I've left my family and friends and had to start a new life. My family has sent me care parcels with marmite and yorkshire tea but stopped bothering after they all go stuck in customs and I had to fork out a ton to get them out. The funny thing is, I don't regret any of it, and every day I read the news coming out of the UK I am so glad I got out. What a bloody mess. Only a few more years until German citizenship 🤞

[@aspanon1560]

@@joaocosta3374 I'm Celtic, I'm afraid.

[@mohnkuddel2]

Herzlichst willkommen Bruder oder Schwester :)

[@tubesound1230]

@@joaocosta3374 Well bilogical u are an ape

[@awpetersen5909]

@@aspanon1560 very cool

[@anonymouse8124]

Willkommen in Deutschland! Angelsachsen deinesgleichen empfangen wir mit offenen Armen ^^

[@jonr1122]

Why this documentry is not on mainstream TV is beyond me.

[@mikowhynot777]

This is the mainstream TV now...

[@liamhegarty3220]

I´ve shut down my company in the UK and moved to Spain. Last year, the Spanish Tributaria got 200k that would, previously, have been paid to HMRC. A drop in the ocean, I´m sure...but how many have been forced down this route? What is the total detriment to the UK economy?

[@kenzieelton6126]

The UK is in a never ending turmoil

[@Iugeer]

whats your company if you dont mind me asking?

[@liamhegarty3220]

@@Iugeer Sorry, but I don't want to give the name in case it becomes a target for gammony trolls. It is a specialist engineering consultancy that operates in the aerospace, defence and nuclear sectors. I opened it in 2008 and have now moved to Spain because I could no longer acquire contract based staff quickly enough to satisfy client requirements.

[@jonsimmons4150]

Sweet f.a. compared to the 3.9 billion quid aukus sub building in barrow in furness. Google--> 900 homes barrow aukus Goes to bbc article. 😁😆😅

[@hannofranz7973]

What I still find amazing is the cherry-picking vision that many brexiteers had and was seen by how annoyed they got when they realized that they didn't have the free access in the EU they used to have before. Absolutely mind-blowing.

[@jonsimmons4150]

didnt want free access.. why? thats a political union. japan can trade freely the world over- don't need to have its immigration policy managed on the back of its trading arrangements, and pay for the privilege...

[@The_Phoenix_Saga]

@@jonsimmons4150 exactly. Something to which puppets don't seem to want to realise.

[@justmythought7658]

@@jonsimmons4150 Then where's the problem? The UK can trade freely with the EU like Japan can. Another Brexiteer who doesn't understand the difference between a free trade deal and the single market.

[@Hideyoshi1991]

@@jonsimmons4150 m8 the whole point of the EU is a political union, the eventual goal is and always has been to become a single unified country, the UK left because they didn't want that.

[@matthijslenaerts9423]

@@jonsimmons4150 Japan has a massive labour market problem due to an aging population and some of the worst birth rates and female labour participation for a developed economy. Every economist worth their salt has been screaming that it needs immigration to maintain its economy long term. And Japan trades the world over the exact same way that European nations do. The EU arguably has better trade deals. But it also has the advantage of an internal market that absolutely dwarfs Japan in both resources and consumers. If you know nothing, sit down and be quiet.

[@Mauldy]

I will never understand why the UK did this to itself.

[@andrewjones-productions]

It wasn't the UK. It was just one of the countries in the UK. England and the English are the prime culprits for this mess.

[@alanhat5252]

it didn't. Brexit was _done to_ the UK. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqWXYayoqZiJqLs tells you some of what's behind it but the big part you can find in all the documentaries around CambridgeAnalytica (which is owned by one of the biggest hedgefunds in the world)

[@malakatan3235]

Did citizens ever understand how country work ?

[@hakanozaslan9571]

Mix of xenophobia, racism, greed and delusion. The EU tries to get rid of of financial loopholes and tax havens, London benifitted A LOT with Russian billionairs hiding their money in the UK, as you can see with them investing in the most expensive properties of the city. Many politicians and their "friends" from the financial world wanted to keep all of that and establish a so called "Singapur on the Thames" , where the UK would diverge from the EU policies with much less regulations and a lot of tax cuts for the rich (which they still tried with recent "mini budget"). So they campaigned with a lot of lies about "too many and insane rules from Brussels", that the UK had basically "no control over its borders" (even tho they could have closed it at any time), lots of "horror stories" about EU migrants taking advantage of the UK social systems and bleeding them dry etc etc etc

[@Americaninparis2012]

@@malakatan3235 DW has a great documentary about a fishing village that was horribly hit since leaving EU. None of the things promised ever came to fruition. Many reeducation courses that some fishermen took advantage of, came out of EU budget that had disappeared once England left EU.

[@jeremy3583]

No man is an island. From our French point of view, we are not sad to see England leave the European Union. It had only advantages and "Opt-outs" (currency, Schengen, justice, social) and has NEVER been satisfied with its situation.