A wake-up call for liberal Brexiters

Brexiters assumed that Britain would face a benign international environment once freed from the EU. They took for granted that the UK would be able to rely on the key global public goods underwritten by the US: the global trading system, the international financial system and international security. They argued that Britain would be able to leave the EU, but take advantage of open markets elsewhere. Britain’s financial services industries would profit from being able to sell into US dominated global financial markets, unencumbered by EU regulation. And their implicit assumption was that the US would continue to provide the security umbrella that makes peace and prosperity possible. The election of Donald Trump has undermined the premises of their argument. Forging as close ties as possible with the EU has never been so important for the UK.

• Primary Source

Blog: LSE Brexit, 01.12.16: A ‘soft Brexit’ is the only viable strategy in a post-liberal world http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2016/12/01/a-soft-brexit-is-the-only-viable-strategy-in-a-post-liberal-world/

ESO: Background information: Britain is Caught Between Trump and a Hard Place http://www.europeansources.info/record/britain-is-caught-between-trump-and-a-hard-place/

ESO: Background information: Does Brexit Mean the Future Is President Trump? http://www.europeansources.info/record/does-brexit-mean-the-future-is-president-trump/

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