The informal Salzburg summit has driven home the bitter truth behind the Brexit saga. It has become unnegotiable. Mrs May now has a constitutional duty to admit that truth. There is no positive outcome that is equally acceptable to the EU and to the UK, argues Jolyon Howorth

Howorth, Jolyon

LSE Research Online

Brexit	has	become	unnegotiable.	Theresa	May	has	aconstitutional	duty	to	admit	that	truthThe	informal	Salzburg	summit	has	driven	home	the	bitter	truth	behind	the	Brexit	saga.	It	has	becomeunnegotiable.	Mrs	May	now	has	a	constitutional	duty	to	admit	that	truth.	There	is	no	positive	outcomethat	is	equally	acceptable	to	the	EU	and	to	the	UK,	argues	Jolyon	Howorth.The	British	people,	who	voted	in	a	narrow	majority	to	leave	the	EU,	were	disinformed	and	misled	infundamentally	devious	ways	by	the	Brexiters.	President	Macron	stated	this	baldly	and	he	is	right.	TheLeavers	had	no	idea	what	they	were	getting	the	country	into	and	the	overwhelming	majority	of	voters	would	havebeen	incapable	of	outlining	how	they	saw	things	developing	during	and	after	the	negotiations	on	exiting.	They	did	notknow	the	difference	between	a	“hard”	or	a	“soft”	Brexit.	They	had	no	information	about	the	relative	merits	anddemerits	of	the	“EEA	model”	as	opposed	to	the	“Canada	model”	or	the	“no	deal	model”	or	indeed	any	other	exitmodel.	In	short,	the	electorate	was	sold	a	myth.	They	were	sold	that	myth	by	a	handful	of	ideologues	and	careeristswho	had	no	clearer	idea	than	the	voters	themselves	about	what	Brexit	actually	involved.Theresa	May’s	apparent	fixation	on	respecting	the	verdict	of	the	electorate	is	therefore	misguided,	unnecessary	anddangerous.	It	is	dangerous	because	all	of	the	serious	studies	about	the	impact	on	the	UK	of	Brexit,	including	thegovernment’s	own	comprehensive	study,	make	it	quite	clear	that,	under	any	scenario,	the	country	will	be	worse	offafter	the	UK	leaves	than	it	was	before.	How	could	any	prime	minister	accept	such	a	stark	outcome	in	the	name	of	abadly	flawed	“democratic	decision”?	The	“Chequers	plan”	is	currently	being	spun	even	by	some	of	the	most	seriousBrexit	analysts	as	having	merit.	That	is	only	the	case	if	one	accepts	that,	in	comparison	with	all	the	other	“plans”proposed	by	the	hard	Brexiters,	or	with	either	the	EEA	model	or	the	Canada	model,	it	is,	for	the	UK,	almost	bydefault,	the	least	unacceptable	of	the	lot.	But	that	does	not	make	it	acceptable	to	the	EU.	It	has	been	firmly	rejectedby	the	EU-27,	as	Donald	Tusk	said,	because	“it	will	not	work”.	If,	as	a	plan	for	UK-EU	relations	going	forward,	it	willnot	work	for	the	EU,	it	will	not	work	–	full	stop.	Mrs	May	has	argued	that	it	is	now	up	to	the	EU	to	propose	its	ownplan.	That	is	not	the	case.	If	the	UK	wishes	to	forge	a	new	relationship	with	the	EU,	it	is	up	to	London	to	set	out	aplan	that	will	work	for	both	sides.Image	by	JimMattis	–	170511-D-GY869-0152.LSE Brexit: Brexit has become unnegotiable. Theresa May has a constitutional duty to admit that truth Page 1 of 2		Date originally posted: 2018-09-25Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2018/09/25/brexit-has-become-unnegotiable-theresa-may-has-a-constitutional-duty-to-admit-that-truth/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/Mrs	May	has	no	alternative	now,	if	she	is	to	be	honest	with	herself	(a	Remainer)	and	with	the	British	people	(whowere	misinformed).	As	the	country’s	leader	and	the	person	most	invested	in	seeking	a	positive	outcome,	she	mustfinally	admit	the	truth	in	a	full	and	frank	address	to	the	British	people.	Brexit	was	a	mistake.	There	is	no	positiveoutcome	that	meets	the	red	lines	of	the	two	parties.	To	her	credit,	she	made	an	honest	and	valiant	attempt	tonegotiate	what	finally	transpired	to	be	the	unnegotiable.	It	is	not	her	fault	that	she	failed.	The	only	sensible	course,therefore,	is	to	suspend	Article	50	and	request	a	return	to	the	status-quo	ante.	Hard-line	Brexiters	will	continue	to	fretand	froth,	but	the	vast	majority	of	English	citizens	(and	Brexit	is	overwhelmingly	a	problem	for	the	English)	willrecognize	that	Brexit	was,	quite	simply,	a	bad	idea.	They	will	then	get	on	with	their	lives.There	could	be	one	unanticipated	positive	outcome.	The	British	people	(and	particularly	the	English),	who	have	beenin	search	of	their	identity	since	1945,	might	finally	recognize	that	it	lies	not	in	the	distant	past(Empire/Commonwealth),	nor	in	the	recent	past	(“special	relationship”	with	the	US)	but	in	the	future:	the	creation	of	aEurope	whole,	free	and	at	peace.	It	is	better	that	they	draw	this	conclusion	today	rather	than	in	2040	after	a	period	ofharsh	isolation	in	the	middle	of	the	North	Sea.	Mrs	May	has	the	political	and	constitutional	responsibility	to	head	offsuch	an	outcome	by	finally	telling	the	truth.This	post	represents	the	views	of	the	author	and	not	those	of	the	LSE	Brexit	blog	nor	of	the	LSE.Jolyon	Howorth	is	Jean	Monnet	Professor	ad	personam	and	Emeritus	Professor	of	European	Politics	at	theUniversity	of	Bath.	From	2002	to	2018,	he	was	Visiting	Professor	of	Political	Science	and	International	Affairs	at	YaleUniversity.	He	is	currently	Visiting	Professor	of	Public	Policy	at	Harvard	University’s	Kennedy	School	of	Government.LSE Brexit: Brexit has become unnegotiable. Theresa May has a constitutional duty to admit that truth Page 2 of 2		Date originally posted: 2018-09-25Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2018/09/25/brexit-has-become-unnegotiable-theresa-may-has-a-constitutional-duty-to-admit-that-truth/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/

Brexit has become unnegotiable. Theresa May has a constitutional duty to admit that truth

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Brexit has become unnegotiable. Theresa May has a constitutional duty to admit that truth

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