There is not much the EU could have done to keep the UK in its club. Former Prime Minister Cameron tried sought some concessions, but the importance assigned to immigration and regaining sovereignty by the Brexit camp and British media meant that there was no politically realistic concession that the EU could have made to appease those favoring to leave the EU. It sought a broad union instead of a deepening union. The broadening of the union means that overtime, decisions could not be made on the basis of unanimity. That simply was not an efficient governing principle as the bloc got bigger.
Sterling little changed in a quiet Tuesday trade
- Tuesday, Dec 19 2017
There were no data releases from the UK today with focus on Brexit once again. 18-months on from the referendum, some polls show the "Remain" camp has moved into the lead. This is understandable, as the "Brexit" camp oversold the benefits and minimized the costs, which are becoming clearer as the divorce talks proceed. Cameron made the referendum binding, and although May deviated from several of his initiatives, she could not bring herself (or the country) to do re-think the results of the referendum. The EU (and others) can rightly be surprised that the UK would make such a momentous decision on the basis of such a narrow vote.