Why so much referendum decision remorse?

[Gogoplata]

For what it's worth, nobody that I know who voted to leave regrets it, neither do I.

[Kermit power]

Gogoplata said:

For what it's worth, nobody that I know who voted to leave regrets it, neither do I.

I only know of one who does, but then he lost a deal yesterday "because Brexit" which would've paid him around £12k in commission, so he has felt the pain rather more directly than most!

I suspect more will follow.

[eharding]

Gogoplata said:

For what it's worth, nobody that I know who voted to leave regrets it, neither do I.

Did you and your acquaintances use a privately-supplied pen or the voting-station-supplied pencil to vote?

[Kermit power]

Elysium said:

I expect there is a dawning realisation for many that:

1. The leave campaign was founded on a bunch of random entirely made up nonsense that cannot be delivered (£350m a week saved, new hospitals, cancer drugs, free movement for us but not for the foreigners and access to the single market free of charge)

2. Boris and his gang had no plan at all. Nothing.

3. The predictions made by almost all financial institutions and experts have come true - our markets are suffering and our personal finances will also suffer in time.

4. The architect of our misfortune, David Cameron led a lacklustre campaign, failing to explain why we should stay and after losing has simply opted out.

I think it is natural that many will feel misled and let down. I expect they will stand by their reasoning for wanting to leave, but will be wondering if this will happen and if the price of an illusory freedom will be worth paying.

Sorry, I completely disagree on point 2. I think Boris absolutely had a plan. It was to be the plucky loser who almost got the leave campaign over the line, winning over the support of voters outside his natural power base in the process, and setting him up to be PM for a good 2 or 3 terms once Cameron left.

The problem is that Boris didn't have a plan for the unimaginable disaster scenario of him actually "winning" the referendum!

[gumshoe]

mph1977 said:

'project fear' of course being the Leave campaign ...

funny how remain predictions are turning out to be correct and leave have realised they cannot fund their promises or that the EU are going t obe be scrupulously to the letter in how they conduct leave negotiations ...

What predications are turning out to be correct?

That we will have a 10 year recession? err it's only been a few days. What model is your crystal ball?

the stock market would take a hit? That was obvious. 7/7 caused a stock market/currency hit. That's not going to last long and is expected from the markets to place a bet.

What else is proving true?

There is no referendum remorse from the number of people I talk to. The remorse seems to be from shills that the remain campaign put about in an attempt to scare.

The government should not be allowed to back out of this democratic vote.

[Digitalize]

People were protest voting, not wanting to actually leave but show 'them' that 'they' are unhappy with how things are currently.

But then it also seems a lot of people voted out to change things that would never be effected by the UK leaving the EU.

[gumshoe]

Digitalize said:

People were protest voting, not wanting to actually leave but show 'them' that 'they' are unhappy with how things are currently.

But then it also seems a lot of people voted out to change things that would never be effected by the UK leaving the EU.

How did you come to your convenient little conclusion?

Who are these "people" you think were protest voting?

How about the fact that some of us have a spine, have a brain and believe in democracy?

A good number of people have woken up to what the EU really is and where it will be going, and they don't want it.

[Mr Tidy]

Digitalize said:

People were protest voting, not wanting to actually leave but show 'them' that 'they' are unhappy with how things are currently.

But then it also seems a lot of people voted out to change things that would never be effected by the UK leaving the EU.

Where is all that remorse? Or are the media being rather creative?

The Remain supporters started a petition, and it reportedly soon became apparent that there were multiple entries as well as plenty of petitionists who never had a vote in the first place!

I voted to leave and that is still my view! Most people I know were pro-Brexit and speaking to any of them since the vote they are still pro-Brexit.

There will be some realignment of things in the financial markets, but I'm convinced it isn't all gloom and doom - after all our dropping out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism was supposed to result in total disaster, but that never happened!

I just hope we make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity - I'm looking forward to our "Great Escape"!

I'd be amazed if no other nation copied us in the next year or so.

[rscott]

Mr Tidy said:

Digitalize said:

People were protest voting, not wanting to actually leave but show 'them' that 'they' are unhappy with how things are currently.

But then it also seems a lot of people voted out to change things that would never be effected by the UK leaving the EU.

Where is all that remorse? Or are the media being rather creative?

The Remain supporters started a petition, and it reportedly soon became apparent that there were multiple entries as well as plenty of petitionists who never had a vote in the first place!

I voted to leave and that is still my view! Most people I know were pro-Brexit and speaking to any of them since the vote they are still pro-Brexit.

There will be some realignment of things in the financial markets, but I'm convinced it isn't all gloom and doom - after all our dropping out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism was supposed to result in total disaster, but that never happened!

I just hope we make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity - I'm looking forward to our "Great Escape"!

I'd be amazed if no other nation copied us in the next year or so.

Nope - the petition was started by a worried Leave supporter. A fine upstanding member of the English Democrats...

[Elysium]

Kermit power said:

Sorry, I completely disagree on point 2. I think Boris absolutely had a plan. It was to be the plucky loser who almost got the leave campaign over the line, winning over the support of voters outside his natural power base in the process, and setting him up to be PM for a good 2 or 3 terms once Cameron left.

The problem is that Boris didn't have a plan for the unimaginable disaster scenario of him actually "winning" the referendum!

Quite ... Boris almost certainly regrets his leave vote.

I think it shows just how much he and Cameron underestimated the under current of British ill-feeling toward the EU.

[lostkiwi]

Mr Tidy said:

The Remain supporters started a petition, and it reportedly soon became apparent that there were multiple entries as well as plenty of petitionists who never had a vote in the first place!

Please check your facts.
The petition was started a month before the referendum by a Leave supporter who thought they would lose.

ETA - damn, didn't read the next post.

[Frik]

Elysium said:

I expect there is a dawning realisation for many that:

1. The leave campaign was founded on a bunch of random entirely made up nonsense that cannot be delivered (£350m a week saved, new hospitals, cancer drugs, free movement for us but not for the foreigners and access to the single market free of charge)

2. Boris and his gang had no plan at all. Nothing.

3. The predictions made by almost all financial institutions and experts have come true - our markets are suffering and our personal finances will also suffer in time.

4. The architect of our misfortune, David Cameron led a lacklustre campaign, failing to explain why we should stay and after losing has simply opted out.

I think it is natural that many will feel misled and let down. I expect they will stand by their reasoning for wanting to leave, but will be wondering if this will happen and if the price of an illusory freedom will be worth paying.

This. There was a clear anti-establishment sway to many people's (not all, certainly not your average PHer's) vote. Some of those will be furious if their choice isn't implemented. Some will breath a sigh of relief that the result of their protest vote isn't brought to fruition.

Agree with smartypants though that referenda are generally a terrible way to make democratic decisions. Joining together for the good of the country is much harder when you start from a point of strong division.

[Tycho]

[redacted]

[Don]

I have a prediction: If you ran the referendum again it would vote Leave by rather more than 52%.

It won't happen so there will never be proof.

I reckon that people would simply say: You're asking me again? Here it is with knobs on.

[jshell]

Don said:

I have a prediction: If you ran the referendum again it would vote Leave by rather more than 52%.

Especially if they read, and understood the implications of this: http://www.tvp.info/25939587/europejskie-superpans...

[tarnished]

jshell said:

Especially if they read, and understood the implications of this: http://www.tvp.info/25939587/europejskie-superpans...

I'm not sure how much is the content, how much is the tone, but I found that quite a disturbing read.

[230TE]

Tycho said:

You are being shortsighted about this just like most remainers. It isn't about now but about the path the EU is taking. They went from a trade bloc to a political entity with the stated aim of total assimilation of all nations into one with no mandate from the people. This is the first time we have had a say on this and although history is littered with referendum reversals and fudges to ensure the "right" result, a lot of people cannot see the corruption and self serving nature of the EU. Remainers are bleating on about their view that they are the only ones who are thinking of the children but this is complete rubbish.

All the current chatter seems to overlook the essential point that this country has never been a comfortable fit in the EU, and the EU's response of "full speed ahead for integration" suggests that Cameron was never going to get a good deal for Britain, much as I wanted him to. To use a motoring analogy, we joined the MG Owners Club and then spent forty years trying to persuade the other members to sell their MGs and buy Triumphs instead. The EU was established on the principle that stability trumps democracy, which is understandable when you look at the experience of most European countries over the last century. But the British view, from our own experience, is that a healthy democracy is actually a guarantee of stability, not a threat to be contained. We tried to persuade others of this view, and failed. All we can do now is get on and demonstrate, from outside the EU, that we were and still are right.

Having said which, with both main political parties pulling themselves to bits over the referendum result, we're not off to a good start.

[vonuber]

Don said:

I have a prediction: If you ran the referendum again it would vote Leave by rather more than 52%.

It won't happen so there will never be proof.

I reckon that people would simply say: You're asking me again? Here it is with knobs on.

I dont. I think itwould be a greater swing the othet way. Our own ph poll shows a swing of at least 6%, and this is practically farage central.

[sidicks]

vonuber said:

I dont. I think itwould be a greater swing the othet way. Our own ph poll shows a swing of at least 6%, and this is practically farage central.

How many people voted?
Was it the same people in both cases?

[don4l]

nadger said:

don4l said:

Matt UK said:

Maybe it's just the news coverage, but I'm staggered there so many people saying they voted leave "but are now not sure if they made the right decision" or are "surprised it actually happened and now feel nervous".

Seriously, did the people of this country not understand what they were voting for?

This is an orchestrated campaign to destabilise the referendum result.

Votes can be traced. I bet that if we do a little investigation, we will discover that they are lying through their teeth.

The whole Remain campaign has been built on lies.

Interesting. So the 350 million WILL be spent on the nhs then?!

What a strawman.

If you disagree that the Remain campaign was built on lies, then all you need to do is give us an example of a truth that they told.