Brexit: The Movie and Its Impact on UK's Departure from the EU

Through our course materials this week we examined “Brexit” and the potential impacts of the unprecedented and the reality of the UK’s leave from the EU thus Brexit: far. The Movie, though lacking evidence and failed arguments, tries to make the argument to average UK citizens that the only chance to save the UK and their own autonomy in their lifetimes (and even their children’s) is to vote for Brexit. To build this argument, the film makes various arguments that are all failable and not even backed up by legit evidence in their own film. Additionally, there are clear trends of xenophobia against other member states and outside EU countries and British nationalism is apparent in many arguments, with Chinese enterprise, calling their markets and innovations “oriental charges” and depicting other stereotypical depictions of European countries, like French man in the same part of the film mentioned above is wearing a barret and is dressed like a mime, and of course is selling wine and cheese. These depictions of both new innovations from Asia and other European countries build into the film’s overall argument for Brexit, that new people and bureaucracy threatens the existence of the “traditional” Britain. Anti-refugee and antiimmigration were the drivers of Brexit, not the “economic” situation or changing their deal (Vox 2016) a correlation between anti-immigration rural voters voting to leave. Goodwin’s reading confirms this and states that the UK’s vote for Brexit was a culminating event that has been building within some of the nation’s population for some time. Issues like increased refugees/migrants, economic-woes being falsely tied to the EU, the “changed landscape” of the EU, and PM David Cameron’s 2013 “in or out referendum” have built the narrative against the EU, and in 2016, 52% of the population voted to leave. Goodwin argued also for a “changing landscape” in part leading to Brexit Goodwin builds on the argument that part of why Britain pushed for an exit from the EU was how the organization had changed since the last referendum in 1975. The EU had expanded (9-29 states) and the talk of adding states like Albania, Serbia, and possibly Turkey (Goodwin 13) only furthered this argument for those against the UK staying in the EU. Recent issues too like the Greek debt crisis, the great recession, the UK’s own major debt crisis, and high rates of unemployment were used as arguments for the UK’s exit. However, post-Brexit, economically the UK saw massive losses with trade gains and their growth in GDP, with British families as well in 2017 reducing national British income by 0.6% and 1.3% (RAND 2017). Additionally, COVID-19 has had impacts on the UK’s economy and it will be interesting to see how the combination of leaving the EU and the pandemic will further change their economy. Additionally, it is interesting to see how the US is now looking to the Netherlands and other European states to find an in for policy and influence to the EU. Discussion Question: - What does Scotland voting in 2016 against Brexit say for their potential to hold its own referendum for independence, with leaders like PM Nicola Sturgeon sparring with PM Boris Johnson, especially over trade and COVID-19 regulations?