Brexit chaos: An ugly divorce

More than two years after deciding to quit the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom (UK) remains as bitterly divided polity as ever. The divorce process that began after 51.9 pc of British voters choose leave option is no way near the completion despite being only four months away from cutoff date after which UK will crash out of EU.

Situation has become so much grim for Conservative leader and Prime Minister Theresa May that if a 585-page draft withdrawal agreement that sets out the terms of the departure from the EU is rejected by the cabinet, it could mean a vote of no-confidence against the her, snap election or people’s vote.

The draft agreement has also upset some Tory backbenchers, including leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, who says he and other likeminded MPs have submitted letters of no-confidence in May to the chairman of the Conservatives’ backbench 1922 Committee. Forty-eight letters are needed to trigger a confidence vote, a number her opponents say they will have till Monday.

The botched proceedings of Brexit should serve as a precedent for leaders everywhere who resort to ultra-nationalist rhetoric in order to achieve short term political objectives. What should be clear is that the right-wing Brexiteers resigning from the cabinet are admitting that they promised a lie.

The myth of an independent and strong Britain was peddled to the British public. The boldest decision right now could only be to admit the folly of the situation and reverse the Brexit decision. This also means that the so-called wave of protectionist nationalism is not sustainable, and the globalization of world economy is set to be the hot trend of century.

Our policy makers need to realize the emerging trends and constitute new mechanisms to exploit these changing times in Pakistan’s favor.