Brexitland

The Tribes of Remaining and Leaving

¨It seems that the end is near. Four and a half years after voters chose it in a referendum, the process of UK withdrawal from the European Union is coming to an end.

The final act may still be calm or chaotic, but in any case, at least politics will no longer be dominated by grumpy discussions between the tribes of Leave and Remain. We can move from the minutiae of fish quotas and customs declarations to the basic issues that really matter.

Britain has been reshaped by mass immigration, increased ethnic diversity and an expansion of higher education. The EU referendum activated the new divisions opened up by these changes, creating political identities - Stand and Leave - and banners for voters with different world views and priorities to support. These Leaver and Remainer identities are now more widely shared and intensely felt than any other form of political attachment. The political struggle is different because everyone knows which side they are on and who they oppose.¨

- Robert Ford and Maria Sobolewska are professors of political science at the University of Manchester. Their new book is Brexitland