So long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu...

18:01

So the UK has voted to leave the European union.


I don't even know what more I can say.




52% of the votes cast on the 23rd of June called for the UK to leave the European Union. On the 24th, a country and its expat community woke to the shocking news that everything has changed.

In the last 24 hours, we have devalued our currency, had our Prime Minister David Cameron resign, two of the home nations (Scotland and Northern Ireland) are considering leaving the United Kingdom, and we have had a prominent member of the Leave Campaign make some tasteless comments about an MP who died last week, before the whole leave campaign admitted that many of the things they promised might not happen.

Now the voter's remorse has set in, and some people are wishing they had voted to remain. 

But it is too late. That's it.

Well not quite. Firstly - because of the Doctrine of Parliamentary Sovereignty which states that only parliament has the right to make binding laws in the UK, a referendum from the people is not legally binding. Parliament can choose to ignore it. However it would be political suicide so it is an unlikely outcome.

Secondly by 9:00 am this morning there was already a petition to hold a second referendum. That is even more unlikely. We are not doing this again.

Thirdly - MPs may yet vote for another general election. A referendum isn't legally binding, but an election mandate would be. Some are calling for a general election now that the Prime Minister has resigned. If enough MPs were elected promising to remain in the EU it would mean the referendum result would be inferior to their elected mandate. We would pretend it never happened. Again a risky strategy.

But perhaps what is most interesting is what is going on now. A number of prominent leave campaigners seem to be back peddling fast. See, our withdrawal from the EU depends on us activating Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon. This is the part of the treaty that governs a country leaving. It was created to be deliberately vague and difficult to understand in the hopes it would put people off (Also nobody has ever left before so there is no precedent). But what it does say is the member state must make its decision legally and then notify the EU of its plans to withdraw. Then there are 2 years of negotiations.

What seems to be happening is a stand off. The EU is demanding the UK move as quickly as possible, but in his resignation speech, David Cameron said the decision to activate Article 50 would be left to his successor. Boris Johnson (a likely candidate for the Prime Minister's Job) has said there is "no rush" to activate Article 50. The EU cannot force a Member State to activate this. So we are in a stalemate.

As for me I am just horribly upset. I have to admit I  burst into tears several times today, because I believe my future has just been sacrificed on the altar of xenophobia, ignorance, and lies. I have already had a job interview cancelled on me for a company developing a "learn English" app for french speakers because my "ability to work inside the EU is in doubt." when I asked who they would be getting in to work for them if they had no British people they replied "Americans, Canadians, Australians..." I was thrown out of the jobs market by lunchtime. What a bright future.

To my many European friends, and the rest of Europe, I say this. Please don't hate us. The vote was so close - 48% of the UK desperately wanted to remain with you! Many of us are trying to find a way around it. I don't even know if I will go back to the UK permanently or try to make it here in France. I have to wait and see what the conditions of my stay are. Any offers of marriage to anyone from an EU country would be gratefully received...

I am so, so sorry. I am deeply and profoundly saddened by this rupture between us.

But I will try to look at this with the knowledge I have gained over my time living in the EU as an au pair:

We, the UK, have spent the last 40 years behaving like a toddler with the EU constantly stamping our feet and whining. The EU has acted like our au pair, soothing us, placating us, and trying to keep us disciplined, like an extra parent. This referendum was us throwing the toys out of the pram assuming we'd get them back as always. But now the au pair has lost her patience and we are on the naughty step, in the cold, with our pocket money taken away and no longer allowed to go to our friends' houses.

And the only thing left is to teach the children to sing this song, like one of the most famous nannies in the world ...


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