Time for struggling Britain to swallow its pride and return to the EU fold

Post-Brexit Britain finds itself in dire economic straits, with crushed delusions of global glory and disappointed hopes of US support
Yet if it seizes this moment to rejoin the EU – currently grappling with the Ukraine war and US trade policy – it may just find itself welcomed back with open arms

Terry Su

Published: 3:30am, 28 Feb 2023

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I wrote some two years ago that “it could be three, five or 10 years before Britain rejoins the EU” and “giving up the pound could be a key part of the deal”. I stand by the judgment.

Interestingly, Guy Verhofstadt, former chief Brexit negotiator of the European Parliament, recently spoke along similar lines when he tweeted about his “dream” of Britain, together with Ukraine, “joining the EU in the next five years”.

Indeed, it is in its own interest that London moves towards rejoining the European Union. Britain, standing alone as it does now, is hardly going anywhere, while it should see profit in returning to the fold.

By the time former prime minister Boris Johnson was forced out of No 10 Downing Street last September, Brexit was done with and “Global Britain” was being promoted as an alternative to the EU, which the UK had turned its back on following the referendum in June 2016.

With subsequent trade agreement initiatives turning out to be little more than a collection of ornamental non-events, London has found itself in dire economic, financial and diplomatic straits – so much so that some commentators have pronounced post-Brexit Britain “the sick man of Europe”. Even India, its former “crown jewel” colony, overtook it to become the world’s fifth-largest economy in GDP terms last year.

As for the US, not only does it refuse to extend a helping hand to its most faithful follower on the international scene, it even has no qualms about bashing London when it executes policies Washington doesn’t like.

A man passes a closed shop in the city centre of Leeds, in the UK, on November 25, 2022. Photo: Bloomberg

Former prime minister Liz Truss’ botched “trickle-down” economic plan caused her downfall last October after only seven weeks in office, the shortest in modern Britain’s political history. That America was not to be counted on was exhibited when President Joe Biden called her policies “a mistake”.

Like the trade agreements premised on the “Global Britain” formula, the UK’s Indo-Pacific tilt – with much emphasis on defence goals – was merely the other political démarche taken by the Johnson cabinet to justify its execution of the Brexit deal, and to comfort its confused population into believing their sepia-tinted longing for the old empire days could somehow be fulfilled in a Britain no longer constrained by Brussels.

The reason for the failure of these plans is simple: Britain can’t afford them, given its current moderate size in all the major measurements, although it is admirable that it puts on a brave face as life goes on in the wake of the Brexit blunder.

Now, a window of opportunity is presenting itself amid the evolving reality in global geopolitics, and it is up to the UK to grasp it, instead of sticking to delusional makeshifts under the pretence of “Global Britain”: namely, get back into the EU and remain a key part.

It is increasingly clear that America is determined to strengthen its hold on Europe in its avowed global contest with China and in its relentless manoeuvres to suppress Russia’s aspiration of being integrated into Europe.

Caught between a rock and a hard place, especially with the war still raging in Ukraine, the EU groans and wobbles but perseveres in guarding its identity and interests. And, it is at this juncture when Britain’s return would be most welcome, like the proverbial prodigal son.

Richard Corbett (right), former UK member of the European Parliament, holds up a scarf with the words “Always United” in Brussels ahead of Britain’s exit from the EU on January 29, 2020. Photo: dpa

Seizing this chance, Britain will land in a no-lose position. In the short to medium term, the UK’s return will doubtless be a shot in the arm for Brussels. Longer term, in the event of Russia boosting its status with strategic backup from China and, consequently, the US showing signs of beating a retreat from Europe, Britain will emerge as a pivotal member of a truly integrated Europe, without necessarily losing its other Churchillian circles of diplomacy, namely America and the Commonwealth.

Admittedly, a U-turn on Brexit could prove difficult, especially in the current political and cultural atmosphere in which populist politicians, full of emotion but devoid of reasoning, tend to carry the day. But parliamentarians in London need to show their ability to lead and coordinate at this historical moment, learning from their own dereliction of duty over the Brexit referendum.

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Could Johnson make a comeback to drive the U-turn? An unlikely choice perhaps, but he did demonstrate his political acumen and stamina in getting Britain out of the post-Brexit uncertainty and trying to jump-start his country. However, he should also be blamed for not having continued with his predecessor Theresa May’s Fabian policy to nullify Brexit, thus culling a monster that was wrongly conceived in the first place.

What about Johnson’s confidante since their Oxford days, Michael Gove, a prominent former cabinet member who comes close in terms of political sophistication, opportunism and moral adventurism? Whoever the person is, though, current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak doesn’t seem up to the task.

Or perhaps, to borrow from Baron Michael Heseltine, dubbed “the lion of Remain” in the Brexit debate, the Conservatives need to lose the next general election to “heal divisions” in the nation on this matter of such importance to them.

Terry Su is president of Lulu Derivation Data Ltd, a Hong Kong-based online publishing house and think tank specialising in geopolitics