Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey’s recent call for the UK to ‘welcome’ closer ties with Europe reeks of a Brexit betrayal. Bailey’s assertion that stronger post-Brexit relations with the EU are essential to stem Britain’s economic decline is not only misguided but also undermines the very essence of the 2016 referendum – the considered and decided will of the people.
The EU, plagued by sluggish growth and internal discord, is hardly the economic powerhouse Bailey suggests. With member states grappling with debt crises and political instability, the bloc’s future is anything but certain. Aligning more closely with such a faltering entity risks dragging the UK down with it.
Bailey’s Europhile stance ignores the vast opportunities awaiting Britain on the global stage. Emerging markets in Asia, Africa, and the Americas offer dynamic growth prospects far surpassing the stagnating EU. By forging more trade deals, and exploiting those now in place with these burgeoning economies, such as the CPTPP deal with a market of 600 million people, the UK can secure its place as a global leader, unshackled from the EU’s bureaucratic constraints. Back in the EU Customs Union, the UK would shackled and have to abandon its global destiny.
The Governor’s defeatist outlook also undermines the UK’s sovereignty. Brexit was a mandate for independence, not a prelude to crawling back to Brussels. Bailey’s push for closer EU ties threatens to erode the very freedoms that Brexit promised, binding Britain to a bloc that has consistently sought to undermine its autonomy.
In championing a return to EU entanglements, Bailey is out of touch with the nation’s aspirations. The UK’s future lies in embracing its newfound independence and seizing global opportunities, not in rekindling a dysfunctional relationship with a declining Europe. It’s time for Britain to look beyond the continent and chart its own course to prosperity.
Those who petulantly insist that Britain cannot succeed, simply underline that the fact that they are not part of the solution, they are simply part of the problem.
