Brexit is damaging Britain – maybe Leave voters should ‘get over it’

The Resolution Foundation’s report says “Brexit will damage Britain’s competitiveness, hit productivity and dampen workers’ wages for the rest of the decade”.

I wonder how people feel now, who voted to leave the EU, after they said to those of us who voted to remain: “Get over it, you lost.” Are they going to get over it for the next decade?

Diane Graham

Watford

News that Keir Starmer is ruling out freedom of movement with the EU if Labour wins the next general election is clearly disappointing, but not unexpected.

Labour is now clearly just as bad as the Tories on Brexit, which is exacerbating the cost of living crisis, costing Scotland’s economy billions of pounds in lost trade and harming our NHS through increased costs and staffing shortages.

Free movement, alongside the wider benefits of EU membership, are essential to growing our economy, boosting living standards and supporting the staffing of public services. As a result of Brexit, it is clear that the UK is lagging behind other countries.

The irony was that Starmer’s announcement was made at the same time as a report from the Resolution Foundation found that Brexit has damaged Britain’s competitiveness and will further reduce productivity. It is also set to leave the average worker poorer than they otherwise would have been.

Reinforcing these horrendous economic statistics, according to the OECD, the UK is set to have the lowest economic growth of the G20 nations next year, except Russia.

We deserve better than this economic sabotage, and it is heartbreaking to see freedom of movement, one of the EU’s greatest achievements, stolen from Scotland despite our vote to remain.

Alex Orr

Edinburgh

Of course I have more time for Mr Integrity than Mr U-turn Lying Untrustworthy – who wouldn’t? But responding to the needs of the British people ought to be paramount to the office of prime minister. It seems bizarre that an MP, and hopefully future prime minister, would hold different views than espoused.

What MPs think is unimportant. They should do what is best for the country, as directed by the electorate, which is how they can be judged. To think one thing and do another is hypocritical and belies their true nature.

MPs representing a constituency must be in tune with the mainstay of needs of the area, otherwise they will be in conflict with themselves and the electorate.

If, as John Rentoul suggests, Keir Starmer states the converse to that which he believes regarding the EU, then he will display the same contempt for the British people as Mr Johnson so easily does.

Due to this current government that is devoid of integrity, ability and cohesive thought, I have become a lapsed Conservative. When the time comes, I will consider voting for a Labour government, for they display much of what is missing in Boris Johnson’s pack of no-hopers.

Keith Poole

Basingstoke

The UK currently faces two major challenges – one political, the other economic.  Both feed off each other.

The first of these relates to the disdain the government seems to have for normal constitutional procedure. The second is about soaring inflation and industrial discontent.

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There are solutions which, taken together, could form the basis for a progressive agenda for the next general election. The first would involve adopting a written constitution, similar to the one in Germany.

This would cover current concerns, including corruption, and relations between different regions. The second would be concerned with developing journalist Will Hutton’s ideas regularly put forward for a stakeholder economy.

Perhaps Keir Starmer, Ed Davey and Caroline Lucas could issue a joint declaration of support?

Rev Andrew McLuskey

Ashford