England (Commonwealth Union) – Since Brexit took place following a referendum on 23 June 2016, to which the leave camp won by close to 52%, the result was quick to be dragged in to Britain’s current economic crisis. Many remain advocates who voted to stay in the EU have stated that Brexit is largely responsible. However, many leave voters have indicated that the UKs current crisis more of a global crisis, linked to the COVID-19 pandemic which was followed by the lockdowns which devastated small business. The high inflation, together with the Russia – Ukraine war, was also blamed to the current economic crisis which has resulted in higher inflation, leading to increased food and energy prices.
Prior to the Brexit referendum, many Commonwealth nations had felt that the UK was less engaged with the other nations, as the organization consists of 56 nations and a population 2.5 billion people spread across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific. Since the referendum took place, pro-Brexit advocates have also indicated that the process of Brexit was also dragged on.
Kemi Badenoch, currently serving as Britain’s Secretary of State for International Trade, recently defended the free trade deal with Australia and New Zealand when she took questions from an International Trade Committee, which included questions from former environment secretary George Eustice. “There is a whole world out there – just looking inward and saying ‘there is nothing happening except in the EU’ is just not realistic,” said Ms. Badenoch. “It’s the 21st century and other countries all across the globe are growing – we need to strengthen our relationships with them, not pretend they don’t exist.”
Ms. Badenoch also indicated that the full benefits of Brexit were still to come, a point which many pro-Brexit supporters have also emphasized stating that it will take time to adjust to Brexit but in the long run Britain can make its own independent trade deals and see the benefits in the coming years.
