A million reasons not to leave Europe | Multi …

PageI12 in Great Britain

From London

A million people demonstrated yesterday in London and in other British cities in favor of a new referendum. More than four million people have signed a petition to revoke Article 50 and thus avoid the British exit from the European Union (EU), unless three weeks on April 12, new date than the EU has awarded the UK Brexit.

The fate of the protest is probably no different from that of the most mbadive march in British history in 2003 to oppose the war against Iraq: a strong political impact that did not change the course things. In this case, it contributed to the erosion of democracy in the world, in one of its historical bastions, where Magna Carta and Parliament were created in the 13th century. You can not say that the system has an expiration date, but you will have to check if you do not start to suffer from signs of atherosclerosis.

Among the protesters and in the multiparty participation of political leaders, deputies, mayors, councilors, NGOs and extra-parliamentary groups, there was a mix of challenges and expectations. Lord Andrew Adonis, a former Minister of Labor, explained in the columns that plowed through downtown London that the solution was simply because Parliament had taken over the process. "Theresa May does not have the divine right to presuppose what we think and want.We do not want this agreement that will leave us poorer and more isolated.We do not want this government that humiliated us At the international level and weakened us at the national level, our message to parliamentarians is that it is time for them to take charge of the process, "said Adonis.

The 2016 referendum showed a clear age imbalance – the over 60s in favor of the EU's exit, the under-35s against. Today, about two million Britons who could not vote then could do it. According to surveys, three-quarters would be inclined to stay in the EU, enough to reverse the result.

Lara Spirit, co-chair of "Our Future, Our Choice", a group of young people formed as a result of the last consultation, said the Kingdom's democratic credibility was at stake. "Brexit will hurt our future, it The vast majority of young people opposed in 2016 and many more are opposed today.I was very young at the time of the demonstrations against the war in Iraq.This event did not prevent the war. This marks a deficit in democratic dynamics, but it has made it much more difficult to repeat a war, and politicians who ignore the protest will end up paying a very high price, "Spirit said.

The problem is that Brexit unveiled the British political dynamic. The parliament is fragmented into often irreconcilable tribes and May has lost all control over her party. The deal it has negotiated with the EU has been rejected twice in Parliament, but the government plans to move to a third vote this week if House of Commons President John Bercow authorizes it and if it calculates having a chance to win

In the unlikely event that the same parliament that would have rejected the agreement by 230 votes to 149 in January and March would have changed on Monday or Tuesday, the United Kingdom would remain in the European bloc until the end of the year. May 22 to allow the whole country UK legislation is needed to proceed from the EU. But if there is no vote or if the agreement is rejected for a third time, the exit will take place on April 12, that is to say in a little less three weeks. During this period, the Parliament would have the possibility of making "indicative votes" on the type of exit envisaging the current crisis, in the hope that, if a consensus emerges, the same EU would prolong the period of thanks beyond April 12th.

These "indicative votes" have tastes for all tastes. A new referendum like the one called for in the protest, the repeal of Article 50 (which would leave the UK in the EU), the request of the Scottish separatists, a customs union that would avoid the problem from the Irish border and a brutal tariff jump with Europe, working proposal with some consensus between the parties or the exit without agreement of the hard eurosceptics.

The vote is "indicative", that is, it is not legally binding. May may refuse to adopt this policy, even if it would trigger a constitutional crisis that could end his term, which in any case would count days, weeks or months. But there is also not much time for debate and it is possible that none of these options require the support of a parliamentary majority. More than a decade ago, negotiations for the reform of the House of Lords were negotiated: Parliament agreed on its necessity, but did not reach consensus on the measures to be adopted.

Negotiations between parties will be fundamental to avoid the repetition of this fiasco, which would now have far more devastating consequences. In the middle of this jungle, the danger that an error, a short circuit, a misunderstanding finally devote an involuntary exit without agreement of the European Union, the Hard Brexit, which seeks the hard wing of the conservatives, grows bigger.