Britain will have its ‘Trump moment’ if we don’t leave the EU, says former Brexit secretary
Former Brexit Secretary David Davis. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) - Credit: Getty Images
David 'democracy can change its mind' Davis brought a hefty dose of selective outrage to the Brexit debate today..
On BBC's Andrew Marr show today, Mr Davis said any decision not to leave the EU would be a 'democratic disaster'.
Expanding on that, he said: 'Britain would get its Trump moment.
'What happens is that the British people who voted for this, and a large number of remainers who didn't vote for it, but still think it should be carried through because they believe in democracy, will see a government walking away - a parliament walking away from a question that they themselves put to the people.
'Now that will absolutely undermine belief in democracy in this country, and certainly belief in the established political parties.'
You may also want to watch:
Nonetheless, he doesn't plan to vote for Theresa May's deal on Tuesday, calling it 'absolutely dreadful'.
Mr Davis' concern for the state of British democracy has evolved enormously since 2016, when he was entirely more sanguine about the £350million lie plastered on the side of a Vote Leave bus.
Most Read
- 1 Minister terminates interview after suggesting public's age and weight to blame for UK's high death toll
- 2 European parliament agrees to add British overseas territories to post-Brexit tax haven blacklist
- 3 This picture of Boris Johnson on the phone to Joe Biden has caused a stir
- 4 Nigel Farage loses nearly 50,000 followers after Twitter suspends QAnon accounts
- 5 Former Brexit Party MEP dies in diving accident in the Bahamas
- 6 Telegraph columnist blames Angela Merkel for Brexit
- 7 Bob Geldof takes swipe at No 10 saying 'lying is second nature' to them
- 8 Brexiteer calls for UK to save Eurostar - by buying it and renaming it 'Britstar'
- 9 The greatest failure of government in our lifetime
- 10 Tory minister admits UK rejected EU's music visa offer in order to 'take back control' of borders
The Independent reported him saying: 'Look, could anyone tell me a general election in which everything said was capable of being repeated on oath? Answer: no, never.'
Indeed, back in 2012, he said: 'If a democracy cannot change its mind, it ceases to be a democracy,' in a speech to the EU.
Going further back, in 2002, he addressed parliament about the principles aboutreferenda, saying reassuringly: 'Referendums should be held when the electorate are in the best possible position to make a judgment ... We should not ask people to vote on a blank sheet of paper and tell them to trust us to fill in the details afterwards.'
More to the point, though, he added today that any failure to leave the EU would 'massively damage' the Tory party.
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.