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Brexit: ‘Revolt’ against the ‘elites’ or Trojan horse for more deregulation?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2023

Arantza Gomez Arana ,
Jay Rowe ,
Alex de Ruyter ,
Rebecca Semmens-Wheeler  and
Kimberley Hill
Arantza Gomez Arana
Affiliation:
Birmingham City University, UK
Jay Rowe
Affiliation:
Birmingham City University, UK
Alex de Ruyter*
Affiliation:
Birmingham City University, UK
Rebecca Semmens-Wheeler
Affiliation:
Birmingham City University, UK
Kimberley Hill
Affiliation:
University of Northampton, UK
*
Alex de Ruyter, Centre for Brexit Studies, Birmingham City University, I-Centrum Faraday Wharf, 6 Holt Street, Birmingham, B7 4BP, UK. Email: alex.deruyter@bcu.ac.uk
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Abstract

This article explores the UK vote in 2016 to exit the European Union, colloquially known as ‘Brexit’. Brexit has been portrayed as a British backlash against globalisation and a desire for a reassertion of sovereignty by the UK as a nation-state. In this context, a vote to leave the European Union has been regarded by its protagonists as a vote to ‘take back control’ to ‘make our own laws’ and ‘let in [only] who we want’. We take a particular interest in the stance of key ‘Brexiteers’ in the UK towards regulation, with the example of the labour market. The article commences by assessing the notion of Brexit as a means to secure further market liberalisation. This analysis is then followed by an account of migration as a key issue, the withdrawal process and likely future trajectory of Brexit. We argue that in contrast to the expectations of those who voted Leave in 2016, the UK as a mid-sized open economy will be a rule-taker and will either remain in the European regulatory orbit, or otherwise drift into the American one.

Keywords

F2F53F55F66K33BrexitderegulationEuropean Unionimmigrationinequalitymarket regulationnationalismneoliberalismsovereignty
Type
Original Articles
Information
The Economic and Labour Relations Review , Volume 30 , Issue 4: Brexit Wellbeing and Safety , December 2019 , pp. 498 - 512
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2019

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