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Brexit, the left behind and the let down : the political abstraction of 'the Economy' and the UK's EU Referendum
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Watson, Matthew (2018) Brexit, the left behind and the let down : the political abstraction of 'the Economy' and the UK's EU Referendum. British Politics, 13 (1). pp. 17-30. doi:10.1057/s41293-017-0062-8
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41293-017-0062-8
Abstract
UK voters’ decision to overturn the country’s European Union membership has left most parliamentarians looking rather distant from the constituents they represent. The politicians staked much on assuming that people would not vote to sabotage their economic self-interest, but this message conspicuously failed to resonate. When politicians spoke in abstract terms about the needs of ‘the economy’, significant numbers understood this to mean labour market conditions that have personally served them badly. It has been commonplace since the referendum to refer to these people as the ‘left behind’. However, they might more usefully be described as the ‘let down’. Since the restructuring of the UK economy in line with global competitiveness norms they have been required to earn their rights as citizens through demonstrating their work readiness. Yet hard work on its own is now no longer sufficient for so many people to receive the rewards promised under the terms of the new social contract. They have been largely abandoned to their fate by the politicians as labour market segmentation has led to a significant expansion of the in-work poor. These people voted in large numbers against continued EU membership. This suggests that the referendum result can be seen at least in part as a revolt against the way in which the abstraction of ‘the economy’ has informed UK politics in recent decades.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||
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| Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Politics and International Studies | ||||||||
| Journal or Publication Title: | British Politics | ||||||||
| Publisher: | Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. | ||||||||
| ISSN: | 1746-918X | ||||||||
| Official Date: | April 2018 | ||||||||
| Dates: |
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| Date of first compliant deposit: | 8 November 2017 | ||||||||
| Volume: | 13 | ||||||||
| Number: | 1 | ||||||||
| Page Range: | pp. 17-30 | ||||||||
| DOI: | 10.1057/s41293-017-0062-8 | ||||||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||||||
| Funder: | Economic and Social Research Council (Great Britain) (ESRC) | ||||||||
| Grant number: | ES/K010697/1 |
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