What do you think?
Rate this book
Far from Eutopia
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 13, 2026
It’s difficult to think about what Brexit has actually done, all these years later. Is our economy growing slower than before? No, actually. In fact, it’s growing quicker than Germany’s. But then again, are we doing as well as the States? God do we all wish. No, Brexit wasn’t a calamity that wrecked our economy. It also wasn’t a brilliant liberalising moment that saved us from the carnage of excessive regulation. And that’s what this is largely about.
Many of the chapters are formatted in the following way: popular conception (or misconception) of Britain’s flaws, followed by evidence that these flaws exist both in Britain and in Europe, sometimes worse in Europe. It’s a good style to refute the nonsense you sometimes hear from people further to the left that Brexit forever destroyed us and that Europe is a haven of goodness and culture. But a rather striking result of this style of writing is its ability to show how bad both of us are doing - and where we really need change. As Clark says at the very end of the book, what was the point of leaping through Brexit if we aren’t at least going to do something with it?
Because the fact is - Remainer or Brexiteer - regulations in both groups have squandered our potential and sent huge industries straight to the US instead, who then reap the economic benefits (both growth and employment). Clark does an excellent job showing how both of our parts of the world are flawed. There is a solution, he posits: a sovereign wealth fund, greater mindfulness in savings, cutting needless red tape and bureaucracy, fostering innovation. These are, of course, steps that no government has made since 2016.
Brexit was by no means the dumbest or smartest decision in British history. If anything, it’s something of a mixed bag. We have a higher growth rate than Germany or France, but we’re not world-beaters with insane wealth either. We’re doing well. Perhaps we’d be better in Europe, perhaps we’d be as bad as Germany if we’d stayed. Models that ‘predict’ this type of thing are pseudoscientific at best. Regardless, we need to do something with Brexit. Burnham and Starmer have both made it clear they don’t want to rejoin - and the only party that officially backs that is the Lib Dems anyway. So if we’re staying out, let’s do something with it. All the potential, all the chances, and we’re just sat there. We don’t need a nanny state, we don’t need more regulation. We can foster growth in ways the EU can’t. But I think the question in the minds of many politically-minded Britons is: when will we do that?
Burnham’s LVT and 45% gains tax are the opposite. Truss’ decision to not consider the bond markets was also monumentally stupid. We appear to be going the wrong way. May we soon sort ourselves out.
Many of the chapters are formatted in the following way: popular conception (or misconception) of Britain’s flaws, followed by evidence that these flaws exist both in Britain and in Europe, sometimes worse in Europe. It’s a good style to refute the nonsense you sometimes hear from people further to the left that Brexit forever destroyed us and that Europe is a haven of goodness and culture. But a rather striking result of this style of writing is its ability to show how bad both of us are doing - and where we really need change. As Clark says at the very end of the book, what was the point of leaping through Brexit if we aren’t at least going to do something with it?
Because the fact is - Remainer or Brexiteer - regulations in both groups have squandered our potential and sent huge industries straight to the US instead, who then reap the economic benefits (both growth and employment). Clark does an excellent job showing how both of our parts of the world are flawed. There is a solution, he posits: a sovereign wealth fund, greater mindfulness in savings, cutting needless red tape and bureaucracy, fostering innovation. These are, of course, steps that no government has made since 2016.
Brexit was by no means the dumbest or smartest decision in British history. If anything, it’s something of a mixed bag. We have a higher growth rate than Germany or France, but we’re not world-beaters with insane wealth either. We’re doing well. Perhaps we’d be better in Europe, perhaps we’d be as bad as Germany if we’d stayed. Models that ‘predict’ this type of thing are pseudoscientific at best. Regardless, we need to do something with Brexit. Burnham and Starmer have both made it clear they don’t want to rejoin - and the only party that officially backs that is the Lib Dems anyway. So if we’re staying out, let’s do something with it. All the potential, all the chances, and we’re just sat there. We don’t need a nanny state, we don’t need more regulation. We can foster growth in ways the EU can’t. But I think the question in the minds of many politically-minded Britons is: when will we do that?
Burnham’s LVT and 45% gains tax are the opposite. Truss’ decision to not consider the bond markets was also monumentally stupid. We appear to be going the wrong way. May we soon sort ourselves out.
Displaying 1 of 1 review