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Brexit, No Exit: Why in the End Britain Won't Leave Europe
The UK's Brexit vote in 2016 and the inconclusive general election just 12
months later have unleashed a wave of chaos and uncertainty - on the eve
of formal negotiations with the EU.
Denis MacShane - former MP and Europe minister under Tony Blair - has
a unique insider perspective on the events that led to the Brexit vote and
ultimately to Theresa May's ill-fated election gamble of June 2017.
He argues that Brexit will not mean full rupture with Europe and that
British business will overcome the rightwing forces of the Conservative
back-benches and UKIP, which have already been weakened by the latest
election. Although negotiations with the EU may prove excruciating,
Britain cannot and will not divorce itself from the continent of Europe.
Indeed, the European question will remain the defining political issue of
our time.
months later have unleashed a wave of chaos and uncertainty - on the eve
of formal negotiations with the EU.
Denis MacShane - former MP and Europe minister under Tony Blair - has
a unique insider perspective on the events that led to the Brexit vote and
ultimately to Theresa May's ill-fated election gamble of June 2017.
He argues that Brexit will not mean full rupture with Europe and that
British business will overcome the rightwing forces of the Conservative
back-benches and UKIP, which have already been weakened by the latest
election. Although negotiations with the EU may prove excruciating,
Britain cannot and will not divorce itself from the continent of Europe.
Indeed, the European question will remain the defining political issue of
our time.
- GenresPoliticsNonfiction
256 pages, Paperback
Published September 26, 2017
2 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
About the author
Denis MacShane
27 books6 followersBritish MP for the Labour Party (1994-2012) and Labour minister and UK Minister of State for Europe.
MacShane was a supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, is pro-Israel and Nuclear Power.
In 2012 he resigned after it was found he he had submitted 19 false expenses invoices.
MacShane was a supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, is pro-Israel and Nuclear Power.
In 2012 he resigned after it was found he he had submitted 19 false expenses invoices.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 27, 2017
Macshane covers the inconvenient truths thrown up by brexit, there's no easy way of leaving and no wonderful nirvana waiting for the UK. The world is not like that.
The background is covered, the promises vs the realities. Slogans, lies and lack of understanding have led to this point. What happens next if the promised land does not appear?
Informative and interesting. There is a lot covered but I found Macshane's style easy and this book held my attention. This subject is going to be with us for years so hopefully this book gets a wide audience.
The background is covered, the promises vs the realities. Slogans, lies and lack of understanding have led to this point. What happens next if the promised land does not appear?
Informative and interesting. There is a lot covered but I found Macshane's style easy and this book held my attention. This subject is going to be with us for years so hopefully this book gets a wide audience.
March 24, 2018
The title is a bit of a cheat, in that MacShane doesn't argue that Brexit will be called off (though he thinks it's possible and, subject to certain conditions, desirable.
The book itself has substance, without being comprehensive. It's fairly readable, although for an apparently smart guy he drops a few linguistic and stylistic clangers (I'm afraid as often I'm reviewing from memory and failed to note down any examples). But of course - as I learned a while ago - you don't have to be an elegant stylist to have something interesting to say, and MacShane does. Plenty of facts, plenty of strong arguments, a lot of justified anger at the lies told by the Leave campaign and the spinelessness and ignorance of, in particular, the BBC in allowing them to get away with those lies barely challenged - sometimes out of deference to a misunderstanding of the concept of 'balance', and sometimes because they simply didn't have the facts at their fingertips to call out the lies as they were chucked around.
Worth a read. Especially in the unlikely event that the reader voted for Brexit.
The book itself has substance, without being comprehensive. It's fairly readable, although for an apparently smart guy he drops a few linguistic and stylistic clangers (I'm afraid as often I'm reviewing from memory and failed to note down any examples). But of course - as I learned a while ago - you don't have to be an elegant stylist to have something interesting to say, and MacShane does. Plenty of facts, plenty of strong arguments, a lot of justified anger at the lies told by the Leave campaign and the spinelessness and ignorance of, in particular, the BBC in allowing them to get away with those lies barely challenged - sometimes out of deference to a misunderstanding of the concept of 'balance', and sometimes because they simply didn't have the facts at their fingertips to call out the lies as they were chucked around.
Worth a read. Especially in the unlikely event that the reader voted for Brexit.
December 21, 2017
The book describes the underpinnings which led to the Brexit vote in 2016. It fails, however, to offer a clear way forward on how Britain may avert this self inflicted disaster.
October 16, 2017
A former Europe minister under Tony Blair’s government – later disgraced by an expenses scandal – MacShane is passionate and informed. Yet his unwieldy book is destined to be read by only the converted, who will learn sadly little from this monotonous tome. Put simply - anyone with enough interest in the Brexit tragedy will have been following it contemporaneously, and the bulk of MacShane's arguments and statistics will be painfully familiar, long before he bangs the reader over the head with them, over and again.
Clearly hurried for release, and clunkily rewritten following May's surprise election disaster, it is neither clear and concise, nor in any way definitive – lacking the considered perspective of an authoritative account for the age – while the writer's leaden prose and endlessly repetitive style betray not just the speed with which this work was both written, but how quickly it will become irrelevant.
Lastly, the title, clearly cooked up by the publishers, is really in no way accurate – aside from imperfect comparisons to rejected Swiss and Danish referendum results, there's little to chew on which will truly give Remainers hope – a commodity right now in the shortest of supply.
Yes, MacShane "predicted Brexit" – a fact this book likes to remind us of – but he offers precious little authority, and certainly no grand roadmap, on how we might avoid the impending catastrophe. I would have strongly doubted this sentence is one I might ever write, but let’s hope there’s more meat, hope and clarity in Nick Clegg’s newly announced work on the same subject (titled with typical flair How To Stop Brexit (And Make Britain Great Again)).
Clearly hurried for release, and clunkily rewritten following May's surprise election disaster, it is neither clear and concise, nor in any way definitive – lacking the considered perspective of an authoritative account for the age – while the writer's leaden prose and endlessly repetitive style betray not just the speed with which this work was both written, but how quickly it will become irrelevant.
Lastly, the title, clearly cooked up by the publishers, is really in no way accurate – aside from imperfect comparisons to rejected Swiss and Danish referendum results, there's little to chew on which will truly give Remainers hope – a commodity right now in the shortest of supply.
Yes, MacShane "predicted Brexit" – a fact this book likes to remind us of – but he offers precious little authority, and certainly no grand roadmap, on how we might avoid the impending catastrophe. I would have strongly doubted this sentence is one I might ever write, but let’s hope there’s more meat, hope and clarity in Nick Clegg’s newly announced work on the same subject (titled with typical flair How To Stop Brexit (And Make Britain Great Again)).
August 15, 2019
A fantastic introductory book about Brexit and the potential consequences of Brexit under a hardline stance that anti-EU proponents have insisted on. It was interesting to read about his brief-analysis regarding the Post-Brexit, as part of hindsight after the change of British premiership post-Theresa May. Although most of his in book commentary seemed more like tidbit sized updates and follow-ups than fresh political opinion, Macshane has made the book easy to read from page to page.
November 15, 2020
I read this quite a while ago so I can't remember too much. But I do remember I struggled to be immersed. It's an informative book and helps you understand what went on during the lead-up to the referendum etc, but I feel like the title was slightly misleading. Overall it was educational, but I think there are better books out there surrounding the topic.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews