After running two divisive campaigns that prioritised lies and half-truths in order to win the Brexit referendum at any cost, both Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage have stepped down. Is anyone prepared to lead Brexit?
The win for the Leave campaign came as a shock to the political class, but what has become increasingly apparent in the days since the result is that those leading both Vote Leave and Leave.EU were woefully unprepared for actually leading the country out of the European Union.
Boris and Farage led campaigns, which variously focused on vicious anti-immigration, vague ideas about sovereignty, and outright lies about the costs of the EU, and now they have been found out they have both cowardly run away from their responsibility and deserted their followers.
Both men led demagogic campaigns – despite one being an Etonian and the other a former banker, they managed to convince those that have been left out of the benefits of globalisation and who feel deserted by the political class that they represent their interests.
The tabloid press delighted in writing headlines about both men during the campaign, and never questioned their increasingly preposterous claims about what a life outside the EU could mean. But now the UK faces troubled waters and needs leadership – both men have deserted. Never leaders, Boris and Farage were propagandists that showered lies upon the electorate, deflecting the disaffection felt by 52% of the population away from themselves towards those without a voice – immigrants.
And now, having returned to the sidelines, neither man will hold his tongue despite resigning his position to speak. They will continue to throw stones, blaming those that do lead for “deserting the Brexit cause” – despite knowing that the promises they made could never be implemented – the £350m figure for NHS investment was fictional, and it was them not immigrants that have caused Britain’s woes.
