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To say that Brexit has been one of the most divisive issues in recent British history would be an understatement. The battle lines were drawn between Leave and Remain before the historic 2016 vote that saw the UK – finally – leave the EU. But six years on, reality is setting in and some of Brexit’s staunchest campaigners – including the heads of the UK’s biggest employers – are beginning to change their tune. From immigration reforms to drastic travel changes, some who campaigned hard to leave the bloc are now saying “this is not the Brexit we wanted”. We look at some of the most vocal Leavers who have voiced their frustrations and perhaps not getting what they wanted.
Lord of the Next Simon Wolfson
Lord Simon Wolfson, boss of retail giant Next, now wants more foreign workers (Average PA) Lord Simon Wolfson, who was a prominent Brexit supporter, now says the UK’s current immigration policy is hindering economic growth. The retail boss said firms should pay tax to employ foreign workers, to encourage them to hire from the UK first. Lord Wolfson told the BBC: “We have people queuing to come into this country to pick crops that are rotting in the fields, to work in warehouses that wouldn’t otherwise be able to work, and we’re not letting them in. “And we need to take a different approach to economically productive immigration.” Commenting in The Times during the Leave campaign, Lord Wolfson said Britain must “trust the effort of Britain’s 30 million workforce”. The peer is now calling on the UK government to open its borders to more foreign workers.
Tim Martin of JD Wetherspoons
Wetherspoons boss Tim Martin pushed for No Deal (PA file) Tim Martin campaigned for a hard Brexit, including leaving the single market and ending the freedom of movement that comes with it. Fast forward to 2021 and he urged former Prime Minister Boris Johnson to create a “reasonably liberal” visa system to encourage foreign workers to relocate to the UK. During the referendum, Wetherspoon’s boss warned that staying in the EU would lead to “significant adverse economic consequences” and described as “disasters” those warning of the financial damage that cutting ties with the biggest and closest trading partner would cause. our partner. Arguing for a no-deal Brexit in 2019, Mr Martin said: “I have argued that the UK – and therefore Wetherspoon – would benefit from a free trade approach, avoiding a ‘deal’ involving paying £39bn to the EU .” In October, the company posted a £30m loss as it struggled to get back on track after the pandemic The business faces “a significant challenge” in convincing pub crawlers to return to its bars after they became accustomed to drinking cheap supermarket beer during Covid, the company’s boss said.
Patisserie Valerie’s Luke Johnson
Luke Johnson said Brexit was a ‘disappointment’ Luke Johnson, chairman of bakery chain Patisserie Valerie and former head of Pizza Express, was another figure who supported Brexit but was less than impressed by the reality once it happened. Speaking in a debate on the Today program in August, he said Brexit was a “disappointment”. Johnson has been a staunch Brexit supporter saying the decision to leave the EU would see British businesses thrive in the new environment. But when asked about the impact of Brexit on the UK economy, he admitted that it has cost us growth before adding: “I think, though, if we spent our lives punishing ourselves and fighting the last war over Brexit, we’re not going to score progress. .” However, while he said Brexit had created problems for trade, he was confident the problems could be overcome and the situation with foreign worker shortages was not as bad as reported.
Brexit-supporting bosses – then moved their residence to another country
Sir James Dyson moved his residence from the UK – and then back again (PA file) Sir James Dyson and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have both come under fire after moving their residences out of the UK after backing Brexit. When Dyson boss Sir James announced in 2019 that his company would move its global headquarters to Singapore from Britain, he was accused of hypocrisy. He had previously argued ahead of the Brexit referendum that the UK would gain more from leaving the EU than it would lose. However, in a later interview with the BBC, he said: “We’re a British company – I’ve put a lot into this country. “I can’t make things here and bring all the parts from the Far East here, assemble them here and then ship them back to the Far East. This just doesn’t work.” In 2021 he changed his residence back to the UK. Sir Jim Ratcliffe also moved his residence to another country (PA file) In 2020, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the UK’s richest man and high-profile Brexiteer, changed his tax residence from Hampshire to tax-free Monaco. Ahead of the Leave vote, Sir Jim lent vocal support to the campaign saying: “The British are perfectly capable of running the British and they don’t need Brussels to tell them how to run things.” Former Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable described the petrochemical boss’s move as “deeply cynical”. “The idea that we should be knighting people who have no commitment to this country is rather disgraceful,” he said.
