The Student Room Group

The alternative universe: if Remain had won 52-48

Britain wakes up on Friday 24 June to the news that Remain has won 52-48.

David Cameron makes a speech hailing the result as securing Britain's place at the heart of Europe and in the world, he reminds people of the deal he has secured: this referendum result means there will be no more ever closer union, 4 year limits on the access of EU migrants to benefits, child benefit sent home by EU workers would be paid at the level of their own countries benefits, Britain excluded from any bail out requirements related to the Euro, a commitment to follow a deregulation agenda of the rules in the Single Market.

"This is the right deal for Britain. I love our country, and I always believed that Britain would be stronger, safer, and better off at the heart of the European Union. I know that many in our country felt differently, many felt that the EU is too big, too bureaucratic, undemocratic, I know many had legitimate concerns about immigration. But now is the time to come together in our national interests, and make the relationship between Britain and the EU work for all of us".

Michael Gove and Boris Johnson issue a statement paying tribute to the Prime Minister's courage for letting the country have a referendum, and encourage all Leave voters to now unify behind the Prime Minister.

Andy Burnham, speaking for Labour, says that Labour voters made the difference and it was only thanks to the hard work of the Labour party activists that Remain won. Jeremy Corbyn is asked if he is pleased to be remaining in the EU, he doesn't answer directly but says "we need to make the EU better for working people, we need a social Europe".

Nigel Farage says "This was a political earthquake. The whole establishment was against us, the Westminster elite, the BBC, the so called experts who like telling decent people what they should think, and 48 per cent of us said we wanted to leave the EU. Well I tell you what folks, the EU question isn't going to away and UKIP aren't going anywhere, lets keep up the fight, and in the end, we will win" (raucous cheers from UKIPers behind him)

Nicola Sturgeon says "Scotland overwhelmingly backed Remain, and without Scotland's votes, the UK would have left the EU. This is a clear mandate for the Scottish people to have a second referendum on independence, and we will begin preparing legislation to ensure that the people of Scotland will have their wishes respected".

Leanne Wood welcomes the Remain vote and says "I think what this result clearly says is, the people of Wales want their independence".

Memes start circulating round social media from Remainers making fun of Farage, Gove and Johnson. Meanwhile conspiracy theories start to circulate around the Leave community. One facebook post that goes viral says "EVERYONE READ THIS: at some counts people were rubbing out are votes and changing them to remain, at others people were turned away for wearing Union Jack rosettes because apparently it's racist and mite offend, WAKE UP PEOPLE WE HAVE BIN CONED BY THE ESTABLISMENT". Remainers quickly latch on to this post and start circulating it too with crying face smileys and facepalm images.

Katie Hopkins goes on twitter saying "sorry but sympathy vote for a dead MP is not democracy" and is met by a barrage of offended remainers asking her to delete her account, she responds with "don't come crying to me when your town gets blown up by an EU refugee"

A petition starts circulating from Leave campaigners, demanding that there is a revote and it quickly gets 3 million signatures. The petition is mocked by Remainers and by the Independent's Indy100 website.

Farage suggests that the reason Remain won was because the government extended the deadline for voter registration beyond the originally agreed limit. Long time commited Conservative Brexit MPs complain bitterly about the divisions in the Leave movement, some say it was an "outrage" that Boris Johnson became the frontman of the campaign "he was never really one of us, it was all about advancing his personal profile" while another prominent Tory donor said "its sickening really, we've waited 25 years for his b---y vote and we ****ed it up".

After a week or so, the public at large forgets about the vote and life returns to normal. However, a committed core of the Leave movement begin to make moves against the referendum result. Iain Duncan Smith claims that the way the Government used the Civil Service in the referendum was unconstitutional, denying briefing and advice for Leave ministers and spending £9m on a Remain propaganda leaflet for every household. Conservative Brexiters take legal advice on whether to launch a judicial review, citing several areas where government officials broke purdah rules, with some officials openly campaigning for Remain on social media and Freedom of Information requests suggesting that a number of Remain ministers used or attempted to use government resources for campaigning purposes. The hashtag #Brexcuses starts trending with Remainers laughing at them.

A couple of weeks after the referendum David Cameron announces a reshuffle to "unite the party". Michael Gove is appointed as Deputy, Sajid Javid moves to Chancellor with George Osborne becoming Foreign Secretary. Andrea Leadsome gets the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Boris Johnson gets the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Reply 1

Spoiler

I really enjoyed that! You should make a part 2.
(edited 7 years ago)
Reply 3
We also wouldn't have loads of pointless posts crying about the result either
Reply 4
Original post by Tom_BCFC
We also wouldn't have loads of pointless posts crying about the result either


Lol you're kidding right? :lol:
I would get full marks on that C4 maths exam because I wouldn't be worried about my future
Original post by Serine Soul
I would get full marks on that C4 maths exam because I wouldn't be worried about my future


Same :frown:
And TSR is flooded by people believing they lost due to a sinister pencil conspiracy.
I was planning to post a thread here asking why British people were so comfortable with the EU bureaucracy, and ask about whether exposure to continental cultures had made your people more trusting of elites and the rules they make while eroding historical principles of self-government, etc.

Obviously, the way the vote went makes the question largely invalid.
Reply 9
Original post by Bryci
Lol you're kidding right? :lol:


There would have been some such threads but in far fewer numbers simply because the vast majority of TSR were in favour of remaining
Original post by Mostly_Crazy
Same :frown:


:frown:
Original post by jeremy1988
I was planning to post a thread here asking why British people were so comfortable with the EU bureaucracy, and ask about whether exposure to continental cultures had made your people more trusting of elites and the rules they make while eroding historical principles of self-government, etc.

Obviously, the way the vote went makes the question largely invalid.


If it had gone for Remain it wouldn't have been an endorsement of the EU bureaucracy but that the economic benefits we have from being an EU member are worth sacrificing some sovereignty to the bureaucracy.

Also when people talk about "elites" who do they mean? There's an inconsistency amongst some Leavers who complain about the "out of touch Westminster elite" and at the same time say they want to "take back control" from Europe.

Yes you're taking back control from the European elites and unelected bureaucrats in Brussels, and you're giving that control to Parliament and civil servants in Whitehall and I trust those institutions more than the European ones, but you can't deny the fact that this is a transfer of powers to British elites and establishment. It's not "power to the people", there won't be another referendum in the UK probably in 20 to 30 years.
Blairites STILL launch effort to force Corbyn to resign

"Yes, 93% of Labourites voted Remain...but that 7% made it too close. Jeremy Corbyn has to go"

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Bryci
Lol you're kidding right? :lol:


He has a point. Remainers are crying more than kids in war torn Syria.

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