On 29 March 2019, the day the UK was meant to Leave the EU, protesters gathered in Parliament Square to voice their anger at the ‘treachery’ of MPs who have blocked Brexit – so far.
Meanwhile, across the road in the House of Commons, MPs had already voted down prime minister Theresa May’s deal for leaving the EU – for the third time of asking.
For the protesters, this was no great loss. They described it as ‘the worst deal in history’. But they mourned the loss of ‘democracy’ and ‘sovereignty’, and vowed to reclaim them on behalf of the people of Britain.
On stage for the Leave Means Leave campaign were speakers such as Claire Fox (Academy of Ideas), Tim Martin (boss of Wetherspoons), Kate Hoey MP, and, finally, Nigel Farage, who infamously declared the Brexit referendum in June 2016 as ‘our independence day’.
When the Leave Means Leave rally dispersed, attention turned to the other end of the square where Ukip and Tommy Robinson supporters took to a separate stage.
Although they are miles apart on the question of EU membership, what’s striking about both Leavers and Remainers is their outright hostility to the political class which is meant to represent them.
