The only viable alternative to a hard Brexit is to remain – let’s take that message to Richmond voters, an activist writes

Tony Blair has called for the debate over Brexit to keep all options open and the Lib Dems have declared the Richmond Park by-election to be all about Remain. Labour MPs, both right and left of the party, are sadly failing our democracy. Political point scoring over the government’s lack of a plan over Brexit means the 48 per cent will be forgotten and that the referendum will be the final say on Brexit.

The question posed on 23 June was “Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union?”. That’s a pretty clear question and the result, on the day, was clear. We voted to be out of the EU. The debate has now descended into what Brexit actually means in terms of what parts of the EU we leave, and what we stay part of, and on what terms.

Yet if we retain some part of the benefits of the EU we would still be “members” of the EU, albeit to a lesser degree. We cannot say we have fulfilled the mandate as interpreted in a common sense manner; only a hard Brexit fully satisfies that definition. Open Britain’s campaign for a lesser degree of membership is neither respecting nor accepting the result of the referendum.

This has been the cause of so much disillusionment because in a democracy, you are allowed to disagree with the result of elections and referenda. The debate doesn’t have to stop there; Labour doesn’t stop talking when it loses a general election. This should be especially so when it comes to major constitutional change. Respecting and accepting the result does not mean saying you agree with it, but for this bit, and then that bit. It means saying ok, you win, at least for today.

That’s why in democracies, we don’t elect a permanent government. We allow the electorate to change their minds every five years in the UK. And in most democracies, where a democratic vote results in permanent constitutional change, there are usually super-majorities, e.g. requiring 60 per cent of the electorate to agree and/or multiple stages of change using both referenda and legislative votes –  federal and state; upper and lower house. This is to protect minorities from permanent change, especially in the case of the majority making a potentially disastrous mistake.

In the UK, without a codified constitution, we just have the debate. But some assumed the debate stopped overnight on the whim of a slim majority; voiced on one single day; on the back of campaigns filled with myths, lies and a general lack of integrity. For Labour, it’s now Brexit or bust.

The failure of Remainers to continue to campaign has undermined British democracy. Chuka Umuna’s argument in Progress magazine that Labour must not twist and turn as political winds change, whilst doing exactly that, was maddening. Jeremy Corbyn – well the less said, the better.

Worse still, for all the grandstanding on market membership and freedom of movement, the bitter reality is that the only option on the table will be a hard and disastrous Brexit. Once article 50 is triggered early next year, we have exactly two years and then we are out; deal or no deal. Some 27 countries must agree the most complicated proposal in human history; Britain then takes it or leaves it. A tiny province in Belgium nearly blocked a relatively simple trade deal between EU and Canada. Anyone dreaming of anything other than a hard Brexit is delusional. The only viable option to a hard Brexit, is Remain. But Labour isn’t calling for that.

In Richmond, a part of the country where 70 per cent voted to Remain, the Lib Dems are seeking centre stage and now have the possibility to reinvigorate the Brexit vs Remain debate as the country discusses the nuances of Brexit for the first time, ever. The public deserves to gather a more informed opinion on Brexit vs Remain than was the case on 23 June. Giving back the 48 per cent their voice is respecting the vote and democracy; assuming Brexit must happen inevitably is not.

Labour MPs, left and right of the party, must stick with their values. Remain was the right position before the referendum; nothing changed just because the public made a mistake.

Mark Rowney is a member of Battersea CLP.